A heat engine receives heat from a source at 1600 K at a rate of 400 kW and rejects the waste heat to a medium at 400 K. If the power output from the heat engine is 200 kW, the irreversibility rate for the process is :

The correct answer is (a).

The irreversibility rate is the difference between the heat input and the work output of the heat engine. In this case, the heat input is 400 kW and the work output is 200 kW, so the irreversibility rate is 400 kW – 200 kW = 200 kW.

Option (b) is incorrect because it is the work output of the heat engine. Option (c) is incorrect because it is the heat input to the heat engine. Option (d) is incorrect because it is the sum of the heat input and the work output of the heat engine.