Abstract: A method and system for improving the efficiency of a Rankine cycle. The system comprises an accumulator that stores a working fluid, a feed pump that pumps the working fluid from the accumulator into a boiler for heating the working fluid to form a dry saturated vapor. The system includes a turbine that expands the dry saturated vapor for generating power and condensing the dry saturated vapor into a volume of wet vapor, at least one vortex tube separating the wet vapor into a higher temperature component (TH) at hot side and a lower temperature component (TC) at cold side. The system further includes at least one heat exchanger for exchanging heat from the higher to lower temperature components. The vortex tube is adaptable to function in multiple configurations to increase the change in higher and lower temperature components by reducing the quantitative value of the lower temperature component.

Abstract: A high-temperature, regulated power supply uses wide band gap transistors to drive a Royer circuit. Pulses output from the Royer circuit are gated through a pulse width modulator to control the duty cycle of wide band gap transistors that drive an output transformer. The output of the transformer is rectified and filtered to provide the regulated D.C. output voltage. Regulation is accomplished by sampling the output voltage, comparing it to a reference voltage and using the difference between the output voltage and the reference voltage to control the pulse width modulator. High temperature operability is provided by using wide band gap transistors and iron or steel core transformers. This technique also provides a radiation hard assembly.