Geothermal Risk Reduction via Geothermal/Solar Hybrid Power Plants. Final Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wendt, Daniel [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Mines, Greg [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Turchi, Craig [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Zhu, Guangdong [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

2015-11-01

There are numerous technical merits associated with a renewable geothermal-solar hybrid plant concept. The performance of air-cooled binary plants is lowest when ambient temperatures are high due to the decrease in air-cooled binary plant performance that occurs when the working fluid condensing temperature, and consequently the turbine exhaust pressure, increases. Electrical power demand is generally at peak levels during periods of elevated ambient temperature and it is therefore especially important to utilities to be able to provide electrical power during these periods. The time periods in which air-cooled binary geothermal power plant performance is lowest generally correspond to periods of high solar insolation. Use of solar heat to increase air-cooled geothermal power plant performance during these periods can improve the correlation between power plant output and utility load curves. While solar energy is a renewable energy source with long term performance that can be accurately characterized, on shorter time scales of hours or days it can be highly intermittent. Concentrating solar power (CSP), aka solar-thermal, plants often incorporate thermal energy storage to ensure continued operation during cloud events or after sunset. Hybridization with a geothermal power plant can eliminate the need for thermal storage due to the constant availability of geothermal heat. In addition to the elimination of the requirement for solar thermal storage, the ability of a geothermal/solar-thermal hybrid plant to share a common power block can reduce capital costs relative to separate, stand-alone geothermal and solar-thermal power plant installations. The common occurrence of long-term geothermal resource productivity decline provides additional motivation to consider the use of hybrid power plants in geothermal power production. Geothermal resource productivity decline is a source of significant risk in geothermal power generation. Many, if not all, geothermal resources

Theseus, the 50 MW solar thermal power plant; Das solarthermische 50-MW-Kraftwerk Theseus

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brakmann, G. [Fichtner GmbH und Co. KG, Stuttgart (Germany). Solarenergieprojekte

1998-04-01

The Isle of Crete measures 8331 km{sup 2}, and this island renowned for its historical sites attracts millions of tourists every year. Like any other branch of industry, tourism, which is called a ``white`` industry, has an ever growing demand for electric power. Up to now, electricity generation on the island is based on fossil-fuelled thermal power plants. However, recent developments indicate that this technology might be overtaken soon by the novel Theseus power plant (Thermal Solar European Power Station) currently under construction. It is expected to usher in a new era of power generation on the Isle of Crete. (orig./CB) [Deutsch] Die 8 331 km{sup 2} grosse Insel Kreta wurde vor ueber 3 500 Jahren besiedelt. Der geschichtstraechtige Ort ist ein hochgeschaetztes Reiseziel von Millionen Griechenlandurlaubern. Wie jede Art von Industrie, so benoetigt auch die als `weisse Industrie` bezeichnete Touristikbranche immer mehr elektrische Energie. Diese wird derzeit auf Kreta ausschliesslich mit thermischen Kraftwerken, welche fossile Brennstoffe verbrennen, erzeugt. Aber die Vorherrschaft dieser Technologie kann schon bald mit dem neuen solarthermischen Kraftwerk Theseus (Thermal Solar European Power Station) gebrochen werden. Es soll in wenigen Jahren eine neue Aera der Energieerzeugung auf Kreta einlaeuten. (orig.)

Solar thermal power stations for activities implemented jointly. The Theseus 50 MWe solar thermal power plant for the island of Crete, Greece

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brakmann, Georg [Fichtner, Stuttgart (Germany); Aringhoff, Rainer [Pilkington Solar International (United Kingdom); Cobi, Arend [PreussenElektra (Germany)

1998-09-01

THESEUS, the proposed commercial 50 MWe (net) Thermal Solar European Power Station for the Island of Crete is a solar hybrid plant with parabolic trough collectors and an advanced high efficiency Rankine reheat steam cycle. At the end of 1996 the DG XVII (Energy) of the European Commission has accepted the THERMIE application of the THESEUS consortium for the design phase. THESEUS reduces the required oil imports by 28 000 t/a, thereby saving the Greek economy every year 4 million ECU in foreign currency. During its 25 years technical lifetime 2.2 million tons of CO{sub 2} emissions will be avoided. Supply, construction, erection and operation of THESEUS creates 2 000 qualified employments (man-years). Because of the high manpower intensity of solar plants and their larger capital income from interest payments in contrast to the high fuel import intensity of fossil plants, THESEUS will generate larger tax revenues for Greece and for the supplier`s countries. The investment cost of THESEUS is some 135 million ECU. Even without any subsidies this would result in electricity generation cost of some 0.085 ECY/kWh, which is lower than the current average cost from the existing power plants of Crete. (author)

Hybrid solar central receiver for combined cycle power plant

Science.gov (United States)

Bharathan, Desikan; Bohn, Mark S.; Williams, Thomas A.

1995-01-01

A hybrid combined cycle power plant including a solar central receiver for receiving solar radiation and converting it to thermal energy. The power plant includes a molten salt heat transfer medium for transferring the thermal energy to an air heater. The air heater uses the thermal energy to preheat the air from the compressor of the gas cycle. The exhaust gases from the gas cycle are directed to a steam turbine for additional energy production.

Optimal offering strategy for a concentrating solar power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dominguez, R.; Baringo, L.; Conejo, A.J.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Concentrating solar power (CSP) plants are becoming economically viable. ► CSP production is positively correlated with the demand. ► CSP plants can be made dispatchable by using molten salt storage facilities. ► Integrating CSP plants in a market constitutes a relevant challenge. -- Abstract: This paper provides a methodology to build offering curves for a concentrating solar power plant. This methodology takes into account the uncertainty in the thermal production from the solar field and the volatility of market prices. The solar plant owner is a price-taker producer that participates in a pool-based electricity market with the aim of maximizing its expected profit. To enhance the value of the concentrating solar power plant, a molten salt heat storage is considered, which allows producing electricity during periods without availability of the solar resource. To derive offering curves, a mixed-integer linear programming model is proposed, which is robust from the point of view of the uncertainty associated with the thermal production of the solar field and stochastic from the point of view of the uncertain market prices.

Thermal performance prediction and sensitivity analysis for future deployment of molten salt cavity receiver solar power plants in Algeria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boudaoud, S.; Khellaf, A.; Mohammedi, K.; Behar, O.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Performance of power plant with molten salt cavity receiver is assessed. • A method has been used to optimize the plant solar multiple, capacity factor and LEC. • Comparison of the simulated results to those of PS20 has shown good agreement. • Higher fossil fuel fraction reduces the LEC and increases the capacity factor. • Highland and Sahara regions are suitable for CRS plants deployment. - Abstract: Of all Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) technologies available today, the molten salt solar power plant appears to be the most important option for providing a major share of the clean and renewable electricity needed in the future. In the present paper, a technical and economic analysis for the implementation of a probable molten salt cavity receiver thermal power plant in Algeria has been carried out. In order to do so, we have investigated the effect of solar field size, storage capacity factor, solar radiation intensity, hybridization and power plant capacity on the thermal efficiency and electricity cost of the selected plant. The system advisor model has been used to perform the technical performance and the economic assessment for different locations (coastal, highland and Sahara regions) in Algeria. Taking into account various factors, a method has been applied to optimize the solar multiple and the capacity factor of the plant, to get a trade-off between the incremental investment costs of the heliostat field and the thermal energy storage. The analysis has shown that the use of higher fossil fuel fraction significantly reduces the levelized electricity cost (LEC) and sensibly increases the capacity factor (CF). The present study indicates that hybrid molten salt solar tower power technology is very promising. The CF and the LEC have been found to be respectively of the order of 71% and 0.35 $/kW e . For solar-only power plants, these parameters are respectively about 27% and 0.63 $/kW e . Therefore, hybrid central receiver systems are

Solar thermal aided power generation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu, Eric; Yang, YongPing; Nishimura, Akira; Yilmaz, Ferdi; Kouzani, Abbas

2010-01-01

Fossil fuel based power generation is and will still be the back bone of our world economy, albeit such form of power generation significantly contributes to global CO 2 emissions. Solar energy is a clean, environmental friendly energy source for power generation, however solar photovoltaic electricity generation is not practical for large commercial scales due to its cost and high-tech nature. Solar thermal is another way to use solar energy to generate power. Many attempts to establish solar (solo) thermal power stations have been practiced all over the world. Although there are some advantages in solo solar thermal power systems, the efficiencies and costs of these systems are not so attractive. Alternately by modifying, if possible, the existing coal-fired power stations to generate green sustainable power, a much more efficient means of power generation can be reached. This paper presents the concept of solar aided power generation in conventional coal-fired power stations, i.e., integrating solar (thermal) energy into conventional fossil fuelled power generation cycles (termed as solar aided thermal power). The solar aided power generation (SAPG) concept has technically been derived to use the strong points of the two technologies (traditional regenerative Rankine cycle with relatively higher efficiency and solar heating at relatively low temperature range). The SAPG does not only contribute to increase the efficiencies of the conventional power station and reduce its emission of the greenhouse gases, but also provides a better way to use solar heat to generate the power. This paper presents the advantages of the SAPG at conceptual level.

Tax Revenue and Job Benefits from Solar Thermal Power Plants in Nye County

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kuver, Walt

2009-11-10

The objective of this report is to establish a common understanding of the financial benefits that the County will receive as solar thermal power plants are developed in Amargosa Valley. Portions of the tax data and job estimates in the report were provided by developers Solar Millennium and Abengoa Solar in support of the effort. It is hoped that the resulting presented data will be accepted as factual reference points for the ensuing debates and financial decisions concerning these development projects.

Location Study of Solar Thermal Power Plant in the State of Pernambuco Using Geoprocessing Technologies and Multiple-Criteria Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Verônica Wilma B. Azevêdo

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Solar Thermal Technology for the generation of electricity in large scale has been a reality in the world since the 1980s, when the first large-sized solar plants in the United States were introduced. Brazil presents great potential for the development of large-scale projects, although it is noted that the main barriers for the insertion of this technology in Brazilian market are the lack of incentives and goals and associated costs. In a way to contribute to the insertion of solar thermal technology in Brazil, this paper presents a macro-spatial approach, based on the use of Multiple-Criteria Decision Analysis and Geoprocessing, for the location of solar thermal power plants. The applied methodology for Pernambuco, located in the Northeast Region of Brazil, considered the implantation of parabolic trough solar power plant of 80 MW, operating only in solar mode, without heat storage. Based on performed analysis, it was confirmed that Pernambuco presents great potential for the installation of solar power plants, especially in the backlands of Pernambuco. Performed validations in the model demonstrate that the methodology attended the objective once the consistence between the assigned weights to the thematic layers, individually, and the final Map of site suitability were evidenced.

Use of a Geothermal-Solar Hybrid Power Plant to Mitigate Declines in Geothermal Resource Productivity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dan Wendt; Greg Mines

2014-09-01

Many, if not all, geothermal resources are subject to decreasing productivity manifested in the form of decreasing brine temperature, flow rate, or both during the life span of the associated power generation project. The impacts of resource productivity decline on power plant performance can be significant; a reduction in heat input to a power plant not only decreases the thermal energy available for conversion to electrical power, but also adversely impacts the power plant conversion efficiency. The reduction in power generation is directly correlated to a reduction in revenues from power sales. Further, projects with Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) contracts in place may be subject to significant economic penalties if power generation falls below the default level specified. A potential solution to restoring the performance of a power plant operating from a declining productivity geothermal resource involves the use of solar thermal energy to restore the thermal input to the geothermal power plant. There are numerous technical merits associated with a renewable geothermal-solar hybrid plant in which the two heat sources share a common power block. The geo-solar hybrid plant could provide a better match to typical electrical power demand profiles than a stand-alone geothermal plant. The hybrid plant could also eliminate the stand-alone concentrated solar power plant thermal storage requirement for operation during times of low or no solar insolation. This paper identifies hybrid plant configurations and economic conditions for which solar thermal retrofit of a geothermal power plant could improve project economics. The net present value of the concentrated solar thermal retrofit of an air-cooled binary geothermal plant is presented as functions of both solar collector array cost and electricity sales price.

A performance analysis of solar chimney thermal power systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Al-Dabbas Awwad Mohammed

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study was to evaluate the solar chimney performance theoretically (techno-economic. A mathematical model was developed to estimate the following parameter: Power output, Pressure drop across the turbine, the max chimney height, Airflow temperature, and the overall efficiency of solar chimney. The mathematical model was validated with experimental data from the prototype in Manzanares power. It can be concluded that the differential pressure of collector-chimney transition section in the system, is increase with the increase of solar radiation intensity. The specific system costs are between 2000 Eur/kW and 5000 Eur/kW depending on the system size, system concept and storage size. Hence, a 50 MWe solar thermal power plant will cost 100-250 Eur million. At very good sites, today’s solar thermal power plants can generate electricity in the range of 0.15 Eur/kWh, and series production could soon bring down these costs below 0.10 Eur /kWh.

Thermal energy storage for CSP (Concentrating Solar Power)

Science.gov (United States)

Py, Xavier; Sadiki, Najim; Olives, Régis; Goetz, Vincent; Falcoz, Quentin

2017-07-01

The major advantage of concentrating solar power before photovoltaic is the possibility to store thermal energy at large scale allowing dispatchability. Then, only CSP solar power plants including thermal storage can be operated 24 h/day using exclusively the solar resource. Nevertheless, due to a too low availability in mined nitrate salts, the actual mature technology of the two tanks molten salts cannot be applied to achieve the expected international share in the power production for 2050. Then alternative storage materials are under studies such as natural rocks and recycled ceramics made from industrial wastes. The present paper is a review of those alternative approaches.

Thermal energy storage for CSP (Concentrating Solar Power

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Py Xavier

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The major advantage of concentrating solar power before photovoltaic is the possibility to store thermal energy at large scale allowing dispatchability. Then, only CSP solar power plants including thermal storage can be operated 24 h/day using exclusively the solar resource. Nevertheless, due to a too low availability in mined nitrate salts, the actual mature technology of the two tanks molten salts cannot be applied to achieve the expected international share in the power production for 2050. Then alternative storage materials are under studies such as natural rocks and recycled ceramics made from industrial wastes. The present paper is a review of those alternative approaches.

Value of solar thermal and photovoltaic power plants to Arizona Public Service Company

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, P.A.

1994-01-01

Arizona Public Service Company has performed a study using historical solar radiation and system load data to (1) estimate the effects of six types of solar generation on system reliability, (2) estimate the central station value of each to its system, (3) and to assess the potential of each of those technologies to provide bulk power to its system in the 2000 time frame. Technologies included three solar thermal (central receiver, dish Stirling, and parabolic trough) and three flat plate photovoltaic plants (fixed position, one axis, and two axis tracking)

Large scale solar thermal power for the European Union{exclamation_point}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anon.

1997-06-01

Southern Europe, on the edge of the sunbelt, represents the ideal location for solar thermal generated power. Last year. SAWIE reported on the THESEUS project, a proposed 50 MWe solar thermal power plant for Frangokastello, southern Crete, which was submitted for support under the European Union`s THERMIE Programme. Funding was approved for the design phase for this innovative power plant, the first large-scale SEGS-style plant on European soil, at the end of last year. However, the THERMIE Programme also provided support for another Southern European plant, proposed by Colon Solar for Huelva in Southern Spain. Whilst hurdles remain to be overcome before both plants are built and commissioned, there is an excellent chance that by the start of the new Millennium, the solar collectors from these two plants could be generating over half a million MWh of energy a year. SAWIE compares the two projects. (author)

Dynamic Modeling of the Solar Field in Parabolic Trough Solar Power Plants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lourdes A. Barcia

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Parabolic trough solar power plants use a thermal fluid to transfer thermal energy from solar radiation to a water-steam Rankine cycle in order to drive a turbine that, coupled to an electrical generator, produces electricity. These plants have a heat transfer fluid (HTF system with the necessary elements to transform solar radiation into heat and to transfer that thermal energy to the water-steam exchangers. In order to get the best possible performance in the Rankine cycle and, hence, in the thermal plant, it is necessary that the thermal fluid reach its maximum temperature when leaving the solar field (SF. Also, it is mandatory that the thermal fluid does not exceed the maximum operating temperature of the HTF, above which it degrades. It must be noted that the optimal temperature of the thermal fluid is difficult to obtain, since solar radiation can change abruptly from one moment to another. The aim of this document is to provide a model of an HTF system that can be used to optimize the control of the temperature of the fluid without interfering with the normal operation of the plant. The results obtained with this model will be contrasted with those obtained in a real plant.

Economic analysis of power generation from floating solar chimney power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Xinping; Yang, Jiakuan; Xiao, Bo; Wang, Fen

2009-01-01

Solar chimney thermal power technology that has a long life span is a promising large-scale solar power generating technology. This paper performs economic analysis of power generation from floating solar chimney power plant (FSCPP) by analyzing cash flows during the whole service period of a 100 MW plant. Cash flows are influenced by many factors including investment, operation and maintenance cost, life span, payback period, inflation rate, minimum attractive rate of return, non-returnable subsidy rate, interest rate of loans, sale price of electricity, income tax rate and whether additional revenue generated by carbon credits is included or not. Financial incentives and additional revenue generated by carbon credits can accelerate the development of the FSCPP. Sensitivity analysis to examine the effects of the factors on cash flows of a 100 MW FSCPP is performed in detail. The results show that the minimum price for obtaining minimum attractive rate of return (MARR) of 8% reaches 0.83 yuan (kWh) -1 under financial incentives including loans at a low interest rate of 2% and free income tax. Comparisons of economics of the FSCPP and reinforced concrete solar chimney power plant or solar photovoltaic plant are also performed by analyzing their cash flows. It is concluded that FSCPP is in reality more economical than reinforced concrete solar chimney power plant (RCSCPP) or solar photovoltaic plant (SPVP) with the same power capacity. (author)

Investigation of solar parabolic trough power plants with and without integrated TES (thermal energy storage) and FBS (fuel backup system) using thermic oil and solar salt

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boukelia, T.E.; Mecibah, M.S.; Kumar, B.N.; Reddy, K.S.

2015-01-01

Thermodynamic, economic and environmental analyses of concentrating solar power plants assist in identifying an effective and viable configuration. In this paper, a 4E (energy-exergy-environmental-economic) comparative study of 8 different configurations of parabolic trough solar thermal power plants with two different working fluids (Therminol VP-1 -oil and molten solar salt), with and without integrated thermal energy storage or/and backup fuel system is presented. The results of the comparative study indicate relevant differences among the 8 configurations. The molten solar salt configuration with integrated thermal energy storage and fossil fuel backup system exhibits the highest overall energy efficiency (18.48%) compared to other configurations. Whereas, the highest overall exergy efficiency (21.77%), capacity factor (38.20%) and annual energy generation (114 GWh) are found for the oil based configuration with integrated thermal energy storage and fossil fuel backup system. The results indicate that the configurations based on molten salt are better in terms of environmental and economical parameters. The configurations with integrated thermal energy storage and fossil fuel backup system are found to be techno-economical, but on the other hand are less environment friendly. A detailed comparison of these plants after optimization must be performed before drawing a final conclusion about the best configuration to be adopted in parabolic trough solar thermal power plant. - Highlights: • 4E comparative study of 8 configurations of PTSTPP with two different fluids. • Comparison of the configurations with and without integrated TES (thermal energy storage) and FBS (fuel backup system). • The overall energy efficiency of the salt plant with TES and FBS is the highest. • The overall exergy efficiency of the oil plant with TES and FBS is the highest. • The salt plants are the best configurations in terms of environ–eco parameters

Towards standardized testing methodologies for optical properties of components in concentrating solar thermal power plants

Science.gov (United States)

Sallaberry, Fabienne; Fernández-García, Aránzazu; Lüpfert, Eckhard; Morales, Angel; Vicente, Gema San; Sutter, Florian

2017-06-01

Precise knowledge of the optical properties of the components used in the solar field of concentrating solar thermal power plants is primordial to ensure their optimum power production. Those properties are measured and evaluated by different techniques and equipment, in laboratory conditions and/or in the field. Standards for such measurements and international consensus for the appropriate techniques are in preparation. The reference materials used as a standard for the calibration of the equipment are under discussion. This paper summarizes current testing methodologies and guidelines for the characterization of optical properties of solar mirrors and absorbers.

Performance evaluation and simulation of a Compound Parabolic Concentrator (CPC) trough Solar Thermal Power Plant in Puerto Rico under solar transient conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Feliciano-Cruz, Luisa I.

The increasing fossil fuel costs as well as the need to move in a somewhat sustainable future has led the world in a quest for exploiting the free and naturally available energy from the Sun to produce electric power, and Puerto Rico is no exception. This thesis proposes the design of a simulation model for the analysis and performance evaluation of a Solar Thermal Power Plant in Puerto Rico and suggests the use of the Compound Parabolic Concentrator as the solar collector of choice. Optical and thermal analysis of such collectors will be made using local solar radiation data for determining the viability of this proposed project in terms of the electric power produced and its cost.

Solar thermal and concentrated solar power barometer - EurObserv'ER - May 2013

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2013-05-01

The European concentrated solar power plant market is steeling itself for tough time ahead. The number of projects under construction is a pittance compared with 2012 that was an excellent year for installations (an additional 802.5 MW of capacity recorded). This drop is the result of the moratorium on renewable energy power plants introduced by the Spanish government. The European solar thermal market is hardly any more encouraging. EurObserv'ER holds that it slipped for the fourth year in a row (it dropped 5.5% between 2011 and 2012). The newly-installed solar thermal collector surface area in the EU now stands at 3.4 million m 2 , far short of its 2008 installation record of 4.6 million m 2

Retrofitting a Geothermal Plant with Solar and Storage to Increase Power Generation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhu, Guangdong [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); McTigue, Joshua Dominic P [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Turchi, Craig S [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Castro, Jose [Coso Operating Co.; Mungas, Greg [Hyperlight Energy; Kramer, Nick [Hyperlight Energy; King, John [Hyperlight Energy

2017-10-04

Solar hybridization using concentrating solar power (CSP) can be an effective approach to augment the power generation and power cycle efficiency of a geothermal power plant with a declining resource. Thermal storage can further increase the dispatchability of a geothermal/solar hybrid system, which is particularly valued for a national grid with high renewable penetration. In this paper, a hybrid plant design with thermal storage is proposed based on the requirements of the Coso geothermal field in China Lake, California. The objective is to increase the power production by 4 MWe. In this system, a portion of the injection brine is recirculated through a heat exchanger with the solar heat transfer fluid, before being mixed with the production well brine. In the solar heating loop the brine should be heated to at least 155 degrees C to increase the net power. The solar field and storage were sized based on solar data for China Lake. Thermal storage is used to store excess power at the high-solar-irradiation hours and generate additional power during the evenings. The solar field size, the type and capacity of thermal storage and the operating temperatures are critical factors in determining the most economic hybrid system. Further investigations are required to optimize the hybrid system and evaluate its economic feasibility.

Analysis of environmental effect of hybrid solar-assisted desalination cycle in Sirdarya Thermal Power Plant, Uzbekistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alikulov, Khusniddin; Xuan, Tran Dang; Higashi, Osamu; Nakagoshi, Nobukazu; Aminov, Zarif

2017-01-01

Highlights: • A hybrid solar-assisted desalination cycle was designed and stimulated. • Maximum of 21,064.00 kW effective solar heat can be achieved. • The use of parabolic-trough collectors in the Multi Effect Distillation is potential. • The cycle can be applied in other regions with high Direct Normal Irradiation. - Abstract: This study was to investigate possible reduction of fossil fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emission in one of energy sectors of Sirdarya Thermal Power Plant (TPP), Uzbekistan. A hybrid solar-assisted desalination cycle has been designed and simulated for partially supplying saturated steam with 200 °C, 8 bar, and 32 t/h parameters to a Multi Effect Distillation (MED) process in the Sirdarya Thermal Power Plant. The outcome of the parental design model stated that maximum, 21,064.00 kW effective solar heat can be achieved, which is equivalent to 31.76 t/h of saturated steam with 200 °C and 8 bar parameters. Total saved fossil fuel in each month proved that it is possible to reduce fossil fuel (heavy oil and natural gas) consumption with 59.64, 95.24, 389.96, and 298.26 tons during available Direct Normal Irradiation (DNI) by using parabolic-trough collectors. Moreover, the above-mentioned fossil fuel savings accounted for CO_2 reduction with amounts of 182.50, 255.46, 1045.87 & 799.96 tons per each consistent month. Findings proved that integration of parabolic-trough collectors into the MED process is feasible in terms of high DNI availability and demand for retrofitting old existing heat-consuming facilities in Sirdarya Thermal Power Plant. Besides, the cycle also can be applied in other regions of Uzbekistan with high DNI for generating solar heat. Therefore, conducted study is eligible to be applied on the research site by taking into account of sufficient meteorological data and required steam parameters.

Performance analysis of a Kalina cycle for a central receiver solar thermal power plant with direct steam generation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Modi, Anish; Haglind, Fredrik

2014-01-01

Solar thermal power plants have attracted increasing interest in the past few years - with respect to both the design of the various plant components, and extending the operation hours by employing different types of storage systems. One approach to improve the overall plant efficiency is to use ...

Solar Power Plants: Dark Horse in the Energy Stable

Science.gov (United States)

Caputo, Richard S.

1977-01-01

Twelfth in a series of reports on solar energy, this article provides information relating to the following questions: (1) economic cost of solar-thermal-electric central power plants; (2) cost comparison with nuclear or coal plants; (3) locations of this energy source; and (4) its use and social costs. (CS)

Optimisation of a Kalina cycle for a central receiver solar thermal power plant with direct steam generation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Modi, Anish; Haglind, Fredrik

2014-01-01

Central receiver solar thermal power plants are regarded as one of the promising ways to generate electricity in near future. They offer the possibility of using high temperatures and pressures to achieve high efficiencies with standard power cycles. A direct steam generation approach can be used...

Performance analysis of a Kalina cycle for a central receiver solar thermal power plant with direct steam generation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Modi, Anish; Haglind, Fredrik

2014-01-01

Solar thermal power plants have attracted increasing interest in the past few years – with respect to both the design of the various plant components, and extending the operation hours by employing different types of storage systems. One approach to improve the overall plant efficiency is to use direct steam generation with water/steam as both the heat transfer fluid in the solar receivers and the cycle working fluid. This enables operating the plant with higher turbine inlet temperatures. Available literature suggests that it is feasible to use ammonia-water mixtures at high temperatures without corroding the equipment by using suitable additives with the mixture. The purpose of the study reported here was to investigate if there is any benefit of using a Kalina cycle for a direct steam generation, central receiver solar thermal power plant with high live steam temperature (450 °C) and pressure (over 100 bar). Thermodynamic performance of the Kalina cycle in terms of the plant exergy efficiency was evaluated and compared with a simple Rankine cycle. The rates of exergy destruction for the different components in the two cycles were also calculated and compared. The results suggest that the simple Rankine cycle exhibits better performance than the Kalina cycle when the heat input is only from the solar receiver. However, when using a two-tank molten-salt storage system as the primary source of heat input, the Kalina cycle showed an advantage over the simple Rankine cycle because of about 33 % reduction in the storage requirement. The solar receiver showed the highest rate of exergy destruction for both the cycles. The rates of exergy destruction in other components of the cycles were found to be highly dependent on the amount of recuperation, and the ammonia mass fraction and pressure at the turbine inlet. - Highlights: •Kalina cycle for a central receiver solar thermal power plant with direct steam generation. •Rankine cycle shows better plant exergy

Exergy evaluation of a typical 330 MW solar-hybrid coal-fired power plant in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peng, Shuo; Wang, Zhaoguo; Hong, Hui; Xu, Da; Jin, Hongguang

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Exergy analysis of solar-hybrid coal-fired power plant has been processed. • EUD method is utilized to obtain detailed information on the exergy destruction in each process. • Off-design thermodynamic performances are discussed to identify the advantages. • Exergy destruction of several parts under varying solar radiation is examined. - Abstract: This study discusses the thermodynamic performance of a solar-hybrid coal-fired power plant that uses solar heat with temperature lower than 300 °C to replace the extracted steam from a steam turbine to heat the feed water. Through this process, the steam that was to be extracted can efficiently expand in the steam turbine to generate electricity. The flow rate of steam returning to the turbine retains only a small part of the main stream, allowing the steam turbine to run close to design conditions for all DNI. A solar-only thermal power plant without storage is also discussed to illustrate the advantages of a solar-hybrid coal-fired power plant. The off-design performances of both plants are compared based on the energy-utilization diagram method. The exergy destruction of the solar-hybrid coal-fired power plant is found to be lower than that of the solar-only thermal power plant. The comparison of two plants, which may provide detailed information on internal phenomena, highlights several advantages of the solar-hybrid coal-fired power plant in terms of off-design operation: lower exergy destruction in the solar feed water heater and steam turbine and higher exergy and solar-to-electricity efficiency. Preliminary technological economic performances of both plants are compared. The results obtained in this study indicate that a solar-hybrid coal-fired power plant could achieve better off-design performance and economic performance than a solar-only thermal power plant

Renewable Energy Essentials: Concentrating Solar Thermal Power

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2009-07-01

Concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) is a re-emerging market. The Luz Company built 354 MWe of commercial plants in California, still in operations today, during 1984-1991. Activity re-started with the construction of an 11-MW plant in Spain, and a 64-MW plant in Nevada, by 2006. There are currently hundreds of MW under construction, and thousands of MW under development worldwide. Spain and the United States together represent 90% of the market. Algeria, Egypt and Morocco are building integrated solar combined cycle plants, while Australia, China, India, Iran, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Mexico, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates are finalising or considering projects. While trough technology remains the dominant technology, several important innovations took place over 2007-2009: the first commercial solar towers, the first commercial plants with multi-hour capacities, the first Linear Fresnel Reflector plants went into line.

Dispatchable Solar Power Plant Project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Price, Henry [Solar Dynamics LLC, Broomfield, CO (United States)

2018-01-31

As penetration of intermittent renewable power increases, grid operators must manage greater variability in the supply and demand on the grid. One result is that utilities are planning to build many new natural gas peaking power plants that provide added flexibility needed for grid management. This report discusses the development of a dispatchable solar power (DSP) plant that can be used in place of natural gas peakers. Specifically, a new molten-salt tower (MST) plant has been developed that is designed to allow much more flexible operation than typically considered in concentrating solar power plants. As a result, this plant can provide most of the capacity and ancillary benefits of a conventional natural gas peaker plant but without the carbon emissions. The DSP system presented was designed to meet the specific needs of the Arizona Public Service (APS) utility 2017 peaking capacity request for proposals (RFP). The goal of the effort was to design a MST peaker plant that had the operational capabilities required to meet the peaking requirements of the utility and be cost competitive with the natural gas alternative. The effort also addresses many perceived barriers facing the commercial deployment of MST technology in the US today. These include MST project development issues such as permitting, avian impacts, visual impacts of tower CSP projects, project schedule, and water consumption. The DSP plant design is based on considerable analyses using sophisticated solar system design tools and in-depth preliminary engineering design. The resulting DSP plant design uses a 250 MW steam power cycle, with solar field designed to fit on a square mile plot of land that has a design point thermal rating of 400 MWt. The DSP plant has an annual capacity factor of about 16% tailored to deliver greater than 90% capacity during the critical Arizona summer afternoon peak. The table below compares the All-In energy cost and capacity payment of conventional combustion turbines

Application of a reversible chemical reaction system to solar thermal power plants

Science.gov (United States)

Hanseth, E. J.; Won, Y. S.; Seibowitz, L. P.

1980-01-01

Three distributed dish solar thermal power systems using various applications of SO2/SO3 chemical energy storage and transport technology were comparatively assessed. Each system features various roles for the chemical system: (1) energy storage only, (2) energy transport, or (3) energy transport and storage. These three systems were also compared with the dish-Stirling, using electrical transport and battery storage, and the central receiver Rankine system, with thermal storage, to determine the relative merit of plants employing a thermochemical system. As an assessment criterion, the busbar energy costs were compared. Separate but comparable solar energy cost computer codes were used for distributed receiver and central receiver systems. Calculations were performed for capacity factors ranging from 0.4 to 0.8. The results indicate that SO2/SO3 technology has the potential to be more cost effective in transporting the collected energy than in storing the energy for the storage capacity range studied (2-15 hours)

A standard description and costing methodology for the balance-of-plant items of a solar thermal electric power plant. Report of a multi-institutional working group

Science.gov (United States)

1983-01-01

Standard descriptions for solar thermal power plants are established and uniform costing methodologies for nondevelopmental balance of plant (BOP) items are developed. The descriptions and methodologies developed are applicable to the major systems. These systems include the central receiver, parabolic dish, parabolic trough, hemispherical bowl, and solar pond. The standard plant is defined in terms of four categories comprising (1) solar energy collection, (2) power conversion, (3) energy storage, and (4) balance of plant. Each of these categories is described in terms of the type and function of components and/or subsystems within the category. A detailed description is given for the BOP category. BOP contains a number of nondevelopmental items that are common to all solar thermal systems. A standard methodology for determining the costs of these nondevelopmental BOP items is given. The methodology is presented in the form of cost equations involving cost factors such as unit costs. A set of baseline values for the normalized cost factors is also given.

Solar thermal electric power generation - an attractive option for Pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, N.A

1999-01-01

Solar Thermal Energy is being successfully used for production of electricity in few developed countries for more than 10 years. In solar Electric Generating Systems high temperature is generated by concentrating solar energy on black absorber pipe in evacuated glass tubes. This heat is absorbed and transported with the help of high temperature oil in to highly insulated heat exchanger storage tanks. They are subsequently used to produce steam that generates power through steam turbines as in standard thermal power plants. Various components involved in Solar thermal field have been developed at the Solar Systems Laboratory of College of EME, NUST Rawalpindi. It is considered as a cost effective alternate for power generation. The research has been partially sponsored by Ministry of Science and Technology under its Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) in (1996-1998). Parabolic mirror design, fabrication, polishing, installation, solar tracking, absorber pipe, glass tubes, steam generation al have been developed. This paper will cover the details of indigenous technological break through made in this direction. (author)

Evaluation of power block arrangements for 100MW scale concentrated solar thermal power generation using top-down design

Science.gov (United States)

Post, Alexander; Beath, Andrew; Sauret, Emilie; Persky, Rodney

2017-06-01

Concentrated solar thermal power generation poses a unique situation for power block selection, in which a capital intensive heat source is subject to daily and seasonal fluctuations in intensity. In this study, a method is developed to easily evaluate the favourability of different power blocks for converting the heat supplied by a concentrated solar thermal plant into power at the 100MWe scale based on several key parameters. The method is then applied to a range of commercially available power cycles that operate over different temperatures and efficiencies, and with differing capital costs, each with performance and economic parameters selected to be typical of their technology type, as reported in literature. Using this method, the power cycle is identified among those examined that is most likely to result in a minimum levelised cost of energy of a solar thermal plant.

Thermodynamic analyses of solar thermal gasification of coal for hybrid solar-fossil power and fuel production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ng, Yi Cheng; Lipiński, Wojciech

2012-01-01

Thermodynamic analyses are performed for solar thermal steam and dry gasification of coal. The selected types of coal are anthracite, bituminous, lignite and peat. Two model conversion paths are considered for each combination of the gasifying agent and the coal type: production of the synthesis gas with its subsequent use in a combined cycle power plant to generate power, and production of the synthesis gas with its subsequent use to produce gasoline via the Fischer–Tropsch synthesis. Replacement of a coal-fired 35% efficient Rankine cycle power plant and a combustion-based integrated gasification combined cycle power plant by a solar-based integrated gasification combined cycle power plant leads to the reduction in specific carbon dioxide emissions by at least 47% and 27%, respectively. Replacement of a conventional gasoline production process via coal gasification and a subsequent Fischer–Tropsch synthesis with gasoline production via solar thermal coal gasification with a subsequent Fischer–Tropsch synthesis leads to the reduction in specific carbon dioxide emissions by at least 39%. -- Highlights: ► Thermodynamic analyses for steam and dry gasification of coal are presented. ► Hybrid solar-fossil paths to power and fuels are compared to those using only combustion. ► Hybrid power production can reduce specific CO 2 emissions by more than 27%. ► Hybrid fuel production can reduce specific CO 2 emissions by more than 39%.

Technical and economic analysis of integrating low-medium temperature solar energy into power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Fu; Li, Hailong; Zhao, Jun; Deng, Shuai; Yan, Jinyue

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Seven configurations were studied regarding the integration of solar thermal energy. • Economic analysis was conducted on new built plants and retrofitted power plants. • Using solar thermal energy to preheat high pressure feedwater shows the best performance. - Abstract: In order to mitigate CO_2 emission and improve the efficiency of the utilization of solar thermal energy (STE), solar thermal energy is proposed to be integrated into a power plant. In this paper, seven configurations were studied regarding the integration of STE. A 300 MWe subcritical coal-fired plant was selected as the reference, chemical absorption using monoethanolamine solvent was employed for CO_2 ​capture, and parabolic trough collectors and evacuated tube collectors were used for STE collection. Both technical analysis and economic evaluation were conducted. Results show that integrating solar energy with post-combustion CO_2​ capture can effectively increase power generation and reduce the electrical efficiency penalty caused by CO_2 capture. Among the different configurations, Config-2 and Config-6, which use medium temperature STE to replace high pressure feedwater without and with CO_2 capture, show the highest net incremental solar efficiency. When building new plants, integrating solar energy can effectively reduce the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE). The lowest LCOE, 99.28 USD/MWh, results from Config-6, with a parabolic trough collector price of 185 USD/m"2. When retrofitting existing power plants, Config-6 also shows the highest net present value (NPV), while Config-2 has the shortest payback time at a carbon tax of 50 USD/ton CO_2. In addition, both LCOE and NPV/payback time are clearly affected by the relative solar load fraction, the price of solar thermal collectors and the carbon tax. Comparatively, the carbon tax can affect the configurations with CO_2 capture more clearly than those without CO_2 capture.

Concentrated solar thermal power - Now

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aringhoff, R.; Brakmann, G. [Solar Thermal Power Industry Association ESTIA, Avenue de la Fauconnerie 73, 1170 Brussels (Belgium); Geyer, M. [IEA SolarPACES Implementing Agreement, Avenida de la Paz 51, 04720 Aguadulce, Almeria (Spain); Teske, S. [Greenpeace International, Ottho Heldringstraat 5, 1066 AZ Amsterdam (Netherlands)

2005-09-15

This report demonstrates that there are no technical, economic or resource barriers to supplying 5% of the world's electricity needs from solar thermal power by 2040. It is written as practical blueprint to improve understanding of the solar thermal contribution to the world energy supply.

An integrated solar thermal power system using intercooled gas turbine and Kalina cycle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peng, Shuo; Hong, Hui; Jin, Hongguang; Wang, Zhifeng

2012-01-01

A new solar tower thermal power system integrating the intercooled gas turbine top cycle and the Kalina bottoming cycle is proposed in the present paper. The thermodynamic performance of the proposed system is investigated, and the irreversibility of energy conversion is disclosed using the energy–utilization diagram method. On the top cycle of the proposed system, the compressed air after being intercooled is heated at 1000 °C or higher at the solar tower receiver and is used to drive the gas turbine to generate power. The ammonia–water mixture as the working substance of the bottom cycle recovers the waste heat from the gas turbine to generate power. A concise analytical formula of solar-to-electric efficiency of the proposed system is developed. As a result, the peak solar-to-electric efficiency of the proposed system is 27.5% at a gas turbine inlet temperature of 1000 °C under the designed solar direct normal irradiance of 800 W/m 2 . Compared with a conventional solar power tower plant, the proposed integrated system conserves approximately 69% of consumed water. The results obtained in the current study provide an approach to improve solar-to-electric efficiency and offer a potential to conserve water for solar thermal power plants in arid area. -- Highlights: ► An Integrated Solar Thermal Power System is modeled. ► A formula forecasting the thermodynamic performance is proposed. ► The irreversibility of energy conversion is disclosed using an energy utilization method. ► The effect of key operational parameters on thermal performance is examined.

Design experiences of the first solar parabolic thermal power plant for various regions in Iran

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Azizian, K.; Yaghoubi, M.; Kenary, A.

2002-01-01

The basic design is made for a 250 kw solar power plant. The main element of the plant is the collectors. Base on system simulation, a parabolic collector constructed and tested for one year. The model is first validated with experimental measurement and a detail numerical model is also developed to study effects of various optical properties of mirrors and receiver on the thermal performance of the collectors. It is observed that due to poor optical properties of the present collector, it would not be able to produce hot oil with desired temperature. Improving the material of the mirrors and the receiver tube, thermal performances exceed substantially from the design conditions. By considering available optical properties simulation is made to estimate yearly steady and unsteady behavior and the performance of the power plant for three locations: Shiraz, Yazd and Lar in Iran. Comparison of the yearly performance of the cycle shows that unsteady behavior reveals different results and simulations approach a reliable technique to study such cycle

ACS production: optimal design of solar thermal power plants; Produccion de ACS. Optimizacion del dimensionado de instalaciones de energia solar termica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Platon Arias, L.; San Jose Alonso, F.

2009-07-01

The aim of this project is to develop a program to size solar thermal power plants for the production of the company ACS, which enable optimum value calculations of the different influence parameters (surface, inclination, orientation, energy input) advising diverse circumstances and requirements. The energy input calculation has been effected according to f-chart method. For the solar radiation on inclined and oriented surfaces calculation, has been applied the Klein Method. (Author) 14 refs.

Concentrated solar thermal power - Now

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aringhoff, R.; Brakmann, G. [Solar Thermal Power Industry Association ESTIA, Avenue de la Fauconnerie 73, 1170 Brussels (Belgium); Geyer, M. [IEA SolarPACES Implementing Agreement, Avenida de la Paz 51, 04720 Aguadulce, Almeria (Spain); Teske, S. [Greenpeace International, Ottho Heldringstraat 5, 1066 AZ Amsterdam (Netherlands)

2005-09-15

This report demonstrates that there are no technical, economic or resource barriers to supplying 5% of the world's electricity needs from solar thermal power by 2040. It is written as practical blueprint to improve understanding of the solar thermal contribution to the world energy supply.

Evaluation methods of solar contribution in solar aided coal-fired power generation system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Yong; Zhai, Rongrong; Zhao, Miaomiao; Yang, Yongping; Yan, Qin

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Five methods for evaluating solar contribution are analyzed. • Method based on the second law of thermodynamics and thermal economics is more suitable for SACPGS. • Providing reliable reference for the formulation of feed-in tariff policies in China. - Abstract: Solar aided coal-fired power plants utilize solar thermal energy to couple with coal-fired power plants of various types by adopting characteristics of different thermal needs of plants. In this way, the costly thermal storage system and power generating system will become unnecessary, meanwhile the intermittent and unsteady nature of power generation can be avoided. In addition, large-scale utilization of solar thermal power and energy saving can be achieved. With the ever-deepening analyses of solar aided coal-fired power plants, the contribution evaluating system of solar thermal power is worth further exploration. In this paper, five common evaluation methods of solar contribution are analyzed, and solar aided coal-fired power plants of 1000 MW, 600 MW and 330 MW are studied with these five methods in a comparative manner. Therefore, this study can serve as a theoretical reference for future research of evaluation methods and subsidies for new energy

Effects of the selection of heat transfer fluid and condenser type on the performance of a solar thermal power plant with technoeconomic approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yilmazoglu, M. Zeki

2016-01-01

Highlights: • The effects of the selection of HTF and condenser type on STPs were examined. • Levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for STP was investigated. • LCOE for STP compared with gas turbine and combined cycle. • CSP with thermal storage can be competitive technology with carbon tax/credits. - Abstract: Renewable electricity generation systems have an increasing trend in terms of usage due to aiming to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and energy source diversification strategies of countries. Parabolic trough, Fresnel, and solar tower systems have been used to generate solar thermal electricity around the world. In this study, the effects of the selection of collector heat transfer fluid (HTF) and condenser type on a concentrated solar thermal power plant were analyzed. Net power, net electrical efficiency, and economic analysis were carried out for the selected HTFs for different collector outlet temperature cases. In the case of condenser type selection four different systems were considered; water cooled, air cooled (dry air) and air cooled with water spraying (spraying before fan and spraying before and after fan). Levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and specific investment cost were calculated. According to the results, specific investment cost and LCOE were found to be 4000 USD/kW_e_l and 0.207 USD/kW h, respectively. Carbon tax/credit was also included to the calculations of LCOE and a comparison study was carried out for gas turbine, combined cycle and solar thermal power plant with thermal storage. Including carbon tax/credit to the LCOE shows that solar thermal power plant with heat storage can be competitive when compared to gas turbines.

Europe's largest solar thermal power plant. [200 kw thermal output supplemented by two 10-kw windmills

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bossel, U

1976-03-01

An overview is given over the solar heating plant which has recently been commissioned in the Camargue (France). This is the largest plant in Europe, with a mean heat output of about 200 kW, for the production of thermal energy from solar energy. The plant consists of 108 parabolic collectors (200 sq. metres) and 48 flat collectors (110 sq. metres). Two windmills with outputs of 10 kW each complete the system. The heat energy produced by the solar collectors is given up to 3 different stores, which in turn are connected to various consumers.

THESEUS: the first-scale 50 MEw THErmal Solar EUropean power station for the Island of Crete, Greece

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aringhof, Rainer [Pilkington Solar International (United States)

1996-03-01

The first solar power plant to receive funding from the European Union is to be constructed on the Island of Crete, Greece. This utility-scale 50 MWe plant is based on technology known as THERMIE (THErmal Solar European power station) and it represents a major breakthrough for Europe`s small solar thermal power community. The proposed THESEUS project uses an advanced parabolic trough collector field as the primary heat source and will be constructed between 1977 and 1999. (UK)

The THESEUS project -- 50 MWe solar thermal power for Crete

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schillig, F.; Geyer, M.; Kistner, R.; Aringhoff, R.; Nava, P.; Brakmann, G.

1998-07-01

A consortium of European industry, utilities and research institutions from Greece, Germany, Spain and Italy attempts to implement a 52 MWe solar thermal power plant with parabolic trough technology on the Greek island of Crete sponsored by the EU' s THERMIE program. The increased demand for electricity on the island, a consequence of the growing allurement of the island as a tourist resort, makes it necessary to expand the installed capacity on Crete during the next years. According to the capacity expansion plans of Greek' s utility PPC a 160 MWe heavy fuel-fired power plant complex--two 30 MWe diesel units and two 50 MWe steam turbine units--is foreseen to be built by the year 2002. In this paper a description of the technical, economical and environmental aspects of the THESEUS project is provided. Moreover a market entry strategy for solar thermal power generation is discussed.

Thermal performance analysis of a solar heating plant

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fan, Jianhua; Huang, Junpeng; Andersen, Ola Lie

was developed to calculate thermal performances of the plant. In the Trnsys model, three solar collector fields with a total solar collector area of 33,300 m2, a seasonal water pit heat storage of 75,000 m3, a simplified CO2 HP, a simplified ORC unit and a simplified wood chip boiler were included. The energy......Detailed measurements were carried out on a large scale solar heating plant located in southern Denmark in order to evaluate thermal performances of the plant. Based on the measurements, energy flows of the plant were evaluated. A modified Trnsys model of the Marstal solar heating plant...... consumption of the district heating net was modeled by volume flow rate and given forward and return temperatures of the district heating net. Weather data from a weather station at the site of the plant were used in the calculations. The Trnsys calculated yearly thermal performance of the solar heating plant...

Rankine-Brayton engine powered solar thermal aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Bennett, Charles L [Livermore, CA

2009-12-29

A solar thermal powered aircraft powered by heat energy from the sun. A Rankine-Brayton hybrid cycle heat engine is carried by the aircraft body for producing power for a propulsion mechanism, such as a propeller or other mechanism for enabling sustained free flight. The Rankine-Brayton engine has a thermal battery, preferably containing a lithium-hydride and lithium mixture, operably connected to it so that heat is supplied from the thermal battery to a working fluid. A solar concentrator, such as reflective parabolic trough, is movably connected to an optically transparent section of the aircraft body for receiving and concentrating solar energy from within the aircraft. Concentrated solar energy is collected by a heat collection and transport conduit, and heat transported to the thermal battery. A solar tracker includes a heliostat for determining optimal alignment with the sun, and a drive motor actuating the solar concentrator into optimal alignment with the sun based on a determination by the heliostat.

Rankline-Brayton engine powered solar thermal aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Bennett, Charles L [Livermore, CA

2012-03-13

A solar thermal powered aircraft powered by heat energy from the sun. A Rankine-Brayton hybrid cycle heat engine is carried by the aircraft body for producing power for a propulsion mechanism, such as a propeller or other mechanism for enabling sustained free flight. The Rankine-Brayton engine has a thermal battery, preferably containing a lithium-hydride and lithium mixture, operably connected to it so that heat is supplied from the thermal battery to a working fluid. A solar concentrator, such as reflective parabolic trough, is movably connected to an optically transparent section of the aircraft body for receiving and concentrating solar energy from within the aircraft. Concentrated solar energy is collected by a heat collection and transport conduit, and heat transported to the thermal battery. A solar tracker includes a heliostat for determining optimal alignment with the sun, and a drive motor actuating the solar concentrator into optimal alignment with the sun based on a determination by the heliostat.

Achievement report on the development of solar thermal electric power plant technologies. Annex; Taiyonetsu hatsuden plant gijutsu kaihatsu seika hokokusho. Fuzoku shiryo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1985-07-01

The two solar thermal electric power pilot plants are of the tower concentration type and the flat/curved surface concentration type. For the first time in the world, they succeeded in operating at a rated output of 1,000kW in August and September, 1981, respectively. Sunshine was inputted at an unstable rate, and the plants were operated under various load patterns. Studies were conducted and an optimum operating technique is established. Since designing, construction, and operation were carried for two types of pilot plants, quantities of useful data were collected through a variety of experiences. Valuable hints and design data were provided for use in the construction of full-scale power plants in the future. Element units developed for the plants were high-reflectance mirrors, high-precision tracking mechanisms, solar heat collectors of the cavity type and paraboloidal type, and molten salt heat accumulators. The tower concentration type plant exhibits a power generation efficiency of 16-17% and an overall plant efficiency of 3.1-4.4%. The maximum overall efficiency a month is 3.9% with the flat/curved surface concentration type plant. (NEDO)

Domestic Material Content in Molten-Salt Concentrating Solar Power Plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Turchi, Craig [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Kurup, Parthiv [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Akar, Sertac [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Flores, Francisco [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

2015-08-26

This study lists material composition data for two concentrating solar power (CSP) plant designs: a molten-salt power tower and a hypothetical parabolic trough plant, both of which employ a molten salt for the heat transfer fluid (HTF) and thermal storage media. The two designs have equivalent generating and thermal energy storage capacities. The material content of the saltHTF trough plant was approximately 25% lower than a comparably sized conventional oil-HTF parabolic trough plant. The significant reduction in oil, salt, metal, and insulation mass by switching to a salt-HTF design is expected to reduce the capital cost and LCOE for the parabolic trough system.

The effects of regional insolation differences upon advanced solar thermal electric power plant performance and energy costs

Science.gov (United States)

Latta, A. F.; Bowyer, J. M.; Fujita, T.

1979-01-01

This paper presents the performance and cost of four 10-MWe advanced solar thermal electric power plants sited in various regions of the continental United States. Each region has different insolation characteristics which result in varying collector field areas, plant performance, capital costs, and energy costs. The paraboloidal dish, central receiver, cylindrical parabolic trough, and compound parabolic concentrator (CPC) comprise the advanced concepts studied. This paper contains a discussion of the regional insolation data base, a description of the solar systems' performances and costs, and a presentation of a range for the forecast cost of conventional electricity by region and nationally over the next several decades.

Solar Thermal Power.

Science.gov (United States)

McDaniels, David K.

The different approaches to the generation of power from solar energy may be roughly divided into five categories: distributed collectors; central receivers; biomass; ocean thermal energy conversion; and photovoltaic devices. The first approach (distributed collectors) is the subject of this module. The material presented is designed to…

Full scale experimental study of a small natural draft dry cooling tower for concentrating solar thermal power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Xiaoxiao; Duniam, Sam; Gurgenci, Hal; Guan, Zhiqiang; Veeraragavan, Anand

2017-01-01

Highlights: • A 20 m high natural draft dry cooling tower is designed and tested. • The cooling tower model is refined and validated with the experimental data. • The performance of the cooling tower utilized in a CST power plant is investigated. • Ambient temperature effect on Rankine cycle and Brayton cycle is discussed. - Abstract: Concentrating solar thermal power system can provide low carbon, renewable energy resources in countries or regions with strong solar irradiation. For this kind of power plant which is likely to be located in the arid area, natural draft dry cooling tower is a promising choice. To develop the experimental studies on small cooling tower, a 20 m high natural draft dry cooling tower with fully instrumented measurement system was established by the Queensland Geothermal Energy Centre of Excellence. The performance of this cooling tower was measured with the constant heat input of 600 kW and 840 kW and with ambient temperature ranging from 20 °C to 32 °C. The cooling tower numerical model was refined and validated with the experimental data. The model of 1 MW concentrating solar thermal supercritical CO_2 power cycle was developed and integrated with the cooling tower model. The influences of changing ambient temperature and the performance of the cooling tower on efficiency of the power system were simulated. The differences of the mechanism of the ambient temperature effect on Rankine cycle and supercritical CO_2 Brayton cycle were analysed and discussed.

Cost and performance analysis of concentrating solar power systems with integrated latent thermal energy storage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nithyanandam, K.; Pitchumani, R.

2014-01-01

Integrating TES (thermal energy storage) in a CSP (concentrating solar power) plant allows for continuous operation even during times when solar irradiation is not available, thus providing a reliable output to the grid. In the present study, the cost and performance models of an EPCM-TES (encapsulated phase change material thermal energy storage) system and HP-TES (latent thermal storage system with embedded heat pipes) are integrated with a CSP power tower system model utilizing Rankine and s-CO 2 (supercritical carbon-dioxide) power conversion cycles, to investigate the dynamic TES-integrated plant performance. The influence of design parameters of the storage system on the performance of a 200 MW e capacity power tower CSP plant is studied to establish design envelopes that satisfy the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative requirements, which include a round-trip annualized exergetic efficiency greater than 95%, storage cost less than $15/kWh t and LCE (levelized cost of electricity) less than 6 ¢/kWh. From the design windows, optimum designs of the storage system based on minimum LCE, maximum exergetic efficiency, and maximum capacity factor are reported and compared with the results of two-tank molten salt storage system. Overall, the study presents the first effort to construct and analyze LTES (latent thermal energy storage) integrated CSP plant performance that can help assess the impact, cost and performance of LTES systems on power generation from molten salt power tower CSP plant. - Highlights: • Presents technoeconomic analysis of thermal energy storage integrated concentrating solar power plants. • Presents a comparison of different storage options. • Presents optimum design of thermal energy storage system for steam Rankine and supercritical carbon dioxide cycles. • Presents designs for maximizing exergetic efficiency while minimizing storage cost and levelized cost of energy

Solar thermal power meeting - Proceedings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2011-07-01

This document summarizes the presentations and debates of the first edition of the Solar thermal power meeting. Content: 1 - Opening talk (Jean-Louis BAL, SER); 2 - Solar thermal power, European and global road-maps (Cedric Philibert, IEA; Mariangels Perez Latorre, Estela); 3 - first round-table on the international development of solar energy (Philippe Lorec, DGEC France; Said Mouline, Aderee Morocco; Obaid Amrane, Masen Morocco; Kawther Lihidheb, ANME Tunisia; Abdelaziz Boumahra, Rouiba Eclairage, Algeria; Badis Derradji, NEAL Algeria; Yao Azoumah, Lesee, 2IE Foundation Burkina Faso; Mamadou Amadou Kane, MPEM Mauritania; Jean-Charles Mulet, Bertin Technologies); 4 - Second round-table on the French solar thermal offer for export (Georgina Grenon, DGEC; Stephanie Bouzigueseschmann, DG Tresor; Armand Pineda, Alstom; Florent Brunet, Mena-Areva; Roger Pujol, CNIM; Gilles David, Enertime; Michel Wohrer, Saed; Mathieu Vrinat, Sogreah; Marc Benmarraze, Solar Euromed; 5 - Presentation of Amisole - Moroccan association of solar and wind industries (Ahmed Squalli, Amisole); 6 - Third round-table on French research at the solar industry service (Gilles Flamant, Promes Lab. CNRS; Francois Moisan, Ademe; Tahar Melliti, CGI; Andre Joffre, Derbi; Michel Wohrer, Capenergies; 7 - Fourth round table on projects financing (Vincent Girard, Loan Officer BEI; Bertrand Marchais, Miga World Bank; Philippe Meunier, CDC Climat Groupe Caisse des Depots; Christian de Gromard, AFD; Laurent Belouze, Natixis; Piotr Michalowski, Loan Officer BEI); 8 - Closing of the meeting (Roger Pujol, SER)

Villacidro solar demo plant: Integration of small-scale CSP and biogas power plants in an industrial microgrid

Science.gov (United States)

Camerada, M.; Cau, G.; Cocco, D.; Damiano, A.; Demontis, V.; Melis, T.; Musio, M.

2016-05-01

The integration of small scale concentrating solar power (CSP) in an industrial district, in order to develop a microgrid fully supplied by renewable energy sources, is presented in this paper. The plant aims to assess in real operating conditions, the performance, the effectiveness and the reliability of small-scale concentrating solar power technologies in the field of distributed generation. In particular, the potentiality of small scale CSP with thermal storage to supply dispatchable electricity to an industrial microgrid will be investigated. The microgrid will be realized in the municipal waste treatment plant of the Industrial Consortium of Villacidro, in southern Sardinia (Italy), which already includes a biogas power plant. In order to achieve the microgrid instantaneous energy balance, the analysis of the time evolution of the waste treatment plant demand and of the generation in the existing power systems has been carried out. This has allowed the design of a suitable CSP plant with thermal storage and an electrochemical storage system for supporting the proposed microgrid. At the aim of obtaining the expected energy autonomy, a specific Energy Management Strategy, which takes into account the different dynamic performances and characteristics of the demand and the generation, has been designed. In this paper, the configuration of the proposed small scale concentrating solar power (CSP) and of its thermal energy storage, based on thermocline principle, is initially described. Finally, a simulation study of the entire power system, imposing scheduled profiles based on weather forecasts, is presented.

Off-design thermodynamic performances on typical days of a 330 MW solar aided coal-fired power plant in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peng, Shuo; Hong, Hui; Wang, Yanjuan; Wang, Zhaoguo; Jin, Hongguang

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Optical loss and heat loss of solar field under different turbine load were investigated. • Off-design thermodynamic feature was disclosed by analyzing several operational parameters. • Possible schemes was proposed to improve the net solar-to-electricity efficiency. - Abstract: The contribution of mid-temperature solar thermal power to improve the performance of coal-fired power plant is analyzed in the present paper. In the solar aided coal-fired power plant, solar heat at <300 °C is used to replace the extracted steam from the steam turbine to heat the feed water. In this way, the steam that was to be extracted could consequently expand in the steam turbine to boost output power. The advantages of a solar aided coal-fired power plant in design condition have been discussed by several researchers. However, thermodynamic performances on off-design operation have not been well discussed until now. In this paper, a typical 330 MW coal-fired power plant in Sinkiang Province of China is selected as the case study to demonstrate the advantages of the solar aided coal-fired power plant under off-design conditions. Hourly thermodynamic performances are analyzed on typical days under partial load. The effects of several operational parameters, such as solar irradiation intensity, incident angle, flow rate of thermal oil, on the performance of solar field efficiency and net solar-to-electricity efficiency were examined. Possible schemes have been proposed for improving the solar aided coal-fired power plant on off-design operation. The results obtained in the current study could provide a promising approach to solve the poor thermodynamic performance of solar thermal power plant and also offer a basis for the practical operation of MW-scale solar aided coal-fired power plant

Economic analysis of power generation from parabolic trough solar thermal plants for the Mediterranean region. A case study for the island of Cyprus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poullikkas, Andreas

2009-01-01

In this work a feasibility study is carried out in order to investigate whether the installation of a parabolic trough solar thermal technology for power generation in the Mediterranean region is economically feasible. The case study takes into account the available solar potential for Cyprus, as well as all available data concerning current renewable energy sources policy of the Cyprus Government, including the relevant feed-in tariff. In order to identify the least cost feasible option for the installation of the parabolic trough solar thermal plant a parametric cost-benefit analysis is carried out by varying parameters, such as, parabolic trough solar thermal plant capacity, parabolic trough solar thermal capital investment, operating hours, carbon dioxide emission trading system price, etc. For all above cases the electricity unit cost or benefit before tax, as well as after tax cash flow, net present value, internal rate of return and payback period are calculated. The results indicate that under certain conditions such projects can be profitable. (author)

Thermal power plant design and operation

CERN Document Server

Sarkar, Dipak

2015-01-01

Thermal Power Plant: Design and Operation deals with various aspects of a thermal power plant, providing a new dimension to the subject, with focus on operating practices and troubleshooting, as well as technology and design. Its author has a 40-long association with thermal power plants in design as well as field engineering, sharing his experience with professional engineers under various training capacities, such as training programs for graduate engineers and operating personnel. Thermal Power Plant presents practical content on coal-, gas-, oil-, peat- and biomass-fueled thermal power

Towards prioritizing flexibility in the design and construction of concentrating solar power plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Topel, Monika; Lundqvist, Mårten; Haglind, Fredrik

2017-01-01

In the operation and maintenance of concentrating solar power plants, high operational flexibility is required in order to withstand the variability from the inherent solar fluctuations. However, during the development phases of a solar thermal plant, this important objective is overlooked...... as a relevant factor for cost reduction in the long term. This paper will show the value of including flexibility aspects in the design of a concentrating solar power plant by breaking down their potential favorable impact on the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) calculations. For this, three scenarios...... to include flexibility as a design objective are analyzed and their potential impact on the LCOE is quantified. The scenarios were modeled and analyzed using a techno-economic model of a direct steam generation solar tower power plant. Sensitivity studies were carried out for each scenario, in which...

Can hybrid solar-fossil power plants mitigate CO2 at lower cost than PV or CSP?

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, Jared; Apt, Jay

2013-03-19

Fifteen of the United States and several nations require a portion of their electricity come from solar energy. We perform an engineering-economic analysis of hybridizing concentrating solar thermal power with fossil fuel in an Integrated Solar Combined Cycle (ISCC) generator. We construct a thermodynamic model of an ISCC plant in order to examine how much solar and fossil electricity is produced and how such a power plant would operate, given hourly solar resource data and hourly electricity prices. We find that the solar portion of an ISCC power plant has a lower levelized cost of electricity than stand-alone solar power plants given strong solar resource in the US southwest and market conditions that allow the capacity factor of the solar portion of the power plant to be above 21%. From a local government perspective, current federal subsidies distort the levelized cost of electricity such that photovoltaic electricity is slightly less expensive than the solar electricity produced by the ISCC. However, if the cost of variability and additional transmission lines needed for stand-alone solar power plants are taken into account, the solar portion of an ISCC power plant may be more cost-effective.

Solar Power System SPS - A small-scale 10 kWe solar thermal pilot power plant - Phase 5. Annual report 2003; Solar Power System SPS - Projet d'une mini-centrale pilote electro-thermo-solaire de 10 kWe - Phase 5. Rapport annuel 2003

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Giroud, P.-A.; Gay, B.; Favrat, D.

2003-12-15

This illustrated annual report for the Swiss Federal Office of Energy reports on the development of components for a 10 kW electric solar thermal mini power plant. The concentrating solar collector is designed as an extra-flat compound parabolic collector without any evacuated component. The solar collector performance measurements are described. The results obtained with this collector prototype are disappointing. Further improvements in the collector construction are needed. A computer simulation model has been developed for this purpose. In another development the instrumentation built in the pilot power plant has been modified in order to be able to characterize the thermal performance of the heat exchangers in the thermodynamical cycle, to measure the oil fraction in the refrigerant and to test the performance of the R245fa refrigerant used instead of the R123. Finally, a new pump has been developed for the circulation of the refrigerant. This pump is mounted on the same axis as the the turbine. Special technologies and materials were required.

Solar fired combined RO/MED desalination plant integrated with electrical power grid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alrobaei, H.

2006-01-01

Currently, there is a strong demand for efficient seawater desalination plants, which can meet the tougher environment regulation and energy saving requirements. From this standpoint the present work was undertaken to include proposed scheme (solar Fired Combined Reverse Osmosis (ROY Multi-Effect Distillation (MED) Seawater desalination Plant (SCDP) integrated with electrical power grid (EPG)) for repowering and modification of the conventional grid connected RO desalination plants. The model of SCDP during sunny periods may be applied to the following modes operation: *Full solar desalination (i.e. solar thermal and electrical power generation in solar plant is elivered to the desalination process and the surplus electricity is fed into EPG). *Hybrid solar desalination (I.e. a small share of the electrical power consumption for desalination process compensated by EPG). During cloudly periods and at night the SCDP operates as a conventional RO desalination plant. To establish the range, in which solar energy for seawater desalination would be competitive to fossil energy and investigates the potential effect of the proposed scheme on the repowering effectiveness, mathematical model has been developed. The repowered effectiveness, mathematical model has been developed.The repowered effectiveness in optaimizing model was characterized by the condition of attaining maximum fuel saving in the EPG. The study result shows the effectiveness of proposed scheme for modification and repowering the RO plant. For the case study. (SCDP with maual share of solar electrical power generation 67.4%) the economical effect amount 138.9 ton fuel/year for each MW design thermal energy of parabolic solar collectors array and the corresponding decrease in exhaust gases emission (Nitrogen oxides (NO x ) 0.55 ton/year.MW, carbon dioxides (CO2) 434.9 ton/year.MW). Moreover, implementation of combined RO/MED design for repowering and modification of conventional grid connected RO plant will

Thermoeconomic optimization of a combined-cycle solar tower power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spelling, James; Favrat, Daniel; Martin, Andrew; Augsburger, Germain

2012-01-01

A dynamic model of a pure-solar combined-cycle power plant has been developed in order to allow determination of the thermodynamic and economic performance of the plant for a variety of operating conditions and superstructure layouts. The model was then used for multi-objective thermoeconomic optimization of both the power plant performance and cost, using a population-based evolutionary algorithm. In order to examine the trade-offs that must be made, two conflicting objectives will be considered, namely minimal investment costs and minimal levelized electricity costs. It was shown that efficiencies in the region of 18–24% can be achieved, and this for levelized electricity costs in the region of 12–24 UScts/kWh e , depending on the magnitude of the initial investment, making the system competitive with current solar thermal technology. -- Highlights: ► Pure-solar combined-cycle studied using thermoeconomic tools. ► Multi-objective optimization conducted to determine Pareto-optimal power plant designs. ► Levelised costs between 12 and 24 UScts/kWhe predicted. ► Efficiencies between 18 and 24% predicted.

Flexible dynamic operation of solar-integrated power plant with solvent based post-combustion carbon capture (PCC) process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qadir, Abdul; Sharma, Manish; Parvareh, Forough; Khalilpour, Rajab; Abbas, Ali

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Flexible operation of power and PCC plant may significantly increase operational revenue. • Higher optimal carbon capture rates observed with solar thermal energy input. • Solar thermal repowering of the power plant provides highest net revenue. • Constant optimal capture rate observed for one of the flexible operation cases. • Up to 42% higher revenue generation observed between two cases with solar input. - Abstract: This paper examines flexible operation of solvent-based post-combustion carbon capture (PCC) for the reduction of power plant carbon emissions while minimizing revenue loss due to the reduced power plant electricity output. The study is conducted using a model superstructure enveloping three plants; a power plant, a PCC plant and a solar thermal field where the power plant and PCC plant are operated flexibly under the influence of hourly electricity market and weather conditions. Reduced (surrogate) models for the reboiler duty and auxiliary power requirement for the carbon capture plant are generated and applied to simulate and compare four cases, (A) power plant with PCC, (B) power plant with solar assisted PCC, (C) power plant with PCC and solar repowering – variable net electricity output and (D) power plant with PCC and solar repowering – fixed net electricity output. Such analyses are conducted under dynamic conditions including power plant part-load operation while varying the capture rate to optimize the revenue of the power plant. Each case was simulated with a lower carbon price of $25/tonne-CO 2 and a higher price of $50/tonne-CO 2 . The comparison of cases B–D found that optimal revenue generation for case C can be up to 42% higher than that of solar-assisted PCC (case B). Case C is found to be the most profitable with the lowest carbon emissions intensity and is found to exhibit a constant capture rate for both carbon prices. The optimal revenue for case D is slightly lower than case C for the lower carbon

The performance of a Solar Aided Power Generation plant with diverse “configuration-operation” combinations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qin, Jiyun; Hu, Eric; Nathan, Graham J.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Four configurations of solar preheaters have been proposed. • Three typical operation strategies of solar preheaters have been identified. • 12 “configuration-operation” combinations has been proposed. • There are superior combinations to achieve the highest solar thermal performance. - Abstract: Solar Aided Power Generation is an efficient way to integrate solar thermal energy into a fossil fuel fired power plant for solar power generation purposes. In this particular power plant, the solar heat is used to displace the extraction steam to preheat the feedwater to the boiler. The heat exchanger, which facilitates the heat exchange between the solar heat carried by the heat transfer fluid and the feedwater, is termed a solar preheater. Four possible configurations of the solar preheater, namely Parallel 1, Parallel 2, Series 1 and Series 2, are proposed in this paper. In this type of plant, the extraction steam flow rates must be adjusted according to the solar input. The ways to control the extraction steam flow rates are termed solar preheater operation strategies. Three typical strategies: the Constant Temperature control, Variable Temperature control with high to low temperature feedwater heater displacement and Variable Temperature control with low to high temperature feedwater heater displacement have been identified. Each configuration can be operated with one of the three strategies, resulting in twelve “configuration-operation” combinations/scenarios (shown in Table 1). Previous assessments and modelling of such a plant have only been based on a single combination. In this paper, a Solar Aided Power Generation plant, modified from a typical 300 MW power plant, is used to understand the plant’s performance for all twelve of the available combinations. The results show that the instantaneous and annual technical performances of such a plant are dependent on the combinations used. The scenario 10 (Table 1) is superior to the

Solar thermal electric power information user study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Belew, W.W.; Wood, B.L.; Marle, T.L.; Reinhardt, C.L.

1981-02-01

The results of a series of telephone interviews with groups of users of information on solar thermal electric power are described. These results, part of a larger study on many different solar technologies, identify types of information each group needed and the best ways to get information to each group. The report is 1 of 10 discussing study results. The overall study provides baseline data about information needs in the solar community. An earlier study identified the information user groups in the solar community and the priority (to accelerate solar energy commercialization) of getting information to each group. In the current study only high-priority groups were examined. Results from five solar thermal electric power groups of respondents are analyzed: DOE-Funded Researchers, Non-DOE-Funded Researchers, Representatives of Utilities, Electric Power Engineers, and Educators. The data will be used as input to the determination of information products and services the Solar Energy Research Institute, the Solar Energy Information Data Bank Network, and the entire information outreach community should be preparing and disseminating.

Start-up performance of parabolic trough concentrating solar power plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ferruzza, Davide; Topel, Monika; Basaran, Ibrahim

2017-01-01

Concentrating solar power plants, even though they can be integrated with thermal energy storage, are still subjected to cyclic start-up and shut-downs. As a consequence, in order to maximize their profitability and performance, the flexibility with respect to transient operations is essential...

Beam-Forming Concentrating Solar Thermal Array Power Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Cwik, Thomas A. (Inventor); Dimotakis, Paul E. (Inventor); Hoppe, Daniel J. (Inventor)

2016-01-01

The present invention relates to concentrating solar-power systems and, more particularly, beam-forming concentrating solar thermal array power systems. A solar thermal array power system is provided, including a plurality of solar concentrators arranged in pods. Each solar concentrator includes a solar collector, one or more beam-forming elements, and one or more beam-steering elements. The solar collector is dimensioned to collect and divert incoming rays of sunlight. The beam-forming elements intercept the diverted rays of sunlight, and are shaped to concentrate the rays of sunlight into a beam. The steering elements are shaped, dimensioned, positioned, and/or oriented to deflect the beam toward a beam output path. The beams from the concentrators are converted to heat at a receiver, and the heat may be temporarily stored or directly used to generate electricity.

Performance comparison of different thermodynamic cycles for an innovative central receiver solar power plant

Science.gov (United States)

Reyes-Belmonte, Miguel A.; Sebastián, Andrés; González-Aguilar, José; Romero, Manuel

2017-06-01

The potential of using different thermodynamic cycles coupled to a solar tower central receiver that uses a novel heat transfer fluid is analyzed. The new fluid, named as DPS, is a dense suspension of solid particles aerated through a tubular receiver used to convert concentrated solar energy into thermal power. This novel fluid allows reaching high temperatures at the solar receiver what opens a wide range of possibilities for power cycle selection. This work has been focused into the assessment of power plant performance using conventional, but optimized cycles but also novel thermodynamic concepts. Cases studied are ranging from subcritical steam Rankine cycle; open regenerative Brayton air configurations at medium and high temperature; combined cycle; closed regenerative Brayton helium scheme and closed recompression supercritical carbon dioxide Brayton cycle. Power cycle diagrams and working conditions for design point are compared amongst the studied cases for a common reference thermal power of 57 MWth reaching the central cavity receiver. It has been found that Brayton air cycle working at high temperature or using supercritical carbon dioxide are the most promising solutions in terms of efficiency conversion for the power block of future generation by means of concentrated solar power plants.

Thermal power plant efficiency enhancement with Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soto, Rodrigo; Vergara, Julio

2014-01-01

In addition to greenhouse gas emissions, coastal thermal power plants would gain further opposition due to their heat rejection distressing the local ecosystem. Therefore, these plants need to enhance their thermal efficiency while reducing their environmental offense. In this study, a hybrid plant based on the principle of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion was coupled to a 740 MW coal-fired power plant project located at latitude 28°S where the surface to deepwater temperature difference would not suffice for regular OTEC plants. This paper presents the thermodynamical model to assess the overall efficiency gained by adopting an ammonia Rankine cycle plus a desalinating unit, heated by the power plant condenser discharge and refrigerated by cold deep seawater. The simulation allowed us to optimize a system that would finally enhance the plant power output by 25–37 MW, depending on the season, without added emissions while reducing dramatically the water temperature at discharge and also desalinating up to 5.8 million tons per year. The supplemental equipment was sized and the specific emissions reduction was estimated. We believe that this approach would improve the acceptability of thermal and nuclear power plant projects regardless of the plant location. -- Highlights: • An Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion hybrid plant was designed. • The waste heat of a power plant was delivered as an OTEC heat source. • The effect of size and operating conditions on plant efficiency were studied. • The OTEC implementation in a Chilean thermal power plant was evaluated. • The net efficiency of the thermal power plant was increased by 1.3%

Impact of the operation of non-displaced feedwater heaters on the performance of Solar Aided Power Generation plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qin, Jiyun; Hu, Eric; Nathan, Graham J.

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Impact of non-displaced feedwater heater on plant’s performance has been evaluated. • Two operation strategies for non-displaced feedwater heater has been proposed. • Constant temperature strategy is generally better. • Constant mass flow rate strategy is suit for rich solar thermal input. - Abstract: Solar Aided Power Generation is a technology in which low grade solar thermal energy is used to displace the high grade heat of the extraction steam in a regenerative Rankine cycle power plant for feedwater preheating purpose. The displaced extraction steam can then expand further in the steam turbine to generate power. In such a power plant, using the (concentrated) solar thermal energy to displace the extraction steam to high pressure/temperature feedwater heaters (i.e. displaced feedwater heaters) is the most popular arrangement. Namely the extraction steam to low pressure/temperature feedwater heaters (i.e. non-displaced feedwater heaters) is not displaced by the solar thermal energy. In a Solar Aided Power Generation plants, when solar radiation/input changes, the extraction steam to the displaced feedwater heaters requires to be adjusted according to the solar radiation. However, for the extraction steams to the non-displaced feedwater heaters, it can be either adjusted accordingly following so-called constant temperature strategy or unadjusted i.e. following so-called constant mass flow rate strategy, when solar radiation/input changes. The previous studies overlooked the operation of non-displaced feedwater heaters, which has also impact on the whole plant’s performance. This paper aims to understand/reveal the impact of the two different operation strategies for non-displaced feedwater heaters on the plant’s performance. In this paper, a 300 MW Rankine cycle power plant, in which the extraction steam to high pressure/temperature feedwater heaters is displaced by the solar thermal energy, is used as study case for this purpose. It

Design and modeling of low temperature solar thermal power station

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shankar Ganesh, N.; Srinivas, T.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► The optimum conditions are different for efficiency and power conditions. ► The current model works up to a maximum separator temperature of 150 °C. ► The turbine concentration influences the high pressure. ► High solar beam radiation and optimized cycle conditions give low collector cost. -- Abstract: During the heat recovery in a Kalina cycle, a binary aqua–ammonia mixture changes its state from liquid to vapor, the more volatile ammonia vaporizes first and then the water starts vaporization to match temperature profile of the hot fluid. In the present work, a low temperature Kalina cycle has been investigated to optimize the heat recovery from solar thermal collectors. Hot fluid coming from solar parabolic trough collector with vacuum tubes is used to generate ammonia rich vapor in a boiler for power generation. The turbine inlet conditions are optimized to match the variable hot fluid temperature with the intermittent nature of the solar radiation. The key parameters discussed in this study are strong solution concentration, separator temperature which affects the hot fluid inlet temperature and turbine ammonia concentration. Solar parabolic collector system with vacuum tubes has been designed at the optimized power plant conditions. This work can be used in the selection of boiler, separator and turbine conditions to maximize the power output as well as efficiency of power generation system. The current model results a maximum limit temperature for separator as 150 °C at the Indian climatic conditions. A maximum specific power of 105 kW per kg/s of working fluid can be obtained at 80% of strong solution concentration with 140 °C separator temperature. The corresponding plant and cycle efficiencies are 5.25% and 13% respectively. But the maximum efficiencies of 6% and 15% can be obtained respectively for plant and Kalina cycle at 150 °C of separator temperature.

Solar thermal power system

Science.gov (United States)

Bennett, Charles L.

2010-06-15

A solar thermal power generator includes an inclined elongated boiler tube positioned in the focus of a solar concentrator for generating steam from water. The boiler tube is connected at one end to receive water from a pressure vessel as well as connected at an opposite end to return steam back to the vessel in a fluidic circuit arrangement that stores energy in the form of heated water in the pressure vessel. An expander, condenser, and reservoir are also connected in series to respectively produce work using the steam passed either directly (above a water line in the vessel) or indirectly (below a water line in the vessel) through the pressure vessel, condense the expanded steam, and collect the condensed water. The reservoir also supplies the collected water back to the pressure vessel at the end of a diurnal cycle when the vessel is sufficiently depressurized, so that the system is reset to repeat the cycle the following day. The circuital arrangement of the boiler tube and the pressure vessel operates to dampen flow instabilities in the boiler tube, damp out the effects of solar transients, and provide thermal energy storage which enables time shifting of power generation to better align with the higher demand for energy during peak energy usage periods.

Dry cooling with night cool storage to enhance solar power plants performance in extreme conditions areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muñoz, J.; Martínez-Val, J.M.; Abbas, R.; Abánades, A.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Solar thermo-electric power plants with thermal storage for condenser cooling. ► Technology to mitigate the negative effect on Rankine cycles of the day-time high temperatures in deserts. ► Electricity production augmentation in demand-peak hours by the use of day-night temperature difference. -- Abstract: Solar thermal power plants are usually installed in locations with high yearly average solar radiation, often deserts. In such conditions, cooling water required for thermodynamic cycles is rarely available. Moreover, when solar radiation is high, ambient temperature is very high as well; this leads to excessive condensation temperature, especially when air-condensers are used, and decreases the plant efficiency. However, temperature variation in deserts is often very high, which drives to relatively low temperatures during the night. This fact can be exploited with the use of a closed cooling system, so that the coolant (water) is chilled during the night and store. Chilled water is then used during peak temperature hours to cool the condenser (dry cooling), thus enhancing power output and efficiency. The present work analyzes the performance improvement achieved by night thermal cool storage, compared to its equivalent air cooled power plant. Dry cooling is proved to be energy-effective for moderately high day–night temperature differences (20 °C), often found in desert locations. The storage volume requirement for different power plant efficiencies has also been studied, resulting on an asymptotic tendency.

Facing technological challenges of Solar Updraft Power Plants

Science.gov (United States)

Lupi, F.; Borri, C.; Harte, R.; Krätzig, W. B.; Niemann, H.-J.

2015-01-01

The Solar Updraft Power Plant technology addresses a very challenging idea of combining two kinds of renewable energy: wind and solar. The working principle is simple: a Solar Updraft Power Plant (SUPP) consists of a collector area to heat the air due to the wide-banded ultra-violet solar radiation, the high-rise solar tower to updraft the heated air to the atmosphere, and in between the power conversion unit, where a system of coupled turbines and generators transforms the stream of heated air into electric power. A good efficiency of the power plant can only be reached with extra-large dimensions of the tower and/or the collector area. The paper presents an up-to-date review of the SUPP technology, focusing on the multi-physics modeling of the power plant, on the structural behavior of the tower and, last but not least, on the modeling of the stochastic wind loading process.

Thermodynamic evaluation of solar-geothermal hybrid power plants in northern Chile

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cardemil, José Miguel; Cortés, Felipe; Díaz, Andrés; Escobar, Rodrigo

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Thermodynamic evaluation of geothermal-solar hybrid systems. • A multi-parameter analysis for different cycle configurations. • Performance comparison between two operation modes. • Overview of the technical applicability of the hybridization. - Abstract: A thermodynamic model was developed using Engineering Equation Solver (EES) to evaluate the performance of single and double-flash geothermal power plants assisted by a parabolic trough solar concentrating collector field, considering four different geothermal reservoir conditions. The benefits of delivering solar thermal energy for either the superheating or evaporating processes were analyzed in order to achieve the maximum 2"n"d law efficiency for the hybrid schemes and reduce the geothermal resource consumption for a constant power production. The results of the hybrid single-flash demonstrate that the superheating process generates additional 0.23 kWe/kWth, while supplying solar heat to evaporate the geothermal brine only delivers 0.16 kWe/kWth. The double-flash hybrid plant simulation results allow obtaining 0.29 kWe/kWth and 0.17 kW/kWth by integrating solar energy at the superheater and evaporator, respectively. In this context, the hybrid single-flash power plant is able to produce at least 20% additional power output, depending on the characteristics of the geothermal resource. Moreover, all of the cases analyzed herein increased the exergy efficiency of the process by at least 3%. The developed model also allowed assessing the reduction on the consumption of the geothermal fluid from the reservoir when the plant power output stays constant, up to 16% for the hybrid single-flash, and 19% for the hybrid double-flash. Based on the results obtained in this study, the solar-geothermal hybrid scheme increases the power generation compared with geothermal-only power plants, being an attractive solution for improved management of the geothermal reservoir depletion rates. The study shows

Thermal-CFD Analysis of Combined Solar-Nuclear Cycle Systems.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fathi, Nima [Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States); McDaniel, Patrick [Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States); Vorobieff, Peter [Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States); de Oliveira, Cassiano [Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States); Rodriguez, Salvador B. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Aleyasin, Seyed Sobhan [Univ. of Manitoba (Canada)

2015-09-01

The aim of this paper is evaluating the efficiency of a novel combined solar-nuclear cycle. CFD-Thermal analysis is performed to apply the available surplus heat from the nuclear cycle and measure the available kinetic energy of air for the turbine of a solar chimney power plant system (SCPPS). The presented idea helps to decrease the thermal pollution and handle the water shortage supply for water plant by replacing the cooling tower by solar chimney power plant to get the surplus heat from the available warm air in the secondary loop of the reactor. By applying this idea to a typical 1000 MW nuclear power plant with a 0.33 thermal efficiency, we can increase it to 0.39.

Applicability of advanced automotive heat engines to solar thermal power

Science.gov (United States)

Beremand, D. G.; Evans, D. G.; Alger, D. L.

The requirements of a solar thermal power system are reviewed and compared with the predicted characteristics of automobile engines under development. A good match is found in terms of power level and efficiency when the automobile engines, designed for maximum powers of 65-100 kW (87 to 133 hp) are operated to the nominal 20-40 kW electric output requirement of the solar thermal application. At these reduced power levels it appears that the automotive gas turbine and Stirling engines have the potential to deliver the 40+ percent efficiency goal of the solar thermal program.

Central receiver solar thermal power system, phase 1. Progress report for period ending December 31, 1975

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1976-04-01

The program objective is the preliminary design of a 10 MWe pilot solar power plant supported by major subsystem experiments. Progress is reported on the following task elements: 10 MWe pilot plant; collector subsystem design and analysis; receiver subsystem requirements; receiver subsystem design; thermal storage subsystem; electrical power generation subsystem; and pilot plant architectural engineering and support. (WDM)

Gas cooled solar tower power plant (GAST) KWU approach to a 20 MW hybrid system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mayer, Martin

1980-07-01

The gas cooled solar tower powerplant with a hybrid solar-fossil heating system in the form given here represents a significant step towards the industrial use of solar energy. The transition from fossil fuels to solar energy can be facilitated for the power plant operators if the transition is gradual and if conventional technology is used. Using solar energy and with a turbine inlet temperature of 800/sup 0/C the GAST power plant reaches an output of approximately 20 MW and a thermal efficiency of approximately 40% reference to the heat supplied by the receiver. In the absence of solar radiation the plant can be operated exclusively on fossil fuel. Increasing the turbine inlet temperature to 1000/sup 0/C enables an efficiency of about 47% to be reached in the GUD cycle.

Technical and economic assessment of the integrated solar combined cycle power plants in Iran

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soltani Hosseini, M.; Hosseini, R.; Valizadeh, G.H.

2002-01-01

Thermal efficiency, capacity factor, environmental considerations, investment cost, fuel and O and M costs are the main parameters for technical and economic assessment of solar power plants. This analysis has shown that the Integrated Solar Combined Cycle System with 67 MW e solar field(ISCCS-67) is the most suitable plan for the first solar power plant in Iran. The Levelized Energy Costs of combined cycle and ISCCS-67 power plants would be equal if 49 million dollars of ISCCS-67 capital cost supplied by the international environmental organizations such as Global Environmental Facilities and World Bank. This study shows that an ISCCS-67 saves 59 million dollars in fuel consumption and reduces about 2.4 million ton in CO 2 emission during 30 years operating period. Increasing of steam turbine capacity by 50%, and 4% improvement in overall efficiency are other advantages of iSCCS-67 power plant. The LEC of ISCCS-67 is 10% and so 33% lower than the combined cycle and gas turbine, respectively, at the same capacity factor with consideration of environmental costs

Hybrid Solar: A Review on Photovoltaic and Thermal Power Integration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. T. Chow

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The market of solar thermal and photovoltaic electricity generation is growing rapidly. New ideas on hybrid solar technology evolve for a wide range of applications, such as in buildings, processing plants, and agriculture. In the building sector in particular, the limited building space for the accommodation of solar devices has driven a demand on the use of hybrid solar technology for the multigeneration of active power and/or passive solar devices. The importance is escalating with the worldwide trend on the development of low-carbon/zero-energy buildings. Hybrid photovoltaic/thermal (PVT collector systems had been studied theoretically, numerically, and experimentally in depth in the past decades. Together with alternative means, a range of innovative products and systems has been put forward. The final success of the integrative technologies relies on the coexistence of robust product design/construction and reliable system operation/maintenance in the long run to satisfy the user needs. This paper gives a broad review on the published academic works, with an emphasis placed on the research and development activities in the last decade.

Thermal performance of solar district heating plants in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Furbo, Simon; Perers, Bengt; Bava, Federico

2014-01-01

The market for solar heating plants connected to district heating systems is expanding rapidly in Denmark. It is expected that by the end of 2014 the 10 largest solar heating plants in Europe will be located in Denmark. Measurements from 23 Danish solar heating plants, all based on flat plate solar...... collectors mounted on the ground, shows measured yearly thermal performances of the solar heating plants placed in the interval from 313 kWh/m² collector to 493 kWh/m² collector with averages for all plants of 411 kWh/m² collector for 2012 and 450 kWh/m² collector for 2013. Theoretical calculations show...... of the cost/performance ratio for solar collector fields, both with flat plate collectors and with concentrating tracking solar collectors. It is recommended to continue monitoring and analysis of all large solar heating plants to document the reliability of the solar heating plants. It is also recommended...

Solar thermal energy conversion to electrical power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trinh, Anh-Khoi; González, Ivan; Fournier, Luc; Pelletier, Rémi; Sandoval V, Juan C.; Lesage, Frédéric J.

2014-01-01

The conversion of solar energy to electricity currently relies primarily on the photovoltaic effect in which photon bombardment of photovoltaic cells drives an electromotive force within the material. Alternatively, recent studies have investigated the potential of converting solar radiation to electricity by way of the Seebeck effect in which charge carrier mobility is generated by an asymmetric thermal differential. The present study builds upon these latest advancements in the state-of-the-art of thermoelectric system management by combining solar evacuated tube technology with commercially available Bismuth Telluride semiconductor modules. The target heat source is solar radiation and the target heat sink is thermal convection into the ambient air relying on wind aided forced convection. These sources of energy are reproduced in a laboratory controlled environment in order to maintain a thermal dipole across a thermoelectric module. The apparatus is then tested in a natural environment. The novelty of the present work lies in a net thermoelectric power gain for ambient environment applications and an experimental validation of theoretical electrical characteristics relative to a varying electrical load. - Highlights: • Solar radiation maintains a thermal tension which drives an electromotive force. • Voltage, current and electric power are reported and discussed. • Theoretical optimal thermoelectric conversion predictions are presented. • Theory is validated with experimentally measured data

Analysis and comparison between a concentrating solar and a photovoltaic power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Desideri, Umberto; Campana, Pietro Elia

2014-01-01

Highlights: • The performance of CSP and PV plants were compared with similar assumptions. • The influence of the site on the performance of CSP and PV plants is determined. • CSP plants performance is always higher in locations where DNI is prevailing. • CSP levelized electricity costs are generally lower than those from PV plants. • PV plants may produce larger amounts of electricity where the DNI is not prevailing. - Abstract: Solar energy is a source, which can be exploited in two main ways to generate power: direct conversion into electric energy using photovoltaic panels and by means of a thermodynamic cycle. In both cases the amount of energy, which can be converted, is changing daily and seasonally, causing a discontinuous electricity production. In order to limit this drawback, concentrated solar power plants (CSP) and photovoltaic plants (PV) can be equipped with a storage system that can be configured not only for covering peak-loads but also for the base-load after the sunset or before the sunrise. In CSP plants it is the sun’s thermal energy to be stored, whereas in PV applications it is the electrical energy to be stored in batteries, although this is not economically and environmentally feasible in large-scale power plants. The main aim of this paper is to study the performance of concentrated solar power plants equipped with molten salts thermal storage to cover a base load of 3 MW el . In order to verify the possibility of storing effectively the thermal energy and to design a plant for base load operation, two locations were chosen for the study: Gela in southern Italy, and Luxor in Egypt. The electricity production of the CSP facilities has been analyzed and then compared with the electricity production of PV plants. Two different comparisons were done, one by sizing the PV plant to provide the same peak power and one using the same collectors surface. This paper has also highlighted some important issues in site selection and in

Innovative configuration of a hybrid nuclear-solar tower power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Popov, Dimityr; Borissova, Ana

2017-01-01

This paper proposes a combination of a nuclear and a CSP plant and performs a thermodynamic analysis of the potential benefit. Most of today's operating nuclear reactor systems are producing saturated steam at relatively low pressure. This, in turn, limits their thermodynamic efficiency. Superheating of nuclear steam with solar thermal energy has the potential to overcome this drawback. Accordingly, an innovative configuration of a hybrid nuclear-CSP plant is assembled and simulated. It brings together pressurized water reactor and solar tower. The solar heat is transferred to nuclear steam to raise its temperature. Continuous superheating is provided through thermal energy storage. The results from design point calculations show that solar superheating has the potential to increase nuclear plant electric efficiency significantly, pushing it to around 37.5%. Solar heat to electricity conversion efficiency reaches unprecedented rates of 56.2%, approaching the effectiveness of the modern combined cycle gas turbine plants. Off-design model was used to simulate 24-h operation for one year by simulating 8760 cases. Due to implementation of thermal energy storage non-stop operation is manageable. The increased efficiency leads to solar tower island installed cost reductions of up to 25% compared to the standalone CSP plant, particularly driven by the smaller solar field. - Highlights: • External superheating of nuclear steam with solar thermal energy is proposed. • Novel hybrid plant configuration is assembled, modeled and simulated. • Substantial increase of nuclear plant capacity and efficiency is reported. • Superior efficiency of solar heat to electricity conversion is achieved. • Substantial decrease of solar field investment cost is reported.

Thermoeconomic optimization of a Kalina cycle for a central receiver concentrating solar power plant

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Modi, Anish; Kærn, Martin Ryhl; Andreasen, Jesper Graa

2016-01-01

with direct vapour generation and without storage. The use of the ammonia-water mixture as the power cycle working fluid with non-isothermal evaporation and condensation presents the potential to improve the overall performance of the plant. This however comes at a price of requiring larger heat exchangers...... because of lower thermal pinch and heat transfer degradation for mixtures as compared with using a pure fluid in a conventional steam Rankine cycle, and the necessity to use a complex cycle arrangement. Most of the previous studies on the Kalina cycle focused solely on the thermodynamic aspects......Concentrating solar power plants use a number of reflecting mirrors to focus and convert the incident solar energy to heat, and a power cycle to convert this heat into electricity. This paper evaluates the use of a high temperature Kalina cycle for a central receiver concentrating solar power plant...

Performance Analysis and Optimization of a Parabolic Trough Solar Power Plant in the Middle East Region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Praveen R. P.

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The Middle East is one among the areas of the world that receive high amounts of direct solar radiation. As such, the region holds a promising potential to leverage clean energy. Owing to rapid urbanization, energy demands in the region are on the rise. Along with the global push to curb undesirable outcomes such as air pollution, emissions of greenhouse gases, and climate change, an urgent need has arisen to explore and exploit the abundant renewable energy sources. This paper presents the design, performance analysis and optimization of a 100 MWe parabolic trough collector Solar Power Plant with thermal energy storage intended for use in the Middle Eastern regions. Two representative sites in the Middle East which offer an annual average direct normal irradiance (DNI of more than 5.5 kWh/m2/day has been chosen for the analysis. The thermodynamic aspect and annual performance of the proposed plant design is also analyzed using the System Advisor Model (SAM version 2017.9.5. Based on the analysis carried out on the initial design, annual power generated from the proposed concentrating solar power (CSP plant design in Abu Dhabi amounts to 333.15 GWh whereas that in Aswan recorded a value of 369.26 GWh, with capacity factors of 38.1% and 42.19% respectively. The mean efficiency of the plants in Abu Dhabi and Aswan are found to be 14.35% and 14.98% respectively. The optimization of the initial plant design is also carried out by varying two main design parameters, namely the solar multiple and full load hours of thermal energy storage (TES. Based on the findings of the study, the proposed 100 MW parabolic trough collector solar power plant with thermal energy storage can contribute to the sustainable energy future of the Middle East with reduced dependency on fossil fuels.

Power generation enhancement in a salinity-gradient solar pond power plant using thermoelectric generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ziapour, Behrooz M.; Saadat, Mohammad; Palideh, Vahid; Afzal, Sadegh

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Thermoelectric generator was used and simulated within a salinity-gradient solar pond power plant. • Results showed that the thermoelectric generator can be able to enhance the power plant efficiency. • Results showed that the presented models can be able to produce generation even in the cold months. • The optimum size of area of solar pond based on its effect on efficiency is 50,000 m 2 . - Abstract: Salinity-gradient solar pond (SGSP) has been a reliable supply of heat source for power generation when it has been integrated with low temperature thermodynamics cycles like organic Rankine cycle (ORC). Also, thermoelectric generator (TEG) plays a critical role in the production of electricity from renewable energy sources. This paper investigates the potential of thermoelectric generator as a power generation system using heat from SGSP. In this work, thermoelectric generator was used instead of condenser of ORC with the purpose of improving the performance of system. Two new models of SGSP have been presented as: (1) SGSP using TEG in condenser of ORC without heat exchanger and (2) SGSP using TEG in condenser of ORC with heat exchanger. These proposed systems was evaluated through computer simulations. The ambient conditions were collected from beach of Urmia lake in IRAN. Simulation results indicated that, for identical conditions, the model 1 has higher performance than other model 2. For models 1 and 2 in T LCZ = 90 °C, the overall thermal efficiency of the solar pond power plant, were obtained 0.21% and 0.2% more than ORC without TEG, respectively.

Modeling energy production of solar thermal systems and wind turbines for installation at corn ethanol plants

Science.gov (United States)

Ehrke, Elizabeth

Nearly every aspect of human existence relies on energy in some way. Most of this energy is currently derived from fossil fuel resources. Increasing energy demands coupled with environmental and national security concerns have facilitated the move towards renewable energy sources. Biofuels like corn ethanol are one of the ways the U.S. has significantly reduced petroleum consumption. However, the large energy requirement of corn ethanol limits the net benefit of the fuel. Using renewable energy sources to produce ethanol can greatly improve its economic and environmental benefits. The main purpose of this study was to model the useful energy received from a solar thermal array and a wind turbine at various locations to determine the feasibility of applying these technologies at ethanol plants around the country. The model calculates thermal energy received from a solar collector array and electricity generated by a wind turbine utilizing various input data to characterize the equipment. Project cost and energy rate inputs are used to evaluate the profitability of the solar array or wind turbine. The current state of the wind and solar markets were examined to give an accurate representation of the economics of each industry. Eighteen ethanol plant locations were evaluated for the viability of a solar thermal array and/or wind turbine. All ethanol plant locations have long payback periods for solar thermal arrays, but high natural gas prices significantly reduce this timeframe. Government incentives will be necessary for the economic feasibility of solar thermal arrays. Wind turbines can be very profitable for ethanol plants in the Midwest due to large wind resources. The profitability of wind power is sensitive to regional energy prices. However, government incentives for wind power do not significantly change the economic feasibility of a wind turbine. This model can be used by current or future ethanol facilities to investigate or begin the planning process for a

Optimization, selection and feasibility study of solar parabolic trough power plants for Algerian conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boukelia, T.E.; Mecibah, M.S.; Kumar, B.N.; Reddy, K.S.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Evaluation of solar resources in the absence of measured data. • Optimization of 2 PTSTPPs integrated with TES and FBS and using oil and salt as HTFs. • 4E comparative study of the two optimized plants alongside the Andasol 1 plant. • The salt plant resulting as the best one and has been chosen for the viability study. • Tamanrasset is the best location for construction of PTSTPPs. - Abstract: In the present study, optimization of two parabolic trough solar thermal power plants integrated with thermal energy storage (TES), and fuel backup system (FBS) has been performed. The first plant uses Therminol VP-1 as heat transfer fluid in the solar field and the second plant uses molten salt. The optimization is carried out with solar multiple (SM) and full load hours of TES as the parameters, with an objective of minimizing the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) and maximizing the annual energy yield. A 4E (energy–exergy–environment–economic) comparison of the optimized plants alongside the Andasol 1 as reference plant is studied. The molten salt plant resulting as the best technology, from the optimization and 4E comparative study has been chosen for the viability analysis of ten locations in Algeria with semi-arid and arid climatic conditions. The results indicate that Andasol 1 reference plant has the highest mean annual energy efficiency (17.25%) and exergy efficiency (23.30%). Whereas, the highest capacity factor (54.60%) and power generation (236.90 GW h) are exhibited by the molten salt plant. The molten salt plant has least annual water usage of about 800,482 m 3 , but demands more land for the operation. Nevertheless the oil plant emits the lowest amount of CO 2 gas (less than 40.3 kilo tonnes). From the economic viewpoint, molten salt seems to be the best technology compared to other plants due to its lowest investment cost (less than 360 million dollars) and lower levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) (8.48 ¢/kW h). The

Market: why is thermal solar power down?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Le Jannic, N.

2010-01-01

After a 10 year period of steady growth the French market of the thermal solar power dropped by 15% in 2009. Only 265.000 m 2 were installed instead of 313.000 m 2 in 2008. The main reason of this decrease is the economic crisis: the European market for thermal solar energy dropped by 10%. The second reason is the unfair competition of the photovoltaic power that benefits from very favourable electricity purchase prices, from higher subsidies and from a better image in the public's eye. Another competitor on the market is the new equipment called 'thermodynamic water heater' that involves a heat pump, this equipment is cheaper but only on a short term basis. (A.C.)

Techno-economic evaluation of a solar powered water desalination plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fiorenza, G.; Sharma, V.K.; Braccio, G.

2003-01-01

Water desalination technologies and their possible coupling with solar energy have been evaluated. The topic is of particular interest, especially for countries located within the Southern Mediterranean belt, generally characterized with vast arid and isolated areas having practically no access to electric power from the national grid. Economic factors being one of the main barriers to diffusion of solar devices so far, an attempt has been made to estimate the water production cost for two different seawater desalination systems: reverse osmosis and multiple effect, powered by a solar thermal and a photovoltaic field, respectively. The results obtained for plants of capacity varying between 500 and 5000 m 3 /d have been compared to results concerning a conventional desalination system. In addition, the influences of various parameters, such as depreciation factor, economic incentives, PV modules cost and oil price, have also been considered

Scenarios for solar thermal energy applications in Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martins, F.R.; Abreu, S.L.; Pereira, E.B.

2012-01-01

The Solar and Wind Energy Resource Assessment (SWERA) database is used to prepare and discuss scenarios for solar thermal applications in Brazil. The paper discusses low temperature applications (small and large scale water heating) and solar power plants for electricity production (concentrated solar power plants and solar chimney plants) in Brazil. The results demonstrate the feasibility of large-scale application of solar energy for water heating and electricity generation in Brazil. Payback periods for water heating systems are typically below 4 years if they were used to replace residential electric showerheads in low-income families. Large-scale water heating systems also present high feasibility and many commercial companies are adopting this technology to reduce operational costs. The best sites to set up CSP plants are in the Brazilian semi-arid region where the annual energy achieves 2.2 MW h/m 2 and averages of daily solar irradiation are larger than 5.0 kW h/m 2 /day. The western area of Brazilian Northeastern region meets all technical requirements to exploit solar thermal energy for electricity generation based on solar chimney technology. Highlights: ► Scenarios for solar thermal applications are presented. ► Payback is typically below 4 years for small scale water heating systems. ► Large-scale water heating systems also present high feasibility. ► The Brazilian semi-arid region is the best sites for CSP and chimney tower plants.

Concentrating solar power plant investment and operation decisions under different price and support mechanisms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kost, Christoph; Flath, Christoph M.; Möst, Dominik

2013-01-01

The dispatch opportunities provided by storage-enhanced Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) plants have direct implications on the investment decisions as not only nameplate capacity but also the storage capacity and the solar multiple play a crucial role for the viability of the plant investment. By integrating additional technical aspects and operation strategies, this paper extends the optimization model proposed by Madaeni et al., How Thermal Energy Storage Enhances the Economic Viability of Concentrating Solar Power. Using a mixed integer maximization approach the paper yields both the optimal layout decision and the operation of CSP plants. Subsequently, the economic value of CSP storage is analyzed via energy modeling of a Spanish plant location under the respective wholesale market prices as well as the local feed-in tariff. The analysis shows that investment incentives for CSP plants with storage need to appropriately account for the interdependency between the price incentives and the plant operating strategy. As the resulting revenue characteristics influence the optimal size of solar field and storage differing operating strategies also give rise to differing optimal plant layouts. Most noteworthy, the current Spanish support scheme offers only limited incentives for larger thermal storage capacity. - Highlights: • Dispatch opportunities of CSP have direct implications on both investment and operational decisions. • Valuation approach with a single mixed integer maximization problem. • Profitability of CSP plants under the premium feed-in tariff in Spain was assessed. • Layout decision and storage size are influenced by remuneration scheme. • Discuss alternative remuneration schemes for “dispatchable” RE technologies

Solar thermal electricity generation

Science.gov (United States)

Gasemagha, Khairy Ramadan

1993-01-01

This report presents the results of modeling the thermal performance and economic feasibility of large (utility scale) and small solar thermal power plants for electricity generation. A number of solar concepts for power systems applications have been investigated. Each concept has been analyzed over a range of plant power ratings from 1 MW(sub e) to 300 MW(sub e) and over a range of capacity factors from a no-storage case (capacity factor of about 0.25 to 0.30) up to intermediate load capacity factors in the range of 0.46 to 0.60. The solar plant's economic viability is investigated by examining the effect of various parameters on the plant costs (both capital and O & M) and the levelized energy costs (LEC). The cost components are reported in six categories: collectors, energy transport, energy storage, energy conversion, balance of plant, and indirect/contingency costs. Concentrator and receiver costs are included in the collector category. Thermal and electric energy transport costs are included in the energy transport category. Costs for the thermal or electric storage are included in the energy storage category; energy conversion costs are included in the energy conversion category. The balance of plant cost category comprises the structures, land, service facilities, power conditioning, instrumentation and controls, and spare part costs. The indirect/contingency category consists of the indirect construction and the contingency costs. The concepts included in the study are (1) molten salt cavity central receiver with salt storage (PFCR/R-C-Salt); (2) molten salt external central receiver with salt storage (PFCR/R-E-Salt); (3) sodium external central receiver with sodium storage (PFCR/RE-Na); (4) sodium external central receiver with salt storage (PFCR/R-E-Na/Salt); (5) water/steam external central receiver with oil/rock storage (PFCR/R-E-W/S); (6) parabolic dish with stirling engine conversion and lead acid battery storage (PFDR/SLAB); (7) parabolic dish

OUT Success Stories: Solar Trough Power Plants

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, J.

2000-08-01

The Solar Electric Generating System (SEGS) plants use parabolic-trough solar collectors to capture the sun's energy and convert it to heat. The SEGS plants range in capacity from 13.8 to 80 MW, and they were constructed to meet Southern California Edison Company's periods of peak power demand.

Heat Transfer Phenomena in Concentrating Solar Power Systems.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Armijo, Kenneth Miguel; Shinde, Subhash L.

2016-11-01

Concentrating solar power (CSP) utilizes solar thermal energy to drive a thermal power cycle for the generation of electricity. CSP systems are facilitated as large, centralized power plants , such as power towers and trough systems, to take advantage of ec onomies of scale through dispatchable thermal energy storage, which is a principle advantage over other energy generation systems . Additionally, the combination of large solar concentration ratios with high solar conversion efficiencies provides a strong o pportunity of employment of specific power cycles such as the Brayton gas cycle that utilizes super critical fluids such as supercritical carbon dioxide (s CO 2 ) , compared to other sola r - fossil hybrid power plants. A comprehensive thermal - fluids examination is provided by this work of various heat transfer phenomena evident in CSP technologies. These include sub - systems and heat transfer fundamental phenomena evident within CSP systems , which include s receivers, heat transfer fluids (HTFs), thermal storage me dia and system designs , thermodynamic power block systems/components, as well as high - temperature materials. This work provides literature reviews, trade studies, and phenomenological comparisons of heat transfer media (HTM) and components and systems, all for promotion of high performance and efficient CSP systems. In addition, f urther investigations are also conducted that provide advanced heat transfer modeling approaches for gas - particle receiver systems , as well as performance/efficiency enhancement re commendations, particularly for solarized supercritical power systems .

Cooling towers for thermal power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chaboseau, J.

1987-01-01

After a brief recall on cooling towers testing and construction, this paper presents four examples of very large French nuclear power plant cooling towers, and one of an Australian thermal power plant [fr

Integrating geothermal into coal-fired power plant with carbon capture: A comparative study with solar energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Fu; Deng, Shuai; Zhao, Jun; Zhao, Jiapei; Yang, Guohua; Yan, Jinyue

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Post-combustion carbon capture integrating geothermal energy was proposed. • A 300 MWe subcritical coal-fired plant was selected as the baseline. • The geothermal assisted carbon capture system was compared with solar assisted carbon capture plant. • Two different locations were chosen for the technical and economical comparison. • Using medium temperature geothermal thermal energy to replace steam extraction performs better performance. - Abstract: A new system integrating geothermal energy into post-combustion carbon capture is proposed in this paper. Geothermal energy at medium temperatures is used to provide the required thermal heat for solvent regeneration. The performance of this system is compared with solar assisted carbon capture plant via technical and economic evaluation. A 300 MWe coal-fired power plant is selected as the reference case, and two different locations based on the local climatic conditions and geothermal resources are chosen for the comparison. The results show that the geothermal assisted post-combustion carbon capture plant has better performances than the solar assisted one in term of the net power output and annual electricity generation. The net plant average efficiency based on lower heating value can be increased by 2.75% with a thermal load fraction of about 41%. Results of economic assessment show that the proposed geothermal assisted post-combustion carbon capture system has lower levelized costs of electricity and cost of carbon dioxide avoidance compared to the solar assisted post-combustion carbon capture plant. In order to achieve comparative advantages over the reference post-combustion carbon capture plant in both locations, the price of solar collector has to be lower than 70 USD/m 2 , and the drilling depth of the geothermal well shall be less than 2.1 km.

Environmental effects of thermal power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gerlitzky, M.; Friedrich, R.; Unger, H.

1986-02-01

Reviewing critically the present literature, the effects of thermal power plants on the environment are studied. At first, the loads of the different power plant types are compiled. With regard to the effects of emission reduction proceedings the pollutant emissions are quantified. The second chapter shows the effects on the ecological factors, which could be caused by the most important emission components of thermal power plants. Where it is possible, relations between immissions respectively depositions and their effects on climate, man, flora, fauna and materials will be given. This shows that many effects depend strongly on the local landscape, climate and use of natural resources. Therefore, it appears efficient to ascertain different load limits. The last chapter gives a suggestion for an ecological compatibility test (ECT) of thermal power plants. In modular form the ECT deals with the emission fields, waste heat, pollution burden of air and water, noise, loss of area and aesthetical aspects. Limits depending on local conditions and use of area will be discussed. (orig.) [de

Control oriented concentrating solar power (CSP) plant model and its applications

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Qi

Solar receivers in concentrating solar thermal power plants (CSP) undergo over 10,000 start-ups and shutdowns, and over 25,000 rapid rate of change in temperature on receivers due to cloud transients resulting in performance degradation and material fatigue in their expected lifetime of over 30 years. The research proposes to develop a three-level controller that uses multi-input-multi-output (MIMO) control technology to minimize the effect of these disturbances, improve plant performance, and extend plant life. The controller can be readily installed on any vendor supplied state-of-the-art control hardware. We propose a three-level controller architecture using multi-input-multi-output (MIMO) control for CSP plants that can be implemented on existing plants to improve performance, reliability, and extend the life of the plant. This architecture optimizes the performance on multiple time scalesreactive level (regulation to temperature set points), tactical level (adaptation of temperature set points), and strategic level (trading off fatigue life due to thermal cycling and current production). This controller unique to CSP plants operating at temperatures greater than 550 °C, will make CSPs competitive with conventional power plants and contribute significantly towards the Sunshot goal of 0.06/kWh(e), while responding with agility to both market dynamics and changes in solar irradiance such as due to passing clouds. Moreover, our development of control software with performance guarantees will avoid early stage failures and permit smooth grid integration of the CSP power plants. The proposed controller can be implemented with existing control hardware infrastructure with little or no additional equipment. In the thesis, we demonstrate a dynamics model of CSP, of which different components are modelled with different time scales. We also show a real time control strategy of CSP control oriented model in steady state. Furthermore, we shown different controllers

Hybrid solar and hydro-power for Austria

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Weyss, N

1978-02-01

It is proposed that integrating solar powerplants into the Austrian electricity networks could cost less than conventional thermal plants, and provide a high degree of independence to the country. The following aspects are discussed; the seasonal distribution of sunshine, solar power plants, land requirements, economic feasibility, solar/fossil hybrid operation, integration strategy, Malta-B as a calculating unit, solar-hydraulic baseload throughout the year, concrete requirements, solar-hydraulic possibilities within the next 50 years, cement for solar plants, and energy accounting. (MHR)

Performance analysis of a lunar based solar thermal power system with regolith thermal storage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu, Xiaochen; Ma, Rong; Wang, Chao; Yao, Wei

2016-01-01

The manned deep-space exploration is a hot topic of the current space activities. The continuous supply of thermal and electrical energy for the scientific equipment and human beings is a crucial issue for the lunar outposts. Since the night lasts for periods of about 350 h at most locations on the lunar surface, massive energy storage is required for continuous energy supply during the lengthy lunar night and the in-situ resource utilization is demanded. A lunar based solar thermal power system with regolith thermal storage is presented in this paper. The performance analysis is carried out by the finite-time thermodynamics to take into account major irreversible losses. The influences of some key design parameters are analyzed for system optimization. The analytical results shows that the lunar based solar thermal power system with regolith thermal storage can meet the requirement of the continuous energy supply for lunar outposts. - Highlights: • A lunar based solar thermal power system with regolith thermal storage is presented. • The performance analysis is carried out by the finite-time thermodynamics. • The influences of some key design parameters are analyzed.

Heat engine development for solar thermal power systems

Science.gov (United States)

Pham, H. Q.; Jaffe, L. D.

The parabolic dish solar collector systems for converting sunlight to electrical power through a heat engine will, require a small heat engine of high performance long lifetime to be competitive with conventional power systems. The most promising engine candidates are Stirling, high temperature Brayton, and combined cycle. Engines available in the current market today do not meet these requirements. The development of Stirling and high temperature Brayton for automotive applications was studied which utilizes much of the technology developed in this automotive program for solar power engines. The technical status of the engine candidates is reviewed and the components that may additional development to meet solar thermal system requirements are identified.

Thermocline thermal storage systems for concentrated solar power plants: One-dimensional numerical model and comparative analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Modi, Anish; Pérez-Segarra, Carlos David

2014-01-01

Concentrated solar power plants have attracted increasing interest from researchers and governments all over the world in recent years. An important part of these plants is the storage system which improves dispatchability and makes the plant more reliable. In this paper, a one-dimensional transi...

Solar thermal power plants for heat and electricity generation; Presentacion de plantas termosolares para generacion de calor y energia electrica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Estrada Cajigal, V [Solartronic S. A. de C. V., Cuernavaca (Mexico); Manzini, F; Sanchez, A [Laboratorio de Energia Solar (IIM-UNAM), Temixco (Mexico)

1993-12-31

Solar thermal technology is presented for concentration into a point for the production of heat and energy in small and large scale, emphasis is made on the capacity for the combination with current technologies using fossil fuels for electricity generation and process steam, increasing the global efficiency of the power plants and notably reducing the pollutants emission to the air during the insolation hours. It is successfully compared with other solar-thermal technologies. [Espanol] Se presenta la tecnologia termosolar de concentracion puntual para produccion de calor y de energia en pequena y gran escala, se enfatiza su capacidad de combinacion con las tecnologias actuales que utilizan combustibles fosiles para produccion de electricidad y vapor de proceso, aumentando la eficiencia global de las plantas y reduciendo notablemente sus emisiones contaminantes a la atmosfera durante las horas de insolacion. Se le compara exitosamente con otras tecnologias termosolares.

Solar thermal power plants for heat and electricity generation; Presentacion de plantas termosolares para generacion de calor y energia electrica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Estrada Cajigal, V. [Solartronic S. A. de C. V., Cuernavaca (Mexico); Manzini, F.; Sanchez, A. [Laboratorio de Energia Solar (IIM-UNAM), Temixco (Mexico)

1992-12-31

Solar thermal technology is presented for concentration into a point for the production of heat and energy in small and large scale, emphasis is made on the capacity for the combination with current technologies using fossil fuels for electricity generation and process steam, increasing the global efficiency of the power plants and notably reducing the pollutants emission to the air during the insolation hours. It is successfully compared with other solar-thermal technologies. [Espanol] Se presenta la tecnologia termosolar de concentracion puntual para produccion de calor y de energia en pequena y gran escala, se enfatiza su capacidad de combinacion con las tecnologias actuales que utilizan combustibles fosiles para produccion de electricidad y vapor de proceso, aumentando la eficiencia global de las plantas y reduciendo notablemente sus emisiones contaminantes a la atmosfera durante las horas de insolacion. Se le compara exitosamente con otras tecnologias termosolares.

Solar thermal aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Bennett, Charles L.

2007-09-18

A solar thermal powered aircraft powered by heat energy from the sun. A heat engine, such as a Stirling engine, is carried by the aircraft body for producing power for a propulsion mechanism, such as a propeller. The heat engine has a thermal battery in thermal contact with it so that heat is supplied from the thermal battery. A solar concentrator, such as reflective parabolic trough, is movably connected to an optically transparent section of the aircraft body for receiving and concentrating solar energy from within the aircraft. Concentrated solar energy is collected by a heat collection and transport conduit, and heat transported to the thermal battery. A solar tracker includes a heliostat for determining optimal alignment with the sun, and a drive motor actuating the solar concentrator into optimal alignment with the sun based on a determination by the heliostat.

New materials for thermal energy storage in concentrated solar power plants

Science.gov (United States)

Guerreiro, Luis; Collares-Pereira, Manuel

2016-05-01

Solar Thermal Electricity (STE) is an important alternative to PV electricity production, not only because it is getting more cost competitive with the continuous growth in installed capacity, engineering and associated innovations, but also, because of its unique dispatch ability advantage as a result of the already well established 2-tank energy storage using molten salts (MS). In recent years, research has been performed, on direct MS systems, to which features like modularity and combinations with other (solid) thermal storage materials are considered with the goal of achieving lower investment cost. Several alternative materials and systems have been studied. In this research, storage materials were identified with thermo-physical data being presented for different rocks (e.g. quartzite), super concrete, and other appropriate solid materials. Among the new materials being proposed like rocks from old quarries, an interesting option is the incorporation of solid waste material from old mines belonging to the Iberian Pyritic Belt. These are currently handled as byproducts of past mine activity, and can potentially constitute an environmental hazard due to their chemical (metal) content. This paper presents these materials, as part of a broad study to improve the current concept of solar energy storage for STE plants, and additionally presents a potentially valuable solution for environmental protection related to re-use of mining waste.

Economic impact of solar thermal electricity deployment in Spain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caldes, N.; Varela, M.; Santamaria, M.; Saez, R.

2009-01-01

The objective of the work is to estimate the socio-economic impacts of increasing the installed solar thermal energy power capacity in Spain. Using an input-output (I-O) analysis, this paper estimates the increase in the demand for goods and services as well as in employment derived from solar thermal plants in Spain under two different scenarios: (a) based on two solar thermal power plants currently in operation (with 50 and 17 MW of installed capacity); (b) the compliance to the Spanish Renewable Energy Plan (PER) 2005-2010 reaching 500 MW by 2010. Results show that the multiplier effect of the PER is 2.3 and the total employment generated would reach 108,992 equivalent full-time jobs of 1 year of duration. Despite this is an aggregated result, this figure represents 4.5% of current Spanish unemployment. It can be concluded that the socio-economic effect of the PER's solar thermal installed capacity goal would be remarkable.

Reports on 1979 result of Sunshine Project. Investigation and research on solar energy utilization system (solar thermal power generation system); 1979 nendo taiyo energy riyo system chosa kenkyu seika hokokusho. Taiyonetsu hatsuden system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1980-03-01

An investigation and research were conducted on the operation method of various solar thermal power generation systems and on the evaluation of the rating and cost performance; in the environmental test method for the equipment, the examination was continued for the test method and evaluation method concerning the absorbing surface and transmitting film; in the heat storing technology, an investigative research was done on the optimum heat storing method and energy conversion method suitable for the operation of the thermal power generation system, as well as performing, as an objective, a computer simulation on the total system with the purpose of clarifying the heat storing capacity. The results in the year were as follows. The operation method for solar thermal power generation was examined, as were the energy analysis, evaluation method of 1 MW pilot plant, the optimum utilization system of solar energy in the long run including its application, and technological economical problems to be solved for the next large solar thermal power generating plant. A discussion was carried out on the endurance test of the selective absorbing surface and transmitting film and on the durability of the reflection mirror. Evaluation and examination were made on the various materials of the 1 MW pilot plant. A review was done on various heat accumulating devices for solar thermal generation, mathematical thermal characteristics of heat accumulating devices, and future energy storing methods and problems. (NEDO)

Limits to solar power conversion efficiency with applications to quantum and thermal systems

Science.gov (United States)

Byvik, C. E.; Buoncristiani, A. M.; Smith, B. T.

1983-01-01

An analytical framework is presented that permits examination of the limit to the efficiency of various solar power conversion devices. Thermodynamic limits to solar power efficiency are determined for both quantum and thermal systems, and the results are applied to a variety of devices currently considered for use in space systems. The power conversion efficiency for single-threshold energy quantum systems receiving unconcentrated air mass zero solar radiation is limited to 31 percent. This limit applies to photovoltaic cells directly converting solar radiation, or indirectly, as in the case of a thermophotovoltaic system. Photoelectrochemical cells rely on an additional chemical reaction at the semiconductor-electrolyte interface, which introduces additional second-law demands and a reduction of the solar conversion efficiency. Photochemical systems exhibit even lower possible efficiencies because of their relatively narrow absorption bands. Solar-powered thermal engines in contact with an ambient reservoir at 300 K and operating at maximum power have a peak conversion efficiency of 64 percent, and this occurs for a thermal reservoir at a temperature of 2900 K. The power conversion efficiency of a solar-powered liquid metal magnetohydrodydnamic generator, a solar-powered steam turbine electric generator, and an alkali metal thermoelectric converter is discussed.

Evaluating the potential energy of a heliostat field and solar receiver of solar tower power plants in the southern region of Turkey

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raad Kadhim Al-Dualimi

2016-08-01

Full Text Available A prior study on the performance of high-efficient models for a heliostat field and solar receiver at various candidate locations (e.g., certain regions in the south of Turkey helped determine suitable locations for installing solar tower power plant units. This study considered the fact that solar tower power plants are affected by the working conditions of a particular site, which helps realize the highest performance of the solar power tower plant. An optimized heliostat field consisting of 2650 SENER heliostats and a model of a solar receiver based on the data obtained using Gemasolar in Seville, Spain, was used as a reference in this work. Each heliostat position is specified using an optimization algorithm that refines previously proposed models, and two parameters are added to this model to further optimize the heliostat layout. Then, a sample analytical thermal model is used for predicting the radiative and convective heat losses from the receiver system. Article History: Received March 13rd 2016; Received in revised form Jun 22nd 2016; Accepted July 3rd 2016; Available onlineHow to Cite This Article: Ra'ad, K, M, A. and Mehmet, S, S. (2016, Evaluating the potential energy of a heliostat field and solar receiver of solar tower power plants in the southern region of Turkey. Int. Journal of Renewable Energy Development, 5(2, 151-161, http://dx.doi.org/10.14710/ijred.5.2.151-161

Demonstration of Essential Reliability Services by a 300-MW Solar Photovoltaic Power Plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Loutan, Clyde; Klauer, Peter; Chowdhury, Sirajul; Hall, Stephen; Morjaria, Mahesh; Chadliev, Vladimir; Milam, Nick; Milan, Christopher; Gevorgian, Vahan

2017-03-24

The California Independent System Operator (CAISO), First Solar, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) conducted a demonstration project on a large utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) power plant in California to test its ability to provide essential ancillary services to the electric grid. With increasing shares of solar- and wind-generated energy on the electric grid, traditional generation resources equipped with automatic governor control (AGC) and automatic voltage regulation controls -- specifically, fossil thermal -- are being displaced. The deployment of utility-scale, grid-friendly PV power plants that incorporate advanced capabilities to support grid stability and reliability is essential for the large-scale integration of PV generation into the electric power grid, among other technical requirements. A typical PV power plant consists of multiple power electronic inverters and can contribute to grid stability and reliability through sophisticated 'grid-friendly' controls. In this way, PV power plants can be used to mitigate the impact of variability on the grid, a role typically reserved for conventional generators. In August 2016, testing was completed on First Solar's 300-MW PV power plant, and a large amount of test data was produced and analyzed that demonstrates the ability of PV power plants to use grid-friendly controls to provide essential reliability services. These data showed how the development of advanced power controls can enable PV to become a provider of a wide range of grid services, including spinning reserves, load following, voltage support, ramping, frequency response, variability smoothing, and frequency regulation to power quality. Specifically, the tests conducted included various forms of active power control such as AGC and frequency regulation; droop response; and reactive power, voltage, and power factor controls. This project demonstrated that advanced power electronics and solar generation can be

The solar two power tower project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chavez, J.M.; Klimas, P.C.; Laquil, P. de III; Skowronski, M.

1993-01-01

A consortium of United States utility concerns led by Southern California Edison Company (SCE) has begun a cooperative project with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and industry to convert the 10-MWe Solar One Tower Pilot Plant to molten nitrate salt technology. Successful operation of the convert plant to be called Solar Two, will reduce the economic risks in building the initial commercial power tower projects and accelerate the commercial acceptance of this promising renewable energy technology. In a molten salt power tower plant, sunlight is concentrated by a field of sun-tracking mirrors, called heliostats, onto a centrally located receiver, atop a tower. Molten salt is heated in the receiver and stored until it is needed to generate steam to power a conventional turbine generator. Joining the SCE and DOE in sponsoring in sponsoring this project are the following organizations: Los Alamos department of Water Power, Idaho Power Company, PacifiCorp, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, Arizona Public Service Company, Salt River Project, City of Pasadena, California Energy Commission, Electric Power Research Institute, South Coast Air Quality Commission, Electric Power research Institute, South Coast Air Quality Management District, and Bechtel Corporation. The Solar Two project will convert the Solar One heat transfer system from a water/steam type to molten nitrate salt by replacing the water/steam receiver and oil/rock thermal storage system with a nitrate salt receiver, salt thermal storage, and steam generator. The estimate cost of Solar Two, including 3-year test period, is 48.5 millions. The plant will be on line in early 1995. (authors)

Concentrating Solar Power. Report April 2009

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pihl, Erik (Chalmers Univ. of Technology, Enery and Environment, Goeteborg (Sweden))

2009-04-15

Concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies offer ways to utilise solar radiation by concentrating the light. In a concentrated form, the light can be utilised more cost efficiently. It is focused with mirrors or lenses and used either as a heat source in thermal power cycles (thermal CSP) or as a light source for high efficiency photovoltaic cells (concentrating photovoltaics, CPV). All concentrating systems use tracking to follow the movement of the sun, in two or three dimensions, and require direct sunlight (no diffusing clouds). CSP plants are often more complex, component wise than those based on flat PV. The extra cost of complexity is generally more than offset by the larger scales, the less need for expensive materials such as purified silicon and a better fit with the current energy infrastructure. Some thermal CSP plants offer great possibilities to deal with the intermittency of solar energy, as the heat generated can be stored in the form of a heated liquid in large tanks for many hours with little additional cost, and drive the thermal power generation also during cloudy periods or at night. CSP is growing rapidly and can be an important portion of future low-carbon energy systems. A prerequisite is that expected cost reductions are, at least largely, realised. In regions with good solar conditions (Mediterranean countries, US Southwest, Middle East, Australia etc), CSP systems already in the short-term future can satisfy significant shares of the power demand, to decrease CO{sub 2} emissions. Less solar-intensive regions (Northern Europe, much of North America etc) can be supplied with CSP power from solar-rich regions by using long distance power grids, for instance the high voltage DC cables being deployed and developed today

Solarthermische Kraftwerksentwicklung (STKE) - development of solar thermal power plants. Technical aspects. Final report; Solarthermische Kraftwerksentwicklung (STKE). Technischer Teil. Schlussbericht

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pitz-Paal, R.

2000-01-01

This project started on 1 January 1996 with DM 3.7 million funds from the BMFT. Originally scheduled for three years, it was extended by a further 11 months for various reasons. Its intention was to reduce the cost of future solar thermal power plants. Particular emphasis was given to the parabolic trough technology asit is closest to commercialisation. Three strategies were involved: 1. Further development and qualification of components for the parabolic trough collector (WG PAREX); 2. Development of instruments for measuring radiation flux distribution in parabolic trough collectors (WG PARMESAN); 3. Development, verification and application of software tools for analysing the complex dynamic response of solar thermal power plants (WG SISTA). [German] Das hier dargestellte Projekt begann am 1.1.1996 und wurde vom Bundesministerium fuer Forschung und Technologie (BMFT) mit etwa 3,7 Mio. DM gefoerdert. Es hatte eine geplante Laufzeit von drei Jahren, wurde aber aufgrund von unterschiedlichen Verzoegerungen (Mitarbeiterwechsel, Defekte an Versuchsanlagen) kostenneutral um 11 Monate verlaengert. Gesamtziel des Projekts war es, zur Kostensenkung bei zukuenftigen solarthermischen Kraftwerken beizutragen. Dabei stand insbesondere die Parabolrinnentechnik im Vordergrund, da sie im Vergleich zu anderen solarthermischen Technologien einer weiteren kommerziellen Vermarktung derzeit am naechsten steht. Es wurden drei Schwerpunkte verfolgt: 1. Die Weiterentwicklung und Qualifizierung von Komponenten fuer den Parabolrinnenkollektor (Arbeitspaket 'Parabolrinnenexperimente', kurz PAREX) 2. Die Entwicklung von Messtechnik zur Bestimmung von Strahlungsflussverteilung bei Parabolrinnenkollektoren (AP 'Parabolrinnen-Messanlage', kurz PARMESAN) 3. Die Erstellung, Verifikation und Anwendung von Softwarewerkzeugen zur Analyse des komplexen dynamischen Verhaltens von solarthermischen Kraftwerken (AP 'Simulation solarthermischer Anlagen', kurz SISTA) (orig.)

A learning curve for solar thermal power

Science.gov (United States)

Platzer, Werner J.; Dinter, Frank

2016-05-01

Photovoltaics started its success story by predicting the cost degression depending on cumulated installed capacity. This so-called learning curve was published and used for predictions for PV modules first, then predictions of system cost decrease also were developed. This approach is less sensitive to political decisions and changing market situations than predictions on the time axis. Cost degression due to innovation, use of scaling effects, improved project management, standardised procedures including the search for better sites and optimization of project size are learning effects which can only be utilised when projects are developed. Therefore a presentation of CAPEX versus cumulated installed capacity is proposed in order to show the possible future advancement of the technology to politics and market. However from a wide range of publications on cost for CSP it is difficult to derive a learning curve. A logical cost structure for direct and indirect capital expenditure is needed as the basis for further analysis. Using derived reference cost for typical power plant configurations predictions of future cost have been derived. Only on the basis of that cost structure and the learning curve levelised cost of electricity for solar thermal power plants should be calculated for individual projects with different capacity factors in various locations.

Performance model to assist solar thermal power plant siting in northern Chile based on backup fuel consumption

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Larrain, Teresita; Escobar, Rodrigo; Vergara, Julio [Departamento de Ingenieria Mecanica y Metalurgica, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Vicuna Mackenna 4860, Macul, Santiago (Chile)

2010-08-15

In response to environmental awareness, Chile introduced sustainability goals in its electricity law. Power producers must deliver 5% from renewable sources by 2010 and 10% by 2024. The Chilean desert has a large available surface with one of the highest radiation levels and clearest skies in the World. These factors imply that solar power is an option for this task. However, a commercial plant requires a fossil fuel system to backup the sunlight intermittency. The authors developed a thermodynamical model to estimate the backup fraction needed in a 100 MW hybrid -solar-fossil- parabolic trough power plant. This paper presents the model aiming to predicting the performance and exploring its usefulness in assisting site selection among four locations. Since solar radiation data are only available in a monthly average, we introduced two approaches to feed the model. One data set provided an average month with identical days throughout and the other one considered an artificial month of different daylight profiles on an hourly basis for the same monthly average. We recommend a best plant location based on minimum fossil fuel backup, contributing to optimal siting from the energy perspective. Utilities will refine their policy goals more closely when a precise solar energy data set becomes available. (author)

Vestas Power Plant Solutions Integrating Wind, Solar PV and Energy Storage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Lennart; Hesselbæk, Bo; Martinez, Antonio

2018-01-01

This paper addresses a value proposition and feasible system topologies for hybrid power plant solutions integrating wind, solar PV and energy storage and moreover provides insights into Vestas hybrid power plant projects. Seen from the perspective of a wind power plant developer, these hybrid...... solutions provide a number of benefits that could potentially reduce the Levelized Cost of Energy and enable entrance to new markets for wind power and facilitate the transition to a more sustainable energy mix. First, various system topologies are described in order to distinguish the generic concepts...... for the electrical infrastructure of hybrid power plants. Subsequently, the benefits of combining wind and solar PV power as well as the advantages of combining variable renewable energy sources with energy storage are elaborated. Finally, the world’s first utility-scale hybrid power plant combining wind, solar PV...

Preliminary design of the Carrisa Plains solar central receiver power plant. Volume III, Book 1. Design description

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1983-12-31

The design of the 30 MWe central receiver solar power plant to be located at Carrisa Plains, San Luis Obispo County, California, is summarized. The plant uses a vertical flat-panel (billboard solar receiver located at the top of a tower to collect solar energy redirected by approximately 1900 heliostats located to the north of the tower. The solar energy is used to heat liquid sodium pumped from ground level from 610 to 1050/sup 0/F. The power conversion system is a non-reheat system, cost-effective at this size level, and designed for high-efficiency performance in an application requiring daily startup. Successful completion of this project will lead to power generation starting in 1986. This report discusses in detail the design of the collector system, heat transport system, thermal storage subsystem, heat transport loop, steam generation subsystem, electrical, instrumentation, and control systems, power conversion system, master control system, and balance of plant. The performance, facility cost estimate and economic analysis, and development plan are also discussed.

Thermal Power Plant Performance Analysis

CERN Document Server

2012-01-01

The analysis of the reliability and availability of power plants is frequently based on simple indexes that do not take into account the criticality of some failures used for availability analysis. This criticality should be evaluated based on concepts of reliability which consider the effect of a component failure on the performance of the entire plant. System reliability analysis tools provide a root-cause analysis leading to the improvement of the plant maintenance plan.   Taking in view that the power plant performance can be evaluated not only based on  thermodynamic related indexes, such as heat-rate, Thermal Power Plant Performance Analysis focuses on the presentation of reliability-based tools used to define performance of complex systems and introduces the basic concepts of reliability, maintainability and risk analysis aiming at their application as tools for power plant performance improvement, including: ·         selection of critical equipment and components, ·         defini...

Numerical analysis on the performance of solar chimney power plant system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu Guoliang; Ming Tingzhen; Pan Yuan; Meng Fanlong; Zhou Cheng

2011-01-01

Power generating technology based on renewable energy resources will definitely become a new trend of future energy utilization. Numerical simulations on air flow, heat transfer and power output characteristics of a solar chimney power plant model with energy storage layer and turbine similar to the Spanish prototype were carried out in this paper, and mathematical model of flow and heat transfer for the solar chimney power plant system was established. The influences of solar radiation and pressure drop across the turbine on the flow and heat transfer, output power and energy loss of the solar chimney power plant system were analyzed. The numerical simulation results reveal that: when the solar radiation and the turbine efficiency are 600 W/m 2 and 80%, respectively, the output power of the system can reach 120 kW. In addition, large mass flow rate of air flowing through the chimney outlet become the main cause of energy loss in the system, and the collector canopy also results in large energy loss.

The 10 MWe Solar Thermal Central Receiver Pilot Plant: Solar facilities design integration. Pilot-plant station manual (RADL Item 2-1). Volume 1: System description

Science.gov (United States)

1982-09-01

The complete Barstow Solar Pilot Plant is described. The plant requirements and general description are presented, the mechanical, electric power, and control and instrumentation systems as well as civil engineering and structural aspects and the station buildings are described. Included in the mechanical systems are the heliostats, receiver, thermal storage system, beam characterization system, steam, water, nitrogen, and compressed air systems, chemical feed system, fire protection system, drains, sumps and the waste disposal systems, and heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems.

Solar thermal and concentrated solar power barometer - EurObserv'ER - May 2012

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2012-05-01

27545 MWth: the EU's solar thermal base to date at the end of 2011. After two years of sharp decline, the European solar thermal market is bottoming out. The EurObserv'ER survey findings are that the installation figure fell just 1.9% in comparison with 2010, giving a newly-installed collector area of 3.7 million m 2 . The concentrated solar power sector has been forging ahead alongside the heat production applications, and at the end of 2011 installed capacity passed the one gigawatt mark in Spain for the first time with 1157.2 MWe

Joint excitation and reactive power control in thermal power plant

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dragosavac Jasna

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The coordinated voltage and reactive power controller, designed for the thermal power plant, is presented in the paper. A brief explanation of the need for such device is given and justification for commissioning of such equipment is outlined. After short description of the theoretical background of the proposed control design, the achieved features of the commissioned equipment are fully given. Achieved performances are illustrated by recorded reactive power and bus voltage responses after commissioning of the described equipment into the largest thermal power plant in Serbia. As it can be seen in presented records, all design targets are met.

Mathematical Safety Assessment Approaches for Thermal Power Plants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zong-Xiao Yang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available How to use system analysis methods to identify the hazards in the industrialized process, working environment, and production management for complex industrial processes, such as thermal power plants, is one of the challenges in the systems engineering. A mathematical system safety assessment model is proposed for thermal power plants in this paper by integrating fuzzy analytical hierarchy process, set pair analysis, and system functionality analysis. In the basis of those, the key factors influencing the thermal power plant safety are analyzed. The influence factors are determined based on fuzzy analytical hierarchy process. The connection degree among the factors is obtained by set pair analysis. The system safety preponderant function is constructed through system functionality analysis for inherence properties and nonlinear influence. The decision analysis system is developed by using active server page technology, web resource integration, and cross-platform capabilities for applications to the industrialized process. The availability of proposed safety assessment approach is verified by using an actual thermal power plant, which has improved the enforceability and predictability in enterprise safety assessment.

Exergetic comparison of two different cooling technologies for the power cycle of a thermal power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blanco-Marigorta, Ana M.; Victoria Sanchez-Henriquez, M.; Pena-Quintana, Juan A.

2011-01-01

Exergetic analysis is without any doubt a powerful tool for developing, evaluating and improving an energy conversion system. In the present paper, two different cooling technologies for the power cycle of a 50 MWe solar thermal power plant are compared from the exergetic viewpoint. The Rankine cycle design is a conventional, single reheat design with five closed and one open extraction feedwater heaters. The software package GateCycle is used for the thermodynamic simulation of the Rankine cycle model. The first design configuration uses a cooling tower while the second configuration uses an air cooled condenser. With this exergy analysis we identify the location, magnitude and the sources or thermodynamic inefficiencies in this thermal system. This information is very useful for improving the overall efficiency of the power system and for comparing the performance of both technologies.

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - Nevada Solar One | Concentrating Solar

Science.gov (United States)

Power | NREL Nevada Solar One This page provides information on Nevada Solar One, a concentrating solar power (CSP) project, with data organized by background, participants, and power plant configuration. Acciona Energy's Nevada Solar One is the third largest CSP plant in the world and the first plant

Integration of solar process heat into an existing thermal desalination plant in Qatar

Science.gov (United States)

Dieckmann, S.; Krishnamoorthy, G.; Aboumadi, M.; Pandian, Y.; Dersch, J.; Krüger, D.; Al-Rasheed, A. S.; Krüger, J.; Ottenburger, U.

2016-05-01

The water supply of many countries in the Middle East relies mainly on water desalination. In Qatar, the water network is completely fed with water from desalination plants. One of these power and desalination plants is located in Ras Abu Fontas, 20 km south of the capital Doha. The heat required for thermal desalination is provided by steam which is generated in waste heat recovery boilers (HRB) connected to gas turbines. Additionally, gas fired boilers or auxiliary firing in the HRBs are used in order to decouple the water generation from the electricity generation. In Ras Abu Fontas some auxiliary boilers run 24/7 because the HRB capacity does not match the demand of the desalination units. This paper contains the techno-economic analysis of two large-scale commercial solar field options, which could reduce the fuel consumption significantly. Both options employ parabolic trough technology with a nominal saturated steam output of 350 t/h at 15 bar (198°C, 240 MW). The first option uses direct steam generation without storage while the second relies on common thermal oil in combination with a molten salt thermal storage with 6 hours full-load capacity. The economic benefit of the integration of solar power depends mainly on the cost of the fossil alternative, and thus the price (respectively opportunity costs) of natural gas. At a natural gas price of 8 US-/MMBtu the internal rate of return on equity (IRR) is expected at about 5%.

Solar wind power electric plant on Vis (Croatia)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

A project of a solar photovoltaic electric power plant presented by the Republic of Croatia at the meeting of the E.P.I.A. Mission for photovoltaic technology of the Mediterranean countries, aroused a great interest of the representatives of the invited countries. However, the interest within Croatia in the project has disappeared although E.P.I.A. offered a financing of two thirds of costs. There are attempts to construct 1800 kw wind-driven generators at the same location not taking into consideration a possibility of building a hybrid solar-wind-power electric plant. The chance that the solar part is completely of domestic origin is not accepted but the preference is given to the building of imported wind-driven generators. (orig.)

Japanese aquaculture with thermal water from power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuroda, T.

1977-01-01

The present level of thermal aquaculture, utilizing thermal water which is waste cooling water from nuclear power plant, in Japan is reported. There are 13 major potential areas for thermal aquaculture in cooperation with conventional type thermal power plants, seven of which are actually operating. Aquaculture facilities of all these are on land, none in the sea. Of these seven centers, those that have already commercialized their nursery methods or are approaching that stage of research and development, are Tohoku Hatsuden Kogyo Ltd., Tsuruga Hama Land Ltd. and Kyushu Rinsan Ltd. Major problems faced specialists in Japanese thermal aquaculture are water temperature, water quality, radioactivity and costs. For keeping the water temperature constant all seasons, cooling or heating by natural sea water may be used. Even negligible amounts of radioactivity that nuclear power plants release into the sea will concentrate in the systems of marine life. A strict precautionary checking routine is used to detect radioactivity in marine life. (Kobatake, H.)

Numerical simulation of the integrated solar/North Benghazi combined power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aldali, Y.; Morad, K.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • The thermodynamic and economic evaluation of power plant have been studied. • Saving and boosting modes are considered as the same solar field area. • Two modes of operation have been used and simulated on Libyan climate conditions. • The benefit/cost ratios are 1.74 and 1.30 for fuel saving and power boosting mode. • Fuel saving mode is more economical than power boosting mode. - Abstract: The aim of this paper is to study the thermodynamic performance of a proposed integrated solar/North Benghazi combined power plant under Libyan climatic conditions. The parabolic trough collector field with direct steam generation was considered as solar system. Two modes of operations with the same solar field area are considered: fuel saving mode in which the generated solar steam was used to preheat the combustion air in the gas turbine unit and power boosting mode in which the generated solar steam was added into the steam turbine for boosting the electrical power generated from steam turbine unit. Moreover, the economic impact of solar energy is assessed in the form of benefit/cost ratio to justify the substitution potential of such clean energy. This study shows that, for fuel saving mode: the annual saving of natural gas consumption and CO_2 emission are approximately 3001.56 and 7972.25 tons, respectively, in comparison with the conventional North Benghazi combined cycle power plant. For power boosting mode: the annual solar share of electrical energy is approximately 93.33 GW h. The economic analysis of solar supported plant has indicated that the benefit/cost ratios are 1.74 and 1.30 for fuel saving and power boosting mode, therefore, then fuel saving mode is more economical than power boosting mode for the same solar field area, moreover, it reduces the greenhouse CO_2 emission in order to avoid a collapse of the word climate.

Solar thermal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, J.

2006-01-01

While wind power is widely acknowledged as the most developed of the 'new' renewables, the number two technology, in terms of installed capacity functioning worldwide, is solar heating, or solar thermal. The author has investigated recent industry reports on how these markets are developing. The authors of an International Energy Agency (IEA) survey studied 41 countries in depth at the end of 2004, revealing that 141 million m 3 - corresponding to an installed capacity of 98.4 GWth - were installed in the sample countries (these nations represent 3.74 billion people, about 57% of the world's population). The installed capacity within the areas studied represents approximately 85%-90% of the solar thermal market worldwide. The use of solar heating varies greatly between countries - even close neighbours - and between economic regions. Its uptake often has more to do with policy than solar resource. There is also different uptake of technology. In China, Europe and Japan, plants with flat-plate and evacuated tube collectors are used, mainly to heat water and for space heating. Unglazed plastic collectors, used mainly for swimming pool heating, meanwhile, dominate the North American markets. Though the majority of solar heating installations today are installed on domestic rooftops, the larger-scale installations should not be overlooked. One important part of the market is the hotel sector - in particular hotels in locations that serve the seasonal summer holiday market, where solar is extremely effective. Likewise hospitals and residential homes, multi-family apartment blocks and sports centres are all good examples of places where solar thermal can deliver results. There are also a growing number of industrial applications, where solar thermal can meet the hot water needs (and possibly more) of a range of industries, such as food processing and agriculture. The ability of solar to provide a heat source for cooling is expected to become increasingly important as

Solar thermal

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jones, J.

2006-07-15

While wind power is widely acknowledged as the most developed of the 'new' renewables, the number two technology, in terms of installed capacity functioning worldwide, is solar heating, or solar thermal. The author has investigated recent industry reports on how these markets are developing. The authors of an International Energy Agency (IEA) survey studied 41 countries in depth at the end of 2004, revealing that 141 million m{sup 3} - corresponding to an installed capacity of 98.4 GWth - were installed in the sample countries (these nations represent 3.74 billion people, about 57% of the world's population). The installed capacity within the areas studied represents approximately 85%-90% of the solar thermal market worldwide. The use of solar heating varies greatly between countries - even close neighbours - and between economic regions. Its uptake often has more to do with policy than solar resource. There is also different uptake of technology. In China, Europe and Japan, plants with flat-plate and evacuated tube collectors are used, mainly to heat water and for space heating. Unglazed plastic collectors, used mainly for swimming pool heating, meanwhile, dominate the North American markets. Though the majority of solar heating installations today are installed on domestic rooftops, the larger-scale installations should not be overlooked. One important part of the market is the hotel sector - in particular hotels in locations that serve the seasonal summer holiday market, where solar is extremely effective. Likewise hospitals and residential homes, multi-family apartment blocks and sports centres are all good examples of places where solar thermal can deliver results. There are also a growing number of industrial applications, where solar thermal can meet the hot water needs (and possibly more) of a range of industries, such as food processing and agriculture. The ability of solar to provide a heat source for cooling is expected to become

Exergetic and Parametric Study of a Solar Aided Coal-Fired Power Plant

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eric Hu

2013-03-01

Full Text Available A solar-aided coal-fired power plant realizes the integration of a fossil fuel (coal or gas and clean energy (solar. In this paper, a conventional 600 MW coal-fired power plant and a 600 MW solar-aided coal-fired power plant have been taken as the study case to understand the merits of solar-aided power generation (SAPG technology. The plants in the case study have been analyzed by using the First and Second Laws of Thermodynamics principles. The solar irradiation and load ratio have been considered in the analysis. We conclude that if the solar irradiation was 925 W/m2 and load ratio of the SAPG plant was 100%, the exergy efficiency would be 44.54% and the energy efficiency of the plant (46.35%. It was found that in the SAPG plant the largest exergy loss was from the boiler, which accounted for about 76.74% of the total loss. When the load ratio of the unit remains at 100%, and the solar irradiation varies from 500 W/m2 to 1,100 W/m2, the coal savings would be in the range of 8.6 g/kWh to 15.8 g/kWh. If the solar irradiation were kept at 925 W/m2 while the load ratio of the plant changed from 30% to 100%, the coal savings could be in the range of 11.99 g/kWh to 13.75 g/kWh.

Space solar power - An energy alternative

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, R. W.

1978-01-01

The space solar power concept is concerned with the use of a Space Power Satellite (SPS) which orbits the earth at geostationary altitude. Two large symmetrical solar collectors convert solar energy directly to electricity using photovoltaic cells woven into blankets. The dc electricity is directed to microwave generators incorporated in a transmitting antenna located between the solar collectors. The antenna directs the microwave beam to a receiving antenna on earth where the microwave energy is efficiently converted back to dc electricity. The SPS design promises 30-year and beyond lifetimes. The SPS is relatively pollution free as it promises earth-equivalence of 80-85% efficient ground-based thermal power plant.

Concentrated solar power generation using solar receivers

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Bruce N.; Treece, William Dean; Brown, Dan; Bennhold, Florian; Hilgert, Christoph

2017-08-08

Inventive concentrated solar power systems using solar receivers, and related devices and methods, are generally described. Low pressure solar receivers are provided that function to convert solar radiation energy to thermal energy of a working fluid, e.g., a working fluid of a power generation or thermal storage system. In some embodiments, low pressure solar receivers are provided herein that are useful in conjunction with gas turbine based power generation systems.

Solar power plant performance evaluation: simulation and experimental validation

Science.gov (United States)

Natsheh, E. M.; Albarbar, A.

2012-05-01

In this work the performance of solar power plant is evaluated based on a developed model comprise photovoltaic array, battery storage, controller and converters. The model is implemented using MATLAB/SIMULINK software package. Perturb and observe (P&O) algorithm is used for maximizing the generated power based on maximum power point tracker (MPPT) implementation. The outcome of the developed model are validated and supported by a case study carried out using operational 28.8kW grid-connected solar power plant located in central Manchester. Measurements were taken over 21 month's period; using hourly average irradiance and cell temperature. It was found that system degradation could be clearly monitored by determining the residual (the difference) between the output power predicted by the model and the actual measured power parameters. It was found that the residual exceeded the healthy threshold, 1.7kW, due to heavy snow in Manchester last winter. More important, the developed performance evaluation technique could be adopted to detect any other reasons that may degrade the performance of the P V panels such as shading and dirt. Repeatability and reliability of the developed system performance were validated during this period. Good agreement was achieved between the theoretical simulation and the real time measurement taken the online grid connected solar power plant.

Design and simulation of a geothermal–solar combined chimney power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao, Fei; Li, Huashan; Ma, Qiuming; Zhao, Liang

2014-01-01

Highlights: • A geothermal–solar chimney power plant (GSCPP) is designed and analyzed. • Three different models, viz. full solar model, full geothermal model and geothermal–solar mode are compared. • Power generation under GSM is larger than the sum of FSM and FGM. • GSCPP can effectively solve the continuous operation problem of the SCPP. - Abstract: The solar chimney power plant (SCPP) is dominated by the solar radiation, and therefore its discontinuous operation is an unavoidable problem. In this paper, low temperature geothermal water is introduced into the SCPP for overcoming this problem. Based on a developed transient model, theoretical analyses are carried out to investigate the performance of the geothermal–solar chimney power plant (GSCPP) with main dimensions the same as the Manzanares prototype in Spain. Three operation models, viz. the full solar model, the full geothermal model and the geothermal–solar combined model are compared in typical summer and winter days and throughout the year. It is found that the GSCPP can attractively run in the GSM to deliver power continuously. Due to the ambient-dependant geothermal water outlet temperature, introducing the geothermal water makes greater contribution in winter days than in summer days, in the night than in the daytime. Power generation under GSM is larger than the sum of FSM and FGM. GSM is not the simple superposition of FSM and FGM, but makes better utilization of solar and geothermal energy. In addition, introducing high temperature and mass flow rate geothermal water can doubled and redoubled improve the GSCPP’s power capacity

Systems comparison and potential of Solar Thermal installations in the mediterranean area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klaib, M.; Staib, F.; Winter, C.J.

1993-01-01

This study is an attempt to investigate, from a variety of starting points, the market potential for solar thermal power plants. The terms of reference chosen for the central systems parabolic trough and tower plants (30-200 MW e ) seem to be workable. For the decentral dish/Stirling systems (10 kW e -10 MW e ) a first estimation could be worked out. In addition to collecting data on a large number of parameters relevant to the energy economy, the study also concentrated on: evaluating Meteosat data in order to determine the insolation conditions for each 50 x 50 km square of land in the entire Mediterranean area; making a rough cartographic sketch showing the most significant surface-area related criteria for each country; deriving typical annual, weekly and daily load curves for central and decentral grids from a multitude of country-specific data, and comparing the electricity generating costs of solar thermal and conventional power plants. From this basic data, various potentials (theoretical, available, technical, economic and anticipated) were determined for solar thermal power plants

Numerical Modeling of Water Thermal Plumes Emitted by Thermal Power Plants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Azucena Durán-Colmenares

2016-10-01

Full Text Available This work focuses on the study of thermal dispersion of plumes emitted by power plants into the sea. Wastewater discharge from power stations causes impacts that require investigation or monitoring. A study to characterize the physical effects of thermal plumes into the sea is carried out here by numerical modeling and field measurements. The case study is the thermal discharges of the Presidente Adolfo López Mateos Power Plant, located in Veracruz, on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. This plant is managed by the Federal Electricity Commission of Mexico. The physical effects of such plumes are related to the increase of seawater temperature caused by the hot water discharge of the plant. We focus on the implementation, calibration, and validation of the Delft3D-FLOW model, which solves the shallow-water equations. The numerical simulations consider a critical scenario where meteorological and oceanographic parameters are taken into account to reproduce the proper physical conditions of the environment. The results show a local physical effect of the thermal plumes within the study zone, given the predominant strong winds conditions of the scenario under study.

Designing a solar powered Stirling heat engine based on multiple criteria: Maximized thermal efficiency and power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahmadi, Mohammad Hossein; Sayyaadi, Hoseyn; Dehghani, Saeed; Hosseinzade, Hadi

2013-01-01

Highlights: • Thermodynamic model of a solar-dish Stirling engine was presented. • Thermal efficiency and output power of the engine were simultaneously maximized. • A final optimal solution was selected using several decision-making methods. • An optimal solution with least deviation from the ideal design was obtained. • Optimal solutions showed high sensitivity against variation of system parameters. - Abstract: A solar-powered high temperature differential Stirling engine was considered for optimization using multiple criteria. A thermal model was developed so that the output power and thermal efficiency of the solar Stirling system with finite rate of heat transfer, regenerative heat loss, conductive thermal bridging loss, finite regeneration process time and imperfect performance of the dish collector could be obtained. The output power and overall thermal efficiency were considered for simultaneous maximization. Multi-objective evolutionary algorithms (MOEAs) based on the NSGA-II algorithm were employed while the solar absorber temperature and the highest and lowest temperatures of the working fluid were considered the decision variables. The Pareto optimal frontier was obtained and a final optimal solution was also selected using various decision-making methods including the fuzzy Bellman–Zadeh, LINMAP and TOPSIS. It was found that multi-objective optimization could yield results with a relatively low deviation from the ideal solution in comparison to the conventional single objective approach. Furthermore, it was shown that, if the weight of thermal efficiency as one of the objective functions is considered to be greater than weight of the power objective, lower absorber temperature and low temperature ratio should be considered in the design of the Stirling engine

Virtual solar field - An opportunity to optimize transient processes in line-focus CSP power plants

Science.gov (United States)

Noureldin, Kareem; Hirsch, Tobias; Pitz-Paal, Robert

2017-06-01

Optimizing solar field operation and control is a key factor to improve the competitiveness of line-focus solar thermal power plants. However, the risks of assessing new and innovative control strategies on operational power plants hinder such optimizations and result in applying more conservative control schemes. In this paper, we describe some applications for a whole solar field transient in-house simulation tool developed at the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), the Virtual Solar Field (VSF). The tool offers a virtual platform to simulate real solar fields while coupling the thermal and hydraulic conditions of the field with high computational efficiency. Using the tool, developers and operator can probe their control strategies and assess the potential benefits while avoiding the high risks and costs. In this paper, we study the benefits gained from controlling the loop valves and of using direct normal irradiance maps and forecasts for the field control. Loop valve control is interesting for many solar field operators since it provides a high degree of flexibility to the control of the solar field through regulating the flow rate in each loop. This improves the reaction to transient condition, such as passing clouds and field start-up in the morning. Nevertheless, due to the large number of loops and the sensitivity of the field control to the valve settings, this process needs to be automated and the effect of changing the setting of each valve on the whole field control needs to be taken into account. We used VSF to implement simple control algorithms to control the loop valves and to study the benefits that could be gained from using active loop valve control during transient conditions. Secondly, we study how using short-term highly spatially-resolved DNI forecasts provided by cloud cameras could improve the plant energy yield. Both cases show an improvement in the plant efficiency and outlet temperature stability. This paves the road for further

High-performance flat-panel solar thermoelectric generators with high thermal concentration

Science.gov (United States)

Kraemer, Daniel; Poudel, Bed; Feng, Hsien-Ping; Caylor, J. Christopher; Yu, Bo; Yan, Xiao; Ma, Yi; Wang, Xiaowei; Wang, Dezhi; Muto, Andrew; McEnaney, Kenneth; Chiesa, Matteo; Ren, Zhifeng; Chen, Gang

2011-07-01

The conversion of sunlight into electricity has been dominated by photovoltaic and solar thermal power generation. Photovoltaic cells are deployed widely, mostly as flat panels, whereas solar thermal electricity generation relying on optical concentrators and mechanical heat engines is only seen in large-scale power plants. Here we demonstrate a promising flat-panel solar thermal to electric power conversion technology based on the Seebeck effect and high thermal concentration, thus enabling wider applications. The developed solar thermoelectric generators (STEGs) achieved a peak efficiency of 4.6% under AM1.5G (1 kW m-2) conditions. The efficiency is 7-8 times higher than the previously reported best value for a flat-panel STEG, and is enabled by the use of high-performance nanostructured thermoelectric materials and spectrally-selective solar absorbers in an innovative design that exploits high thermal concentration in an evacuated environment. Our work opens up a promising new approach which has the potential to achieve cost-effective conversion of solar energy into electricity.

High-performance flat-panel solar thermoelectric generators with high thermal concentration.

Science.gov (United States)

Kraemer, Daniel; Poudel, Bed; Feng, Hsien-Ping; Caylor, J Christopher; Yu, Bo; Yan, Xiao; Ma, Yi; Wang, Xiaowei; Wang, Dezhi; Muto, Andrew; McEnaney, Kenneth; Chiesa, Matteo; Ren, Zhifeng; Chen, Gang

2011-05-01

The conversion of sunlight into electricity has been dominated by photovoltaic and solar thermal power generation. Photovoltaic cells are deployed widely, mostly as flat panels, whereas solar thermal electricity generation relying on optical concentrators and mechanical heat engines is only seen in large-scale power plants. Here we demonstrate a promising flat-panel solar thermal to electric power conversion technology based on the Seebeck effect and high thermal concentration, thus enabling wider applications. The developed solar thermoelectric generators (STEGs) achieved a peak efficiency of 4.6% under AM1.5G (1 kW m(-2)) conditions. The efficiency is 7-8 times higher than the previously reported best value for a flat-panel STEG, and is enabled by the use of high-performance nanostructured thermoelectric materials and spectrally-selective solar absorbers in an innovative design that exploits high thermal concentration in an evacuated environment. Our work opens up a promising new approach which has the potential to achieve cost-effective conversion of solar energy into electricity. © 2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved

Availability Performance Analysis of Thermal Power Plants

Science.gov (United States)

Bhangu, Navneet Singh; Singh, Rupinder; Pahuja, G. L.

2018-03-01

This case study presents the availability evaluation method of thermal power plants for conducting performance analysis in Indian environment. A generic availability model has been proposed for a maintained system (thermal plants) using reliability block diagrams and fault tree analysis. The availability indices have been evaluated under realistic working environment using inclusion exclusion principle. Four year failure database has been used to compute availability for different combinatory of plant capacity, that is, full working state, reduced capacity or failure state. Availability is found to be very less even at full rated capacity (440 MW) which is not acceptable especially in prevailing energy scenario. One of the probable reason for this may be the difference in the age/health of existing thermal power plants which requires special attention of each unit from case to case basis. The maintenance techniques being used are conventional (50 years old) and improper in context of the modern equipment, which further aggravate the problem of low availability. This study highlights procedure for finding critical plants/units/subsystems and helps in deciding preventive maintenance program.

Solar PV-based rooftop power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ashok Kumar, B.; Kumar, Chaitanya; Patel, C.B.; Pattanaik, B.R.; Panda, P.K.; Kaul, S.K.; Mishra, H.

2017-01-01

Technical Services Division (TSD) is responsible for providing reliable power supply to various operating reactors, laboratories and facilities of BARC. The power supply to BARC is derived from TATA Power at 110 KV and 22 KV at an average HT tariff of Rs.8.49 per unit at present. Peak power demand of BARC in summer season goes up to 23 MW. TSD has implemented several energy conservation measures to reduce the energy consumption and as well taken initiatives to install solar PV based rooftop power plants to reduce the cost of energy consumption in BARC

Japanese aquaculture: use of thermal water from power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuroda, Takeya

1983-01-01

There is some merit of thermal water from power plants in the effect to marine life. Since 1963, the research and development on the aquaculture using this warm water have been carried out at some twenty power plants, seven nuclear and thirteen thermal, some of which are now in the commercial stage. These fish farming projects are operated variously from seed to adult fish production. They can also be classified as land and sea facilities, conforming to the characteristics of the respective sea areas. The current situation in this field and the future prospect are described: thermal aquaculture including seed production and adult fish farming; the projects in nuclear and thermal power plants, respectively; future problems in the facilities, breeding environment and marine life for cultivation. (Mori, K.)

Design of a small scale stand-alone solar thermal co-generation plant for an isolated region in Egypt

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abdelhady, Suzan; Borello, Domenico; Tortora, Eileen

2014-01-01

Highlights: • In the selected area, connection to the grid is very difficult and expensive. • The integrated unsteady CSP/ORC system, was modeled TRNSYS. • Assuming a CSP of 200,000 m 2 , 6 MW e and 21.5 MW th can be obtained. • The energy is sufficient to feed more than 3,300 rural users and two big factories. • PER = 1.43, LCOE = 1.25 USD/kW h and the GHG emissions are reduced of 7300 toe/year. - Abstract: Most of Egypt’s population is concentrated in the Nile Valley (5% of Egypt’s area), while the western desert occupies an area of 50% of the total area of Egypt with a small number of inhabitants. The New Valley is the largest governorates in Egypt which occupies 45.8% of the total area of the Country and 65% of the Western Desert and it is the least densely populated governorate in Egypt. However, New Valley has started to receive the migrated people from the Nile valley and Delta region and the demand for the energy is continuously increasing. However, the rural area in New Valley still suffers from lack of access to energy services. The very high transmission losses and costs are the main challenges for electrification in this area. Then, it is worth to investigate the opportunities for distributed energy generation. This area of Egypt receives some of the highest solar radiation in the world (up to 3000 kW h per square meters per year), making it a prime location for use of this resource. In this study, performance and economic assessment of a small scale stand-alone solar thermal co-generation plant using diathermic oil is presented. This configuration is considered as a promising and sustainable solution to provide electricity and heat to an isolated area satisfying the local loads. Parabolic trough plant has been modeled in TRNSYS simulation environment integrated with the Solar Thermal Electric Components (STEC) model library. Both solar and power cycle performances have been modeled based on the solar energy data of the plant site. The

Modeling of solar polygeneration plant

Science.gov (United States)

Leiva, Roberto; Escobar, Rodrigo; Cardemil, José

2017-06-01

In this work, a exergoeconomic analysis of the joint production of electricity, fresh water, cooling and process heat for a simulated concentrated solar power (CSP) based on parabolic trough collector (PTC) with thermal energy storage (TES) and backup energy system (BS), a multi-effect distillation (MED) module, a refrigeration absorption module, and process heat module is carried out. Polygeneration plant is simulated in northern Chile in Crucero with a yearly total DNI of 3,389 kWh/m2/year. The methodology includes designing and modeling a polygeneration plant and applying exergoeconomic evaluations and calculating levelized cost. Solar polygeneration plant is simulated hourly, in a typical meteorological year, for different solar multiple and hour of storage. This study reveals that the total exergy cost rate of products (sum of exergy cost rate of electricity, water, cooling and heat process) is an alternative method to optimize a solar polygeneration plant.

Solar power plant performance evaluation: simulation and experimental validation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Natsheh, E M; Albarbar, A

2012-01-01

In this work the performance of solar power plant is evaluated based on a developed model comprise photovoltaic array, battery storage, controller and converters. The model is implemented using MATLAB/SIMULINK software package. Perturb and observe (P and O) algorithm is used for maximizing the generated power based on maximum power point tracker (MPPT) implementation. The outcome of the developed model are validated and supported by a case study carried out using operational 28.8kW grid-connected solar power plant located in central Manchester. Measurements were taken over 21 month's period; using hourly average irradiance and cell temperature. It was found that system degradation could be clearly monitored by determining the residual (the difference) between the output power predicted by the model and the actual measured power parameters. It was found that the residual exceeded the healthy threshold, 1.7kW, due to heavy snow in Manchester last winter. More important, the developed performance evaluation technique could be adopted to detect any other reasons that may degrade the performance of the P V panels such as shading and dirt. Repeatability and reliability of the developed system performance were validated during this period. Good agreement was achieved between the theoretical simulation and the real time measurement taken the online grid connected solar power plant.

Tasks of a power engineer in future thermal power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freymeyer, P.; Scherschmidt, F.

1982-01-01

Today already the power plants provide plenty of tasks and problems to the electrical engineer in the fields of power and conductive engineering. A completely new orientation of power engineering leads to larger, more complex system and even to systems unknown so far. In conductive engineering entirely new solutions have come in view. There are a lot of interesting topics for the electrical engineer in the rearrangement and advance into virgin territory of thermal power plants. (orig.) [de

Optimal integration of linear Fresnel reflector with gas turbine cogeneration power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dabwan, Yousef N.; Mokheimer, Esmail M.A.

2017-01-01

Highlights: • A LFR integrated solar gas turbine cogeneration plant (ISGCPP) has been simulated. • The optimally integrated LFR with gas turbine cogeneration plant can achieve an annual solar share of 23%. • Optimal integration of LFR with gas turbine cogeneration system can reduce CO 2 emission by 18%. • Compared to a fully-solar-powered LFR plant, the optimal ISGCPP reduces the LEC by 83%. • ISGCPP reduces the LEC by 50% compared to plants integrated with carbon capture technology. - Abstract: Solar energy is an abundant resource in many countries in the Sunbelt, especially in the middle east, countries, where recent expansion in the utilization of natural gas for electricity generation has created a significant base for introducing integrated solar‐natural gas power plants (ISGPP) as an optimal solution for electricity generation in these countries. ISGPP reduces the need for thermal energy storage in traditional concentrated solar thermal plants and results in dispatchable power on demand at lower cost than stand-alone concentrated thermal power and much cheaper than photovoltaic plants. Moreover, integrating concentrated solar power (CSP) with conventional fossil fuel based thermal power plants is quite suitable for large-scale central electric power generation plants and it can be implemented in the design of new installed plants or during retrofitting of existing plants. The main objective of the present work is to investigate the possible modifications of an existing gas turbine cogeneration plant, which has a gas turbine of 150 MWe electricity generation capacity and produces steam at a rate of 81.4 at 394 °C and 45.88 bars for an industrial process, via integrating it with concentrated solar power system. In this regard, many simulations have been carried out using Thermoflow software to explore the thermo-economic performance of the gas turbine cogeneration plant integrated with LFR concentrated solar power field. Different electricity

Optimum Dispatch of Hybrid Solar Thermal (HSTP Electric Power Plant Using Non-Smooth Cost Function and Emission Function for IEEE-30 Bus System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saroj Kumar Dash

2016-07-01

Full Text Available The basic objective of economic load dispatch (ELD is to optimize the total fuel cost of hybrid solar thermal electric power plant (HSTP. In ELD problems the cost function for each generator has been approximated by a single quadratic cost equation. As cost of coal increases, it becomes even more important have a good model for the production cost of each generator for the solar thermal hybrid system. A more accurate formulation is obtained for the ELD problem by expressing the generation cost function as a piece wise quadratic cost function. However, the solution methods for ELD problem with piece wise quadratic cost function requires much complicated algorithms such as the hierarchical structure approach along with evolutionary computations (ECs. A test system comprising of 10 units with 29 different fuel [7] cost equations is considered in this paper. The applied genetic algorithm method will provide optimal solution for the given load demand.

Concentrating solar power: a sustainable and renewable way to get energy from solar light

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Montecchi, Marco

2015-01-01

Solar light irradiating the Earth is a great sustainable and renewable power source. In concentrating solar power plants, mirrors are used to redirect the solar light toward a small area where a receiver captures and converts it into thermal-energy which can be stored. ENEA has been developing the parabolic-trough Italian technology, as well as several facilities for the component characterization. The paper reports on some of those which are purely optical instruments [it

Solar Powered Heat Storage for Injera Baking

OpenAIRE

Tesfay, Asfafaw H; Kahsay, Mulu Bayray; Nydal, Ole Jørgen

2014-01-01

Ethiopia with a population of about 85 million meets 96% of its energy needs with bio-mass, charcoal, wood, animal dung and plant residues. More than 50% of this energy goes entirely on baking Injera. Injera the national food of the country demands 180-220 °C to be well cooked. In this article; Injera baking with solar energy on off-focus system, status of electric powered stove and the potential for solar powered stoves is discussed. The research and development of solar thermal for househol...

Numerical evaluation of the Kalina cycle for concentrating solar power plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Modi, Anish

Concentrating solar power plants use a number of reflecting mirrors to focus and convert the incident solar energy to heat, and a power cycle to convert this heat into electricity. One of the key challenges currently faced by the solar industry is the high cost of electricity production. These co...

Thermodynamic analysis of a combined-cycle solar thermal power plant with manganese oxide-based thermochemical energy storage

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, Qi; Bader, Roman; Kreider, Peter; Lovegrove, Keith; Lipiński, Wojciech

2017-11-01

We explore the thermodynamic efficiency of a solar-driven combined cycle power system with manganese oxide-based thermochemical energy storage system. Manganese oxide particles are reduced during the day in an oxygen-lean atmosphere obtained with a fluidized-bed reactor at temperatures in the range of 750-1600°C using concentrated solar energy. Reduced hot particles are stored and re-oxidized during night-time to achieve continuous power plant operation. The steady-state mass and energy conservation equations are solved for all system components to calculate the thermodynamic properties and mass flow rates at all state points in the system, taking into account component irreversibilities. The net power block and overall solar-to-electric energy conversion efficiencies, and the required storage volumes for solids and gases in the storage system are predicted. Preliminary results for a system with 100 MW nominal solar power input at a solar concentration ratio of 3000, designed for constant round-the-clock operation with 8 hours of on-sun and 16 hours of off-sun operation and with manganese oxide particles cycled between 750 and 1600°C yield a net power block efficiency of 60.0% and an overall energy conversion efficiency of 41.3%. Required storage tank sizes for the solids are estimated to be approx. 5-6 times smaller than those of state-of-the-art molten salt systems.

Thermal design, analysis and comparison on three concepts of space solar power satellite

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Chen; Hou, Xinbin; Wang, Li

2017-08-01

Space solar power satellites (SSPS) have been widely studied as systems for collecting solar energy in space and transmitting it wirelessly to earth. A previously designed planar SSPS concept collects solar power in two huge arrays and then transmits it through one side of the power-conduction joint to the antenna. However, the system's one group of power-conduction joints may induce a single point of failure. As an SSPS concept, the module symmetrical concentrator (MSC) architecture has many advantages. This architecture can help avoid the need for a large, potentially failure-prone conductive rotating joint and limit wiring mass. However, the thermal control system has severely restricted the rapid development of MSC, especially in the sandwich module. Because of the synchronous existence of five suns concentration and solar external heat flux, the sandwich module will have a very high temperature, which will surpass the permissible temperature of the solar cells. Recently, an alternate multi-rotary joints (MR) SSPS concept was designed by the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST). This system has multiple joints to avoid the problem of a single point of failure. Meanwhile, this concept has another advantage for reducing the high power and heat removal in joints. It is well known to us that, because of the huge external flux in SSPS, the thermal management sub-system is an important component that cannot be neglected. Based on the three SSPS concepts, this study investigated the thermal design and analysis of a 1-km, gigawatt-level transmitting antenna in SSPS. This study compares the thermal management sub-systems of power-conduction joints in planar and MR SSPS. Moreover, the study considers three classic thermal control architectures of the MSC's sandwich module: tile, step, and separation. The study also presents an elaborate parameter design, analysis and discussion of step architecture. Finally, the results show the thermal characteristics of each SSPS

FY 1977 Annual report on Sunshine Project results. Experimental research for detailed designs of tower light-collection type solar thermal power plant; 1977 nendo taiyonetsu hatsuden plant (tower shuko hoshiki) no shosai sekkei no tame no shiken kenkyu seika hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1978-03-31

This project is aimed at pursuing technical and economic possibilities of solar thermal power plant by development of devices for a tower light-collecting type solar thermal power plant (in particular, heliostat, heat absorber and heat storage device) and materials therefor through the basic tests, and tests using a 10 kW heat collector and construction, on a trial basis, of a large-scale model plant with a commercial heliostat, and by planning to construct a 1,000 kW-class pilot plant for generating peak-shaving power using these devices. The major achievements in the FY1977 are summarized. The system analysis estimates annual power production possibly reaching 547,600 kWH. The heat-collecting test plant records a heat-collecting efficiency of 50 to 70% for collected heat quantity of 50 kW or more. The heliostat test confirms that the GL type is more favorable than the XY type. The heat absorber, which is a 1/3 model of the commercial device, is tested for its heat releasing performance, producing the quantitative released heat data. The heat transfer characteristics are investigated for the regenerative heat exchanger when the phase changes occur simultaneously on both molten salt and water sides. The mirror is exposure-tested in the field test for 1 year, to collect the data. (NEDO)

Aesthetic impact assessment of solar power plants. An objective and a subjective approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Torres-Sibille, Ana del Carmen; Cloquell-Ballester, Vicente-Agustin; Cloquell-Ballester, Victor-Andres; Artacho Ramirez, Miguel Angel [Dpto. Proyectos de Ingenieria, Valencia University of Technology, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia (Spain)

2009-06-15

Solar energy for the production of electric energy is one source of renewable energy which is experiencing most development in recent years. In countries with high solar radiation indices, as is the case of Spain, expectations of installation of large solar power plants are increasing. Most solar power plants are located in rural environments, where the landscape has remained practically unaltered ever since extensive agriculture was introduced. Because of this, one of the most significant environmental impacts of this type of installation is the visual impact derived from the alteration of the landscape. In this work, an indicator is proposed for the quantification of the objective aesthetic impact, based on four criteria: visibility, colour, fractality and concurrence between fixed and mobile panels. The relative importance of each variable and the corresponding value functions are calculated using expert contribution. A study of the subjective aesthetic impact is then carried out using the semantic differential method, to obtain the perception of a sample of individuals of the initial landscapes and of the landscapes altered through the installation of a solar power plant. The indicator and the study of public perception are applied to five real solar power plants, to test their reliability. Subsequently, a different group of individuals is used to determine preferences between the five solar power plants. The study proves that the combined use of objective indicator and subjective study, faithfully explains user preferences corresponding to the combined comparisons of the five cases. It is concluded that the tools proposed for the evaluation of the aesthetic impact of solar power plants are useful for the selection of optimal plant location and most adequate use of panel technology, to minimise aesthetic impact. (author)

Control of Solar Power Plants Connected Grid with Simple Calculation Method on Residential Homes

Science.gov (United States)

Kananda, Kiki; Nazir, Refdinal

2017-12-01

One of the most compatible renewable energy in all regions to apply is solar energy. Solar power plants can be built connected to existing or stand-alone power grids. In assisting the residential electricity in which there is a power grid, then a small scale solar energy power plants is very appropriate. However, the general constraint of solar energy power plants is still low in terms of efficiency. Therefore, this study will explain how to control the power of solar power plants more optimally, which is expected to reactive power to zero to raise efficiency. This is a continuation of previous research using Newton Rapshon control method. In this study we introduce a simple method by using ordinary mathematical calculations of solar-related equations. In this model, 10 PV modules type of ND T060M1 with a 60 Wp capacity are used. The calculations performed using MATLAB Simulink provide excellent value. For PCC voltage values obtained a stable quantity of approximately 220 V. At a maximum irradiation condition of 1000 W / m2, the reactive power value of Q solar generating system maximum 20.48 Var and maximum active power of 417.5 W. In the condition of lower irradiation, value of reactive power Q almost close to zero 0.77Var. This simple mathematical method can provide excellent quality control power values.

Review of avian mortality studies at concentrating solar power plants

Science.gov (United States)

Ho, Clifford K.

2016-05-01

This paper reviews past and current avian mortality studies at concentrating solar power (CSP) plants and facilities including Solar One in California, the Solar Energy Development Center in Israel, Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System in California, Crescent Dunes in Nevada, and Gemasolar in Spain. Findings indicate that the leading causes of bird deaths at CSP plants are from collisions (primarily with reflective surfaces; i.e., heliostats) and singeing caused by concentrated solar flux. Safe irradiance levels for birds have been reported to range between 4 and 50 kW/m2. Above these levels, singeing and irreversible damage to the feathers can occur. Despite observations of large numbers of "streamers" in concentrated flux regions and reports that suggest these streamers indicate complete vaporization of birds, analyses in this paper show that complete vaporization of birds is highly improbable, and the observed streamers are likely due to insects flying into the concentrated flux. The levelized avian mortality rate during the first year of operation at Ivanpah was estimated to be 0.7 - 3.5 fatalities per GWh, which is less than the levelized avian mortality reported for fossil fuel plants but greater than that for nuclear and wind power plants. Mitigation measures include acoustic, visual, tactile, and chemosensory deterrents to keep birds away from the plant, and heliostat aiming strategies that reduce the solar flux during standby.

Economic optimization of a Kalina cycle for a parabolic trough solar thermal power plant

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Modi, Anish; Kærn, Martin Ryhl; Andreasen, J. G.

2015-01-01

-water mixture evaporates and condenses with a temperature glide, thus providing a better match with the heat source/sink temperature profile. This better match results in reduced thermal irreversibility, but at the cost of relatively larger heat exchanger areas. The parabolic trough collector is the most mature...... heat transfer correlations, and appropriate cost functions were used to estimate the costs for the various plant components. The optimal capital investment costs were determined for several values of the turbine inlet ammonia mass fraction and among the compared cases, the Kalina cycle has the minimum......The Kalina cycle has recently seen increased interest as a replacement for the more traditional steam Rankine cycle for geothermal, solar, ocean thermal energy conversion and waste heat recovery applications. The Kalina cycle uses a mixture of ammonia and water as the working fluid. The ammonia...

Ocean thermal gradient as a generator of electricity. OTEC power plant

Science.gov (United States)

Enrique, Luna-Gomez Victor; Angel, Alatorre-Mendieta Miguel

2016-04-01

The OTEC (Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion) is a power plant that uses the thermal gradient of the sea water between the surface and a depth of about 700 meters. It works by supplying the heat to a steam machine, for evaporation, with sea water from the surface and cold, to condense the steam, with deep sea water. The energy generated by the power plant OTEC can be transferred to the electric power grid, another use is to desalinate seawater. During the twentieth century in some countries experimental power plants to produce electricity or obtaining drinking water they were installed. On the Mexico's coast itself this thermal gradient, as it is located in tropical seas it occurs, so it has possibilities of installing OTEC power plant type. In this paper one type OTEC power plant operation is represented in most of its components.

Energy saving and consumption reducing evaluation of thermal power plant

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Xiu; Han, Miaomiao

2018-03-01

At present, energy saving and consumption reduction require energy saving and consumption reduction measures for thermal power plant, establishing an evaluation system for energy conservation and consumption reduction is instructive for the whole energy saving work of thermal power plant. By analysing the existing evaluation system of energy conservation and consumption reduction, this paper points out that in addition to the technical indicators of power plant, market activities should also be introduced in the evaluation of energy saving and consumption reduction in power plant. Ttherefore, a new evaluation index of energy saving and consumption reduction is set up and the example power plant is calculated in this paper. Rresults show that after introducing the new evaluation index of energy saving and consumption reduction, the energy saving effect of the power plant can be judged more comprehensively, so as to better guide the work of energy saving and consumption reduction in power plant.

Economic Dispatch for Power System Included Wind and Solar Thermal Energy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saoussen BRINI

2009-07-01

Full Text Available With the fast development of technologies of alternative energy, the electric power network can be composed of several renewable energy resources. The energy resources have various characteristics in terms of operational costs and reliability. In this study, the problem is the Economic Environmental Dispatching (EED of hybrid power system including wind and solar thermal energies. Renewable energy resources depend on the data of the climate such as the wind speed for wind energy, solar radiation and the temperature for solar thermal energy. In this article it proposes a methodology to solve this problem. The resolution takes account of the fuel costs and reducing of the emissions of the polluting gases. The resolution is done by the Strength Pareto Evolutionary Algorithm (SPEA method and the simulations have been made on an IEEE network test (30 nodes, 8 machines and 41 lines.

Process control and monitoring system: Thermal Power Plant Gacko

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeremovic, Dragan; Skoko, Maksim; Gjokanovic, Zdravko

2004-01-01

DCS Ovation system, manufactured by Westinghouse, USA, is described in this paper. Emphasize on concept of realization and basic characteristic in Thermal Power Plant Gacko is given in this paper. The most important, noticed by now, comparative effects and performances of new monitoring and control system according to classical monitoring and control system of 300 MW units Thermal Power Plant Gacko in Gacko, are given in the conclusion. (Author)

Environmental protection in thermal power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-01-01

This workbook is a compilation of the most important facts and data that are relevant today for environmental protection in thermal power plants. Unlike the other issues the text is not in the form of a random collection of data but in the form of a complete presentation. Possible elaboration projects for pupils can be easily derived from the individual sections. These deal with: the discussion about environmental protection; forest decline; sources of emission; nuisances in the Federal Republic of Germany; environmental protection in fossil-fuel power plants - clean air - cooling water utilization and water protection - noise; environmental protection in nuclear power plants - radioactive material produced in nuclear reactors and the retention of such materials - radioactive waste materials - monitoring of radioactive emissions; accessory materials and hints. (orig./HSCH) [de

FY 1977 Annual report on Sunshine Project results. Survey and research on systems utilizing solar energy (Solar thermal power generation systems); 1977 nendo taiyo energy riyo system chosa kenkyu seika hokokusho. Taiyo netsu hatsuden system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1978-03-31

This project is aimed at surveys and researches on operation, economic efficiency and performance evaluation of solar thermal power generation systems, and test methods, e.g., for aging the materials for their devices, in order to establish the methods for evaluating their performance. For operation of solar thermal power generation systems, a feasible system is a hybrid with another system, e.g., thermal power or nuclear system. For economic efficiency, heat-storage capacity will be based on power generation for around 4 hours a day for a solar system to be installed in Japan. The construction and light/heat-collecting costs should be reduced to around 300,000 yen/kW and 13,000 to 21,000 yen/m{sup 2}, respectively, in order to keep the power generation cost at around 23 yen/kWH. The energy analysis of solar thermal power generation, based on the data given by the industrial correlation tables, indicates that the total energy required for construction of the system can be recovered in 2 to 3 years. Also outlined are construction of a 1MW pilot plant and its facilities, and designs of the pilot plants with a curved surface or tower type light collector. A total of 12 types of reflection mirrors are screened for establishing the air-exposure testing methods. Methods for treating back surface edges of the reflection mirrors are also investigated. (NEDO)

Thermodynamic analysis of a combined-cycle solar thermal power plant with manganese oxide-based thermochemical energy storage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lei Qi

2017-01-01

Full Text Available We explore the thermodynamic efficiency of a solar-driven combined cycle power system with manganese oxide-based thermochemical energy storage system. Manganese oxide particles are reduced during the day in an oxygen-lean atmosphere obtained with a fluidized-bed reactor at temperatures in the range of 750–1600°C using concentrated solar energy. Reduced hot particles are stored and re-oxidized during night-time to achieve continuous power plant operation. The steady-state mass and energy conservation equations are solved for all system components to calculate the thermodynamic properties and mass flow rates at all state points in the system, taking into account component irreversibilities. The net power block and overall solar-to-electric energy conversion efficiencies, and the required storage volumes for solids and gases in the storage system are predicted. Preliminary results for a system with 100 MW nominal solar power input at a solar concentration ratio of 3000, designed for constant round-the-clock operation with 8 hours of on-sun and 16 hours of off-sun operation and with manganese oxide particles cycled between 750 and 1600°C yield a net power block efficiency of 60.0% and an overall energy conversion efficiency of 41.3%. Required storage tank sizes for the solids are estimated to be approx. 5–6 times smaller than those of state-of-the-art molten salt systems.

Final Report on the Operation and Maintenance Improvement Program for Concentrating Solar Power Plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cohen, Gilbert E.; Kearney, David W.; Kolb, Gregory J.

1999-01-01

This report describes the results of a six-year, $6.3 million project to reduce operation and maintenance (O ampersand M) costs at power plants employing concentrating solar power (CSP) technology. Sandia National Laboratories teamed with KJC Operating Company to implement the O ampersand M Improvement Program. O ampersand M technologies developed during the course of the program were demonstrated at the 150-MW Kramer Junction solar power park located in Boron, California. Improvements were made in the following areas: (a) efficiency of solar energy collection, (b) O ampersand M information management, (c) reliability of solar field flow loop hardware, (d) plant operating strategy, and (e) cost reduction associated with environmental issues. A 37% reduction in annual O ampersand M costs was achieved. Based on the lessons learned, an optimum solar- field O ampersand M plan for future CSP plants is presented. Parabolic trough solar technology is employed at Kramer Junction. However, many of the O ampersand M improvements described in the report are also applicable to CSP plants based on solar power tower or dish/engine concepts

Final Report on the Operation and Maintenance Improvement Program for Concentrating Solar Power Plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cohen Gilbert E.; Kearney, David W.; Kolb, Gregory J.

1999-06-01

This report describes the results of a six-year, $6.3 million project to reduce operation and maintenance (O&M) costs at power plants employing concentrating solar power (CSP) technology. Sandia National Laboratories teamed with KJC Operating Company to implement the O&M Improvement Program. O&M technologies developed during the course of the program were demonstrated at the 150-MW Kramer Junction solar power park located in Boron, California. Improvements were made in the following areas: (a) efficiency of solar energy collection, (b) O&M information management, (c) reliability of solar field flow loop hardware, (d) plant operating strategy, and (e) cost reduction associated with environmental issues. A 37% reduction in annual O&M costs was achieved. Based on the lessons learned, an optimum solar- field O&M plan for future CSP plants is presented. Parabolic trough solar technology is employed at Kramer Junction. However, many of the O&M improvements described in the report are also applicable to CSP plants based on solar power tower or dish/engine concepts.

The Potential for Low-Cost Concentrating Solar Power Systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Price, Henry W.; Carpenter, Stephen

1999-01-01

Concern over the possibility of global climate change as a result of anthropogenic greenhouse gas buildup in the atmosphere is resulting in increased interest in renewable energy technologies. The World Bank recently sponsored a study to determine whether solar thermal power plants can achieve cost parity with conventional power plants. The paper reviews the conclusions of that study

A new framework to increase the efficiency of large-scale solar power plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Alimohammadi, Shahrouz; Kleissl, Jan P.

2015-11-01

A new framework to estimate the spatio-temporal behavior of solar power is introduced, which predicts the statistical behavior of power output at utility scale Photo-Voltaic (PV) power plants. The framework is based on spatio-temporal Gaussian Processes Regression (Kriging) models, which incorporates satellite data with the UCSD version of the Weather and Research Forecasting model. This framework is designed to improve the efficiency of the large-scale solar power plants. The results are also validated from measurements of the local pyranometer sensors, and some improvements in different scenarios are observed. Solar energy.

Molten Salt-Carbon Nanotube Thermal Energy Storage for Concentrating Solar Power Systems Final Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Michael Schuller; Frank Little; Darren Malik; Matt Betts; Qian Shao; Jun Luo; Wan Zhong; Sandhya Shankar; Ashwin Padmanaban

2012-03-30

We demonstrated that adding nanoparticles to a molten salt would increase its utility as a thermal energy storage medium for a concentrating solar power system. Specifically, we demonstrated that we could increase the specific heat of nitrate and carbonate salts containing 1% or less of alumina nanoparticles. We fabricated the composite materials using both evaporative and air drying methods. We tested several thermophysical properties of the composite materials, including the specific heat, thermal conductivity, latent heat, and melting point. We also assessed the stability of the composite material with repeated thermal cycling and the effects of adding the nanoparticles on the corrosion of stainless steel by the composite salt. Our results indicate that stable, repeatable 25-50% improvements in specific heat are possible for these materials. We found that using these composite salts as the thermal energy storage material for a concentrating solar thermal power system can reduce the levelized cost of electricity by 10-20%. We conclude that these materials are worth further development and inclusion in future concentrating solar power systems.

Availability of thermal power plants 1977-1986

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nitsch, D.; Schmitz, H.

1987-01-01

To get a picture of power plant availability and its influencing factors, availability data have been acquired and evaluated by VGB according to different design and operation parameters since 1970. The present volume is the 16th annual statistics since 1970. It covers the decade of 1977 to 1986 and contains availability data of 384 power plants in Germany and abroad, with a total of 94.896 MW and 3.768 plant years. Data are presented on fossil-fuelled units, units with a combined gas/steam cycle, nuclear power plants and gas turbine systems, with further sub-categories according to unit size, fuel, type, years of operation, and operating regime. German plants are reviewed separately. All power data are gross data measured at the generator terminals. For a comparative evaluation, the data of 1986 are supplemented by yearly averages since 1977 and averages for the decade from 1977 to 1986. Since 1978, nonavailability data are categorized as 'unscheduled' and 'scheduled' nonavailabilities. For availability data of 1970 to 1976, see the VGB publication 'Availability of thermal power plants, 1970 to 1981'. (orig./UA) [de

The solarPACES strategy for the solar thermal breakthrough

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burch, G.D.; Grasse, W.

1997-01-01

IEA(International Energy Agency)/SolarPACES(Solar Power and Chemical Energy systems)represents a world wide coalition for information sharing and collaboration on applications of concentrated solar energy. The current SolarPACES community has built up solar thermal system know-how over 15 years, is operating the three main solar test centres in the world. Its main activities are in the following four fields: solar thermal electric power systems, solar chemistry, solar technology and advanced applications and non-technical activities. The article presents the talk on the strategy of solarPACES given at the International Workshop on applied solar energy held in Tashkent(Uzbekistan) in June 1997. (A.A.D.)

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - Planta Solar 20 | Concentrating Solar

Science.gov (United States)

Power | NREL 20 This page provides information on Planta Solar 20, a concentrating solar power Solar's Planta Solar 20 (PS20) is a 20-megawatt power tower plant being constructed next to the PS10 tower and increasing incident solar radiation capture will increase net electrical power output by 10

Coolidge solar powered irrigation pumping project

Science.gov (United States)

Larson, D. L.

1980-01-01

A 150 kW solar thermal electric power plant which includes over 2100 square meters of parabolic trough type collectors and an organic Rankine cycle turbine engine was constructed on an irrigated farm. The plant is interconnected with the electrical utility grid. Operation is providing an evaluation of equipment performance and operating and maintenance requirements as well as the desirability of an on farm location.

Thermodynamic and economic evaluation of a solar aided sugarcane bagasse cogeneration power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burin, Eduardo Konrad; Vogel, Tobias; Multhaupt, Sven; Thelen, Andre; Oeljeklaus, Gerd; Görner, Klaus; Bazzo, Edson

2016-01-01

This work evaluated the integration of Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) with a sugarcane bagasse cogeneration plant located in Campo Grande (Brazil). The plant is equipped with two 170 t/h capacity steam generators that provide steam at 67 bar/525 °C. Superheated steam is expanded in a backpressure and in a condensing-extraction turbine. The evaluated hybridization layouts were: (layout 1) solar feedwater pre-heating; (layout 2) saturated steam generation with solar energy and post superheating in biomass steam generators and (layout 3) superheated steam generation in parallel with biomass boilers. Linear Fresnel and parabolic trough were implemented in layouts 1 and 2, while solar tower in layout 3. The exportation of electricity to the grid was increased between 1.3% (layout 1/linear Fresnel) and 19.8% (layout 3) in comparison with base case. The levelized cost of additional electricity was accounted between 220 US$/MWh (layout 3) and 628 US$/MWh (layout 1/linear Fresnel). The key factor related to layout 3 was the improvement of solar field capacity factor due to the solar-only operation of this approach. These aspects demonstrate that the combination of solar and bagasse resources might be the key to turn CSP economically feasible in Brazil. - Highlights: • The integration of CSP and a sugarcane bagasse cogeneration plant was here evaluated. • Additional hours of operation during off-season were achieved due to hybridization. • The part load performance of plant was predicted as solar thermal load was increased. • The electricity exportation to the grid could be increased between 1.3 and 19.8%. • The LCOE of additional electricity produced was ranged between 220 and 628 US$/MWh.

Investigation on the dynamic behaviour of a parabolic trough power plant during strongly cloudy days

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Al-Maliki, Wisam Abed Kattea; Alobaid, Falah; Starkloff, Ralf; Kez, Vitali; Epple, Bernd

2016-01-01

Highlights: • A detailed dynamic model of a parabolic trough solar thermal power plant is done. • Simulated results are compared to the experimental data from the real power plant. • Discrepancy between model result and real data is caused by operation strategy. • The model strategy increased the operating hours of power plant by around 2.5–3 h. - Abstract: The objective of this study is the development of a full scale dynamic model of a parabolic trough power plant with a thermal storage system, operated by the Actividades de Construcción y Servicios Group in Spain. The model includes solar field, thermal storage system and the power block and describes the heat transfer fluid and steam/water paths in detail. The parabolic trough power plant is modelled using Advanced Process Simulation Software (APROS). To validate the model, the numerical results are compared to the measured data, obtained from “Andasol II” during strongly cloudy periods in the summer days. The comparisons show a qualitative agreement between the dynamic simulation model and the measurements. The results confirm that the thermal storage enables the parabolic trough power plant to provide a constant power rate when the storage energy discharge is available, despite significant oscillations in the solar radiation.

Serial grey-box model of a stratified thermal tank for hierarchical control of a solar plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Arahal, Manuel R. [Universidad de Sevilla, Dpto. de Ingenieria de Sistemas y Automatica, Camino de los Descubrimientos s/n, 41092 Sevilla (Spain); Cirre, Cristina M. [Convenio Universidad de Almeria-Plataforma Solar de Almeria, Ctra. Senes s/n, 04200 Tabernas, Almeria (Spain); Berenguel, Manuel [Universidad de Almeria, Dpto. Lenguajes y Computacion, Ctra. Sacramento s/n, 04120, Almeria (Spain)

2008-05-15

The ACUREX collector field together with a thermal storage tank and a power conversion system forms the Small Solar Power Systems plant of the Plataforma Solar de Almeria, a facility that has been used for research for the last 25 years. A simulator of the collector field produced by the last author has been available to and used as a test-bed for control strategies. Up to now, however, there is not a model for the whole plant. Such model is needed for hierarchical control schemes also proposed by the authors. In this paper a model of the thermal storage tank is derived using the Simultaneous Perturbation Stochastic Approximation technique to adjust the parameters of a serial grey-box model structure. The benefits of the proposed approach are discussed in the context of the intended use, requiring a model capable of simulating the behavior of the storage tank with low computational load and low error over medium to large horizons. The model is tested against real data in a variety of situations showing its performance in terms of simulation error in the temperature profile and in the usable energy stored in the tank. The results obtained demonstrate the viability of the proposed approach. (author)

Solar Probe Plus MAG Sensor Thermal Design for Low Heater Power and Extreme Thermal Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Michael K.

2015-01-01

The heater power available for the Solar Probe Plus FIELDS MAG sensor is less than half of the heritage value for other missions. Nominally the MAG sensors are in the spacecraft's umbra. In the worst hot case, approximately 200 spacecraft communication downlinks, up to 10 hours each, are required at 0.7 AU. These downlinks require the spacecraft to slew 45 deg. about the Y-axis, exposing the MAG sensors and boom to sunlight. This paper presents the thermal design to meet the MAG sensor thermal requirements in the extreme thermal environment and with low heater power. A thermal balance test on the MAG sensor engineering model has verified the thermal design and correlated the thermal model for flight temperature predictions.

Novel Thermal Storage Technologies for Concentrating Solar Power Generation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Neti, Sudhakar [Lehigh Univ., Bethlehem, PA (United States). Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics; Oztekin, Alparslan [Lehigh Univ., Bethlehem, PA (United States); Chen, John [Lehigh Univ., Bethlehem, PA (United States); Tuzla, Kemal [Lehigh Univ., Bethlehem, PA (United States); Misiolek, Wojciech [Lehigh Univ., Bethlehem, PA (United States)

2013-06-20

The technologies that are to be developed in this work will enable storage of thermal energy in 100 MW_e solar energy plants for 6-24 hours at temperatures around 300°C and 850°C using encapsulated phase change materials (EPCM). Several encapsulated phase change materials have been identified, fabricated and proven with calorimetry. Two of these materials have been tested in an airflow experiment. A cost analysis for these thermal energy storage systems has also been conducted that met the targets established at the initiation of the project.

Application of the thermal efficiency analysis software 'EgWin' at existing power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koda, E.; Takahashi, T.; Nakao, Y.

2008-01-01

'EgWin' is the general purpose software to analyze a thermal efficiency of power system developed in CRIEPI. This software has been used to analyze the existing power generation unit of 30 or more, and the effectiveness has been confirmed. In thermal power plants, it was used for the clarification of the thermal efficiency decrease factor and the quantitative estimation of the influence that each factor gave to the thermal efficiency of the plant. Also it was used for the quantitative estimation of the effect by the operating condition change and the facility remodeling in thermal power, atomic energy, and geothermal power plants. (author)

Techno-economic optimization for the design of solar chimney power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ali, Babkir

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Chimney height and collector area of different designs were optimized. • Simple actual and minimum payback periods were developed. • Comparative assessment was conducted for different designs configuration. • Effects of uncertain parameters on the payback period were studied. - Abstract: This paper aims to propose a methodology for optimization of solar chimney power plants taking into account the techno-economic parameters. The indicator used for optimization is the comparison between the actual achieved simple payback period for the design and the minimum possible (optimum) simple payback period as a reference. An optimization model was executed for different twelve designs in the range 5–200 MW to cover reinforced concrete chimney, sloped collector, and floating chimney. The height of the chimney was optimized and the associated collector area was calculated accordingly. Relationships between payback periods, electricity price, and the peak power capacity of each power plant were developed. The resulted payback periods for the floating chimney power plants were the shortest compared to the other studied designs. For a solar chimney power plant with 100 MW at electricity price 0.10 USD/kWh, the simple payback period for the reference case was 4.29 years for floating chimney design compared to 23.47 and 16.88 years for reinforced concrete chimney and sloped collector design, respectively. After design optimization for 100 MW power plant of each of reinforced concrete, sloped collector, and floating chimney, a save of 19.63, 2.22, and 2.24 million USD, respectively from the initial cost of the reference case is achieved. Sensitivity analysis was conducted in this study to evaluate the impacts of varied running cost, solar radiation, and electricity price on the payback periods of solar chimney power plant. Floating chimney design is still performing after applying the highest ratio of annual running cost to the annual revenue. The

Space power system utilizing Fresnel lenses for solar power and also thermal energy storage

Science.gov (United States)

Turner, R. H.

1983-01-01

A solar power plant suitable for earth orbits passing through Van Allen radiation belts is described. The solar-to-electricity conversion efficiency is estimated to be around 9 percent, and the expected power-to-weight ratio is competitive with photovoltaic arrays. The system is designed to be self-contained, to be indifferent to radiation belt exposures, store energy for periods when the orbiting system is in earth shadow (so that power generation is contant), have no moving parts and no working fluids, and be robust against micrometeorite attack. No electrical batteries are required.

Super thermal power plants and environment: a critical appraisal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharma, A.K.

1995-01-01

This paper discusses the possible impact on the environment by the particulate matters, oxides of sulphur and nitrogen, trace metals and solid/liquid wastes, which are emitted during the combustion of coal in the super thermal power plants of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC). The coal consumed by these plants have sufficient sulphur content and ash. Of all the mineral in coal, pyrite is one of the most deleterious in combustion and a major source of oxide of sulphur pollution of the atmosphere. The impact of these on the terrestrial and aquatic environment in and around power plants and on region have been discussed. To arresting such contaminants, some remedial measures are suggested. (author). 14 refs., 1 fig., 3 tabs

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - Khi Solar One | Concentrating Solar

Science.gov (United States)

Power | NREL Khi Solar One This page provides information on Khi Solar One, a concentrating solar power (CSP) project, with data organized by background, parcipants and power plant configuration . Status Date: February 8, 2016 Project Overview Project Name: Khi Solar One Country: South Africa Location

Solar radiation for sea-water desalination and electric power generation via vacuum solar collectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mottinelli, L.; Reali, M.; El-Nashar, A.M.; Giusiano, F.; Vigotti, R.

1996-01-01

The present report concerns the energetic potential of vacuum solar which are rather versatile and efficient devices for converting solar energy into thermal energy. Two main energetic applications have been analysed: the first one for a solar sea water desalination plant which has been operated in Abu Dhabi for the past ten years, the other for a conceptual solar thermoelectric-power plant having a fair thermodynamic efficiency (15-20%). A simple technology for the manufacture of vacuum solar collectors in a standard mechanical shop is being developed in collaboration between ENEL Sp A (DSR-CRIS, Milano) and WED (Abu Dhabi). Such technology should have an important economy-saving potential per se and would also make repair and substitution operations simple enough for the actual operators of the vacuum solar collector system without any need of external assistance. The technic-operative-economical features of the Abu Dhabi solar desalination plant suggest that the use novel simplified vacuum solar collectors could have a considerable technic economical potential. The analysis of the conceptual solar thermo-electric-power plant focuses on its general layout and singles out key technological issues which ought to be addressed in an overall feasibility study. 5 figs., 3 tabs

Adaptation of thermal power plants: The (ir)relevance of climate (change) information

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bogmans, Christian W.J.; Dijkema, Gerard P.J.; Vliet, Michelle T.H. van

2017-01-01

When does climate change information lead to adaptation? We analyze thermal power plant adaptation by means of investing in water-saving (cooling) technology to prevent a decrease in plant efficiency and load reduction. A comprehensive power plant investment model, forced with downscaled climate and hydrological projections, is then numerically solved to analyze the adaptation decisions of a selection of real power plants. We find that operators that base their decisions on current climatic conditions are likely to make identical choices and perform just as well as operators that are fully ‘informed’ about climate change. Where electricity supply is mainly generated by thermal power plants, heat waves, droughts and low river flow may impact electricity supply for decades to come. - Highlights: • We analyze adaptation to climate change by thermal power plants. • A numerical investment model is applied to a coal plant and a nuclear power plant. • The numerical analysis is based on climate and hydrological projections. • Climate change information has a relatively small effect on a power plant's NPV. • Uncertainty and no-regret benefits lower the value of climate change information.

Design of a solar updraft tower power plant for pakistan and its simulation in transys

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, T.; Chaudhry, I.A.; Rehman, A.

2014-01-01

Solar updraft tower is a distinct and novel combination of three old concepts that are green house effect, chimney effect and wind turbine. It can be employed, with almost negligible maintenance cost, in electricity generation. Given the different climatic and economical conditions for different places, every region demands a specific design. As solar chimney power plant is a relatively new technology, much effort has not been done in evaluating the performances of the various plants. In this context, a solar updraft tower has been designed for the conditions of Pakistan (Lahore) and is simulated in TRNSYS to analyze the plant performance through different seasons and time of the year. The study reveals important results about the factors involved in determining the final output power produced. It is observed that the solar irradiance plays a more significant role in power generation than ambient temperature. The more the capacity of a plant to produce power, the more economical it would be. TRNSYS based program is presumed to be a handy mode of examining solar chimney power plants. (author)

Microgrid Control Strategy Utlizing Thermal Energy Storage With Renewable Solar And Wind Power Generation

Science.gov (United States)

2016-06-01

iii Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited MICROGRID CONTROL STRATEGY UTLIZING THERMAL ENERGY STORAGE WITH RENEWABLE SOLAR AND WIND... control tracks increasing power generation in the morning. The batteries require a large amount of electrical power to charge every morning, as charge ...is 37 lost throughout the night. This causes the solar panels to output their maximum power generation. The MPPT control records when power

Solar thermal utilization--an overview

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Deming; Xu Gang

2007-01-01

Solar energy is an ideal renewable energy source and its thermal utilization is one of its most important applications. We review the status of solar thermal utilization, including: (1) developed technologies which are already widely used all over the world, such as solar assisted water heaters, solar cookers, solar heated buildings and so on; (2) advanced technologies which are still in the development or laboratory stage and could have more innovative applications, including thermal power generation, refrigeration, hydrogen production, desalination, and chimneys; (3) major problems which need to be resolved for advanced utilizaiton of solar thermal energy. (authors)

Feasibility study on Bobovdol thermal power plant upgrading project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-03-01

A survey has been made in relation with the improvement project intended of energy conservation, and reduction of global warming gas emission at the Bobovdol thermal power plant located in the suburb of Sofia, the capital of the Republic of Bulgaria. The existing Bobovdol power plant having a total capacity of 630 MW with three generators is a coal burning thermal power plant having been used already for 23 to 27 years, hence over-aged. The survey has discussed an improvement project of scrap-and-build type to make the plant a high-efficiency gas combined cycle power plant using gas turbines. The project calls for building 210-MW gas combined power generation facilities having 70-MW gas turbines, one each in three stages in 2007, 2012 and 2017. As a result of the discussions, the fuel consumption reducing rate was found to reach 37.99%, whereas the cumulative energy saving quantity in 41 years will reach 16.37 million tons of fuel oil equivalent. In addition, the reduction rate of global warming gas emission is 57.75%, and the cumulative reduction quantity in 41 years is 105.18 million tons. (NEDO)

Availability of thermal power plants 1976-1985

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nitsch, D.; Schmitz, H.

1986-01-01

This assessment is the 15th annual assessment since 1970. It covers the decade 1976 to 1985 and contains the availability figures for 395 power stations in Germany and abroad with an output of about 93,750 MW and 3,642 years of power station operation. The availability figures of fossil fired units, combined units (plant with combined gas/steam circuit), nuclear power stations and gas turbine plants are given, which are classified according to unit size, fuel, type of construction, age and method of use. The German plants are covered separately. All output figures are gross figures (output at the generator terminals). For comparison purposes, apart for the results of 1985, the annual values determined since 1976 and the mean values for the decade 1976-1985 are given. The non-availability is divided into faults and planned outages since 1978. Availability figures for the years 1970 to 1975 can be found in the VGB assessment 'Availability of thermal power plants 1970-1981'. (orig./GL) [de

An Improved Flexible Solar Thermal Energy Integration Process for Enhancing the Coal-Based Energy Efficiency and NOx Removal Effectiveness in Coal-Fired Power Plants under Different Load Conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Han

2017-09-01

Full Text Available An improved flexible solar-aided power generation system (SAPG for enhancing both selective catalytic reduction (SCR de-NOx efficiency and coal-based energy efficiency of coal-fired power plants is proposed. In the proposed concept, the solar energy injection point is changed for different power plant loads, bringing about different benefits for coal-fired power generation. For partial/low load, solar energy is beneficially used to increase the flue gas temperature to guarantee the SCR de-NOx effectiveness as well as increase the boiler energy input by reheating the combustion air. For high power load, solar energy is used for saving steam bleeds from turbines by heating the feed water. A case study for a typical 1000 MW coal-fired power plant using the proposed concept has been performed and the results showed that, the SCR de-NOx efficiency of proposed SAPG could increase by 3.1% and 7.9% under medium load and low load conditions, respectively, as compared with the reference plant. The standard coal consumption rate of the proposed SAPG could decrease by 2.68 g/kWh, 4.05 g/kWh and 6.31 g/kWh for high, medium and low loads, respectively, with 0.040 USD/kWh of solar generated electricity cost. The proposed concept opens up a novel solar energy integration pattern in coal-fired power plants to improve the pollutant removal effectiveness and decrease the coal consumption of the power plant.

Performance analysis of conventional and sloped solar chimney power plants in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao Fei; Zhao Liang; Li Huashan; Guo Liejin

2013-01-01

The solar chimney power plant (SCPP) has been accepted as one of the most promising approaches for future large-scale solar energy applications. This paper reports on a heat transfer model that is used to compare the performance of a conventional solar chimney power plant (CSCPP) and two sloped solar chimney power plants (SSCPPs) with the collector oriented at 30° and 60°, respectively. The power generation from SCPPs at different latitudes in China is also analyzed. Results indicate that the larger solar collector angle leads to improved performance in winter but results in lower performance in summer. It is found that the optimal collector angle to achieve the maximum power in Lanzhou, China, is around 60°. Main factors that influence the performance of SCPPs also include the system height and the air thermophysical characteristics. The ground energy loss, reflected solar radiation, and kinetic loss at the chimney outlet are the main energy losses in SCPPs. The studies also show SSCPPs are more suitable for high latitude regions in Northwest China, but CSCPPs are suggested to be built in southeastern and eastern parts of China with the combination to the local agriculture. - Highlights: ► The optimum collector angle for maximum power generation is 60° in Lanzhou. ► Main parameters influencing performances are the system height and air property. ► Ground loss, reflected loss and outlet kinetic loss are the main energy losses. ► The sloped styles are suitable for Northwest China. ► The conventional styles are suitable for Southeast and East China.

A Co-Powered Biomass and Concentrated Solar Power Rankine Cycle Concept for Small Size Combined Heat and Power Generation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eileen Tortora

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The present work investigates the matching of an advanced small scale Combined Heat and Power (CHP Rankine cycle plant with end-user thermal and electric load. The power plant consists of a concentrated solar power field co-powered by a biomass furnace to produce steam in a Rankine cycle, with a CHP configuration. A hotel was selected as the end user due to its high thermal to electric consumption ratio. The power plant design and its operation were modelled and investigated by adopting transient simulations with an hourly distribution. The study of the load matching of the proposed renewable power technology and the final user has been carried out by comparing two different load tracking scenarios, i.e., the thermal and the electric demands. As a result, the power output follows fairly well the given load curves, supplying, on a selected winter day, about 50 GJ/d of thermal energy and the 6 GJ/d of electric energy, with reduced energy dumps when matching the load.

Solar-thermal jet pumping for irrigation

Science.gov (United States)

Clements, L. D.; Dellenback, P. A.; Bell, C. A.

1980-01-01

This paper describes a novel concept in solar powered irrigation pumping, gives measured performance data for the pump unit, and projected system performance. The solar-thermal jet pumping concept is centered around a conventional jet eductor pump which is commercially available at low cost. The jet eductor pump is powered by moderate temperature, moderate pressure Refrigerant-113 vapor supplied by a concentrating solar collector field. The R-113 vapor is direct condensed by the produced water and the two fluids are separated at the surface. The water goes on to use and the R-113 is repressurized and returned to the solar field. The key issue in the solar-thermal jet eductor concept is the efficiency of pump operation. Performance data from a small scale experimental unit which utilizes an electrically heated boiler in place of the solar field is presented. The solar-thermal jet eductor concept is compared with other solar irrigation concepts and optimal application situations are identified. Though having lower efficiencies than existing Rankine cycle solar-thermal irrigation systems, the mechanical and operational simplicity of this concept make it competitive with other solar powered irrigation schemes.

Solar thermal power plants for the Mediterranean region: A chance for a new era in the field of electricity supply; Solarthermische Kraftwerke fuer den Mittelmeerraum: Chance fuer eine neue Aera der Elektrizitaetsversorgung

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nitsch, J [DLR, Stuttgart (Germany)

1994-12-31

One promising option for a really environmentally and climaticly friendly electricity supply is the erection of solar thermal power plants in regions of the earth with a considerably high solar irradiation. In this work the technical and economical chances for this technology are analysed and explanations are given as to which energetic and econmic marginal conditions must be created for a successful market introduction, which could already be initiated with several demonstration power plants. (orig.) [Deutsch] Eine der vielversprechenden Optionen fuer wirklich umwelt- und klimafreundliche Elektrizitaetsversorgung stellt der Bau solarthermischer Kraftwerke in den einstrahlungsreichen Regionen der Erde dar. Der Beitrag analysiert die technisch-oekonomischen Chancen dieser Technologie und zeigt auf, welche energiewirtschaftlichen Randbedingungen als Voraussetzung fuer eine erfolgreiche Markteinfuehrung geschaffen werden muessen, die schon jetzt mit einer Reihe von Demonstrationskraftwerken beginnen koennte. (orig.)

The Influence of Solar Power Plants on Microclimatic Conditions and the Biotic Community in Chilean Desert Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Suuronen, Anna; Muñoz-Escobar, Christian; Lensu, Anssi; Kuitunen, Markku; Guajardo Celis, Natalia; Espinoza Astudillo, Pablo; Ferrú, Marcos; Taucare-Ríos, Andrés; Miranda, Marcelo; Kukkonen, Jussi V. K.

2017-10-01

The renewable energy sector is growing at a rapid pace in northern Chile and the solar energy potential is one of the best worldwide. Therefore, many types of solar power plant facilities are being built to take advantage of this renewable energy resource. Solar energy is considered a clean source of energy, but there are potential environmental effects of solar technology, such as landscape fragmentation, extinction of local biota, microclimate changes, among others. To be able to minimize environmental impacts of solar power plants, it is important to know what kind of environmental conditions solar power plants create. This study provides information about abiotic and biotic conditions in the vicinity of photovoltaic solar power plants. Herein, the influence of these power plants as drivers of new microclimate conditions and arthropods diversity composition in the Atacama Desert was evaluated. Microclimatic conditions between panel mounts was found to be more extreme than in the surrounding desert yet beneath the panels temperature is lower and relative humidity higher than outside the panel area. Arthropod species composition was altered in fixed-mount panel installations. In contrast, solar tracking technology showed less influence on microclimate and species composition between Sun and Shade in the power plant. Shady conditions provided a refuge for arthropod species in both installation types. For example, Dipterans were more abundant in the shade whereas Solifugaes were seldom present in the shade. The presented findings have relevance for the sustainable planning and construction of solar power plants.

The Influence of Solar Power Plants on Microclimatic Conditions and the Biotic Community in Chilean Desert Environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Suuronen, Anna; Muñoz-Escobar, Christian; Lensu, Anssi; Kuitunen, Markku; Guajardo Celis, Natalia; Espinoza Astudillo, Pablo; Ferrú, Marcos; Taucare-Ríos, Andrés; Miranda, Marcelo; Kukkonen, Jussi V K

2017-10-01

The renewable energy sector is growing at a rapid pace in northern Chile and the solar energy potential is one of the best worldwide. Therefore, many types of solar power plant facilities are being built to take advantage of this renewable energy resource. Solar energy is considered a clean source of energy, but there are potential environmental effects of solar technology, such as landscape fragmentation, extinction of local biota, microclimate changes, among others. To be able to minimize environmental impacts of solar power plants, it is important to know what kind of environmental conditions solar power plants create. This study provides information about abiotic and biotic conditions in the vicinity of photovoltaic solar power plants. Herein, the influence of these power plants as drivers of new microclimate conditions and arthropods diversity composition in the Atacama Desert was evaluated. Microclimatic conditions between panel mounts was found to be more extreme than in the surrounding desert yet beneath the panels temperature is lower and relative humidity higher than outside the panel area. Arthropod species composition was altered in fixed-mount panel installations. In contrast, solar tracking technology showed less influence on microclimate and species composition between Sun and Shade in the power plant. Shady conditions provided a refuge for arthropod species in both installation types. For example, Dipterans were more abundant in the shade whereas Solifugaes were seldom present in the shade. The presented findings have relevance for the sustainable planning and construction of solar power plants.

concentrated solar power and solar thermal Barometer - EurObserv'ER - May 2015

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-05-01

European concentrated solar power capacity remained stable in 2014 and will probably post a negligible increase in 2015. Construction work on a number of new facilities in Italy that are scheduled for commissioning in 2016 and 2017 could commence in the second half of the year. The European solar thermal market for producing heat, domestic hot water and heating has not found the recipe for recovery. According to EurObserv'ER, the market contracted by a further 3.7% from its 2013 level which is the sixth decrease in a row

Thermal analysis and performance optimization of a solar hot water plant with economic evaluation

KAUST Repository

Kim, Youngdeuk

2012-05-01

The main objective of this study is to optimize the long-term performance of an existing active-indirect solar hot water plant (SHWP), which supplies hot water at 65 °C for use in a flight kitchen, using a micro genetic algorithm in conjunction with a relatively detailed model of each component in the plant and solar radiation model based on the measured data. The performance of SHWP at Changi International Airport Services (CIASs), Singapore, is studied for better payback period using the monthly average hourly diffuse and beam radiations and ambient temperature data. The data input for solar radiation model is obtained from the Singapore Meteorological Service (SMS), and these data have been compared with long-term average data of NASA (surface meteorology and solar energy or SSE). The comparison shows a good agreement between the predicted and measured hourly-averaged, horizontal global radiation. The SHWP at CIAS, which comprises 1200m 2 of evacuated-tube collectors, 50m 3 water storage tanks and a gas-fired auxiliary boiler, is first analyzed using a baseline configuration, i.e., (i) the local solar insolation input, (ii) a coolant flow rate through the headers of collector based on ASHRAE standards, (iii) a thermal load demand pattern amounting to 100m 3/day, and (iv) the augmentation of water temperature by auxiliary when the supply temperature from solar tank drops below the set point. A comparison between the baseline configuration and the measured performance of CIAS plant gives reasonably good validation of the simulation code. Optimization is further carried out for the following parameters, namely; (i) total collector area of the plant, (ii) storage volume, and (iii) three daily thermal demands. These studies are performed for both the CIAS plant and a slightly modified plant where the hot water supply to the load is adjusted constant at times when the water temperature from tank may exceed the set temperature. It is found that the latter

Thermal analysis and performance optimization of a solar hot water plant with economic evaluation

KAUST Repository

Kim, Youngdeuk; Thu, Kyaw; Bhatia, Hitasha Kaur; Bhatia, Charanjit Singh; Ng, K. C.

2012-01-01

The main objective of this study is to optimize the long-term performance of an existing active-indirect solar hot water plant (SHWP), which supplies hot water at 65 °C for use in a flight kitchen, using a micro genetic algorithm in conjunction with a relatively detailed model of each component in the plant and solar radiation model based on the measured data. The performance of SHWP at Changi International Airport Services (CIASs), Singapore, is studied for better payback period using the monthly average hourly diffuse and beam radiations and ambient temperature data. The data input for solar radiation model is obtained from the Singapore Meteorological Service (SMS), and these data have been compared with long-term average data of NASA (surface meteorology and solar energy or SSE). The comparison shows a good agreement between the predicted and measured hourly-averaged, horizontal global radiation. The SHWP at CIAS, which comprises 1200m 2 of evacuated-tube collectors, 50m 3 water storage tanks and a gas-fired auxiliary boiler, is first analyzed using a baseline configuration, i.e., (i) the local solar insolation input, (ii) a coolant flow rate through the headers of collector based on ASHRAE standards, (iii) a thermal load demand pattern amounting to 100m 3/day, and (iv) the augmentation of water temperature by auxiliary when the supply temperature from solar tank drops below the set point. A comparison between the baseline configuration and the measured performance of CIAS plant gives reasonably good validation of the simulation code. Optimization is further carried out for the following parameters, namely; (i) total collector area of the plant, (ii) storage volume, and (iii) three daily thermal demands. These studies are performed for both the CIAS plant and a slightly modified plant where the hot water supply to the load is adjusted constant at times when the water temperature from tank may exceed the set temperature. It is found that the latter

Assessment of inhalation risk due to radioactivity released from coal-based thermal power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sahu, S.K.; Pandit, G.G.; Shukla, V.K.; Puranik, V.D.; Kushwaha, H.S.

2006-01-01

In India, the coal based thermal power plants have been the major source of power generation in the past and would continue for decades to come. As the coal contains naturally occurring primordial radionuclides the burning of pulverized coal to produce energy for generation of electricity in thermal power plants will result in the emission of a variety of natural radioactive elements into the environment in the vicinity of thermal power plants. In this paper we have used two different methods for characterization of uncertainty in inhalation risk to the general public around 10 Kms radius in the neighborhood of a coal-fired thermal power plant. (author)

Time-dependent fracture of materials at elevated temperature for solar thermal power systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gupta, G.D.

1979-01-01

Various Solar Thermal Power Systems are briefly described. The components of solar power systems in which time-dependent fracture problems become important are identified. Typical materials of interest, temperature ranges, and stress states are developed; and the number of cycles during the design life of these systems are indicated. The ASME Code procedures used by designers to predict the life of these components are briefly described. Some of the major problems associated with the use of these ASME procedures in the design of solar components are indicated. Finally, a number of test and development needs are identified which would enable the designers to predict the life of the solar power system components with a reasonable degree of confidence

Computational Analysis of Nanoparticles-Molten Salt Thermal Energy Storage for Concentrated Solar Power Systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kumar, Vinod [Univ. of Texas, El Paso, TX (United States)

2017-05-05

High fidelity computational models of thermocline-based thermal energy storage (TES) were developed. The research goal was to advance the understanding of a single tank nanofludized molten salt based thermocline TES system under various concentration and sizes of the particles suspension. Our objectives were to utilize sensible-heat that operates with least irreversibility by using nanoscale physics. This was achieved by performing computational analysis of several storage designs, analyzing storage efficiency and estimating cost effectiveness for the TES systems under a concentrating solar power (CSP) scheme using molten salt as the storage medium. Since TES is one of the most costly but important components of a CSP plant, an efficient TES system has potential to make the electricity generated from solar technologies cost competitive with conventional sources of electricity.

Environmental Impacts From the Installation and Operation of Large-scale Solar Power Plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fthenakis, V.; Turney, Damon

2011-04-23

Large-scale solar power plants are being developed at a rapid rate, and are setting up to use thousands or millions of acres of land globally. The environmental issues related to the installation and operation phases of such facilities have not, so far, been addressed comprehensively in the literature. Here we identify and appraise 32 impacts from these phases, under the themes of land use intensity, human health and well-being, plant and animal life, geohydrological resources, and climate change. Our appraisals assume that electricity generated by new solar power facilities will displace electricity from traditional U.S. generation technologies. Altogether we find 22 of the considered 32 impacts to be beneficial. Of the remaining 10 impacts, 4 are neutral, and 6 require further research before they can be appraised. None of the impacts are negative relative to traditional power generation. We rank the impacts in terms of priority, and find all the high-priority impacts to be beneficial. In quantitative terms, large-scale solar power plants occupy the same or less land per kW h than coal power plant life cycles. Removal of forests to make space for solar power causes CO{sub 2} emissions as high as 36 g CO{sub 2} kW h{sup -1}, which is a significant contribution to the life cycle CO{sub 2} emissions of solar power, but is still low compared to CO{sub 2} emissions from coal-based electricity that are about 1100 g CO{sub 2} kW h{sup -1}.

Benefits of production extension and shifting with thermal storage for a 1MW CSP-ORC plant in Morocco

Science.gov (United States)

Bennouna, El Ghali; Mimet, Abdelaziz; Frej, Hicham

2016-05-01

The importance of thermal storage for commercial CSP (concentrated Solar Power) plants has now become obvious, this regardless of the solar technology used and the power cycle. The availability of a storage system to a plant operator brings a lot of possibilities for production management, cash flow optimization and grid stabilizing. In particular, and depending on plant location and local grid strategy, thermal storage can contribute, when wisely used, to control production and adapt it to the demand and / or power unbalances and varying prices. Storage systems design, sizing and configuration are proper to each power plant, hence systems that are now widely installed within large commercial solar plants are not necessarily suited for small scale decentralized production, and will not have the same effects. In this paper the benefits of thermal storage are studied for a 1MWe CSP plant with an ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle), this plant has many specific features which call for a detail analysis about the appropriate storage design and optimum operating strategies for decentralized solutions.

Effect of increased renewables generation on operation of thermal power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eser, Patrick; Singh, Antriksh; Chokani, Ndaona; Abhari, Reza S.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Impacts of increased renewables in central European transmission system are assessed. • Individual transmission lines and power plants of transmission system are modelled. • Starts and ramps of thermal power plants significantly increase with increased renewables. • Impact of renewables on thermal power plants is highly dependent on location. - Abstract: High spatial and temporal resolution optimal power flow simulations of the 2013 and 2020 interconnected grid in Central Western and Eastern Europe regions are undertaken to assess the impact of an increased penetration of renewables on thermal power plants. In contrast to prior studies, the present work models each individual transmission line and power plant within the two regions. Furthermore, for conventional plants, electricity costs are determined with respect to fuel type, nameplate capacity, operating condition and geographic location; cycling costs are modeled as function of the recent operational history. For renewable power plants, costs and available power are determined using mesoscale weather simulations and hydrology models. Countrywide validation of the simulations shows that all renewable and most conventional power production is predicted with less than 10% error. It is shown that the increased penetration of renewables in 2020 will induce a 4–23% increase in the number of starts of conventional plants. The number of load ramps significantly increases by 63–181%, which underlines the necessity for equipment manufacturers and utilities to adapt to scenarios of high penetration of renewables. The increased cycling operation of coal plants is shown to depend strongly on the power plant’s location and is mainly observed in Germany and the Czech Republic. Austrian coal plants are cycled less because they supply more base load power to southern Germany, where several nuclear power plants will be phased out by 2020. Thus there is a need for more transmission capacity along

International technologies market for coal thermal power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

This paper reports a general framework of potential market of clean coal combustion technologies in thermal power plants, specially for commercialization and market penetration in developing countries [it

energy and exergy evaluation of a 220mw thermal power plant

African Journals Online (AJOL)

HOD

The outcomes of this work provide the exergy consumption and distribution profiles of the thermal power plant ... power plant with post-combustion CO2 capture. The once-through boiler exhibited the highest exergy destruction of all the plants ...

Costs of solar and wind power variability for reducing CO2 emissions.

Science.gov (United States)

Lueken, Colleen; Cohen, Gilbert E; Apt, Jay

2012-09-04

We compare the power output from a year of electricity generation data from one solar thermal plant, two solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays, and twenty Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) wind farms. The analysis shows that solar PV electricity generation is approximately one hundred times more variable at frequencies on the order of 10(-3) Hz than solar thermal electricity generation, and the variability of wind generation lies between that of solar PV and solar thermal. We calculate the cost of variability of the different solar power sources and wind by using the costs of ancillary services and the energy required to compensate for its variability and intermittency, and the cost of variability per unit of displaced CO(2) emissions. We show the costs of variability are highly dependent on both technology type and capacity factor. California emissions data were used to calculate the cost of variability per unit of displaced CO(2) emissions. Variability cost is greatest for solar PV generation at $8-11 per MWh. The cost of variability for solar thermal generation is $5 per MWh, while that of wind generation in ERCOT was found to be on average $4 per MWh. Variability adds ~$15/tonne CO(2) to the cost of abatement for solar thermal power, $25 for wind, and $33-$40 for PV.

Efficiency assessment and benchmarking of thermal power plants in India

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shrivastava, Naveen; Sharma, Seema; Chauhan, Kavita

2012-01-01

Per capita consumption of electricity in India is many folds lesser than Canada, USA, Australia, Japan, Chaina and world average. Even though, total energy shortage and peaking shortage were recorded as 11.2% and 11.85%, respectively, in 2008–09 reflecting non-availability of sufficient supply of electricity. Performance improvement of very small amount can lead to large contribution in financial terms, which can be utilized for capacity addition to reduce demand supply gap. Coal fired thermal power plants are main sources of electricity in India. In this paper, relative technical efficiency of 60 coal fired power plants has been evaluated and compared using CCR and BCC models of data envelopment analysis. Target benchmark of input variables has also been evaluated. Performance comparison includes small versus medium versus large power plants and also state owned versus central owned versus private owned. Result indicates poor performance of few power plants due to over use of input resources. Finding reveals that efficiency of small power plants is lower in comparison to medium and large category and also performance of state owned power plants is comparatively lower than central and privately owned. Study also suggests different measures to improve technical efficiency of the plants. - Highlights: ► This study evaluates relative technical efficiency of 60 coal fired thermal power plants of India. ► Input oriented CCR and BCC models of data envelopment analysis have been used. ► Small, medium and large power plants have been compared. ► Study will help investor while setting up new power projects. ► Power plants of different ownerships have also been compared.

Multi-objective superstructure-free synthesis and optimization of thermal power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Ligang; Lampe, Matthias; Voll, Philip; Yang, Yongping; Bardow, André

2016-01-01

The merits of superstructure-free synthesis are demonstrated for bi-objective design of thermal power plants. The design of thermal power plants is complex and thus best solved by optimization. Common optimization methods require specification of a superstructure which becomes a tedious and error-prone task for complex systems. Superstructure specification is avoided by the presented superstructure-free approach, which is shown to successfully solve the design task yielding a high-quality Pareto front of promising structural alternatives. The economic objective function avoids introducing infinite numbers of units (e.g., turbine, reheater and feedwater preheater) as favored by pure thermodynamic optimization. The number of feasible solutions found per number of mutation tries is still high even after many generations but declines after introducing highly-nonlinear cost functions leading to challenging MINLP problems. The identified Pareto-optimal solutions tend to employ more units than found in modern power plants indicating the need for cost functions to reflect current industrial practice. In summary, the multi-objective superstructure-free synthesis framework is a robust approach for very complex problems in the synthesis of thermal power plants. - Highlights: • A generalized multi-objective superstructure-free synthesis framework for thermal power plants is presented. • The superstructure-free synthesis framework is comprehensively evaluated by complex bi-objective synthesis problems. • The proposed framework is effective to explore the structural design space even for complex problems.

Solar thermal and concentrated solar power barometer - EurObserv'ER - May 2014

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-05-01

The European concentrated solar plant market is set to mark time for a year following efforts to complete construction on 350 MW of CSP capacity in Spain in 2013. The spotlight has switched to Italy which could re-launch the European market within a couple of years. The European solar thermal market for heat and hot water production and space heating, is shrinking all the time. EurObserv'ER reports that the market is in its fifth successive year of contraction in the European Union. It now posts a 10.5% decline on its 2012 performance having struggled to install just over 3 million m 2 of collectors in 2013

Thermal design of a modern, air-conditioned, single-floor, solar-powered desert house

KAUST Repository

Serag-Eldin, M. A.

2011-01-01

The paper presents a thermal analysis of a single-floor, solar-powered desert house. The house is air-conditioned and provides all modern comforts and facilities. Electrical power, which drives the entire energy system, is generated by roof

Energy audit: thermal power, combined cycle, and cogeneration plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abbi, Yash Pal

2012-07-01

The availability of fossil fuels required for power plants is reducing and their costs increasing rapidly. This gives rise to increase in the cost of generation of electricity. But electricity regulators have to control the price of electricity so that consumers are not stressed with high costs. In addition, environmental considerations are forcing power plants to reduce CO2 emissions. Under these circumstances, power plants are constantly under pressure to improve the efficiency of operating plants, and to reduce fuel consumption. In order to progress in this direction, it is important that power plants regularly audit their energy use in terms of the operating plant heat rate and auxiliary power consumption. The author attempts to refresh the fundamentals of the science and engineering of thermal power plants, establish its link with the real power plant performance data through case studies, and further develop techno-economics of the energy efficiency improvement measures. This book will rekindle interest in energy audits and analysis of the data for designing and implementation of energy conservation measures on a continuous basis.

The limits to solar thermal electricity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trainer, Ted

2014-01-01

The potential and limits of solar thermal power systems depend primarily on their capacity to meet electricity demand in mid-winter, and the associated cost, storage and other implications. Evidence on output and costs is analysed. Most attention is given to central receivers. Problems of low radiation levels, embodied energy costs, variability and storage are discussed and are found to set significant difficulties for large scale solar thermal supply in less than ideal latitudes and seasons. It is concluded that for solar thermal systems to meet a large fraction of anticipated global electricity demand in winter would involve prohibitive capital costs. - Highlights: • Output and capital cost data for various solar thermal technologies is examined. • Special attention is given to performance in winter. • Attention is also given to the effect of solar intermittency. • Implications for storage are considered. • It is concluded that there are significant limits to solar thermal power

Assessing the potential of hybrid fossil–solar thermal plants for energy policy making: Brayton cycles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernardos, Eva; López, Ignacio; Rodríguez, Javier; Abánades, Alberto

2013-01-01

This paper proposes a first study in-depth of solar–fossil hybridization from a general perspective. It develops a set of useful parameters for analyzing and comparing hybrid plants, it studies the case of hybridizing Brayton cycles with current solar technologies and shows a tentative extrapolation of the results to integrated combined cycle systems (ISCSS). In particular, three points have been analyzed: the technical requirements for solar technologies to be hybridized with Brayton cycles, the temperatures and pressures at which hybridization would produce maximum power per unit of fossil fuel, and their mapping to current solar technologies and Brayton cycles. Major conclusions are that a hybrid plant works in optimum conditions which are not equal to those of the solar or power blocks considered independently, and that hybridizing at the Brayton cycle of a combined cycle could be energetically advantageous. -- Highlights: •We model a generic solar–fossil hybrid Brayton cycle. •We calculate the operating conditions for maximum ratio power/fuel consumption. •Best hybrid plant conditions are not the same as solar or power blocks separately. •We study potential for hybridization with current solar technologies. •Hybridization at the Brayton in a combined cycle may achieve high power/fuel ratio

Performance of a combined cooling heating and power system with mid-and-low temperature solar thermal energy and methanol decomposition integration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, Da; Liu, Qibin; Lei, Jing; Jin, Hongguang

2015-01-01

Highlights: • A new middle-and-low temperature solar thermochemical CCHP system is proposed. • The thermodynamic performances of the new system are numerically evaluated. • The superiorities of the new system are demonstrated. - Abstract: In this paper, a new distributed energy system that integrates the mid-and-low temperature solar energy thermochemical process and the methanol decomposition is proposed. Through the solar energy receiver/reactor, the energy collected by a parabolic trough concentrator, at 200–300 °C, is used to drive the decomposition reaction of the methanol into the synthesis gas, and thus the solar thermal energy is converted to the chemical energy. The chemical energy of the synthesis gas released in the combustion chamber of a micro gas turbine is used to drive the combined cooling heating and power systems. Energy analysis and exergy analysis of the system are implemented to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed system. Under the considerations of the changes of the solar irradiation intensity, the off-design performances of the micro turbine and the variations of the load, the design and off-design thermodynamic performances of the system and the characteristics of the chemical energy storage are numerically studied. Numerical results indicate that the primary energy ratio of the system is 76.40%, and the net solar-electricity conversion rate reaches 22.56%, which is higher than exiting large-scale solar thermal power plants. Owing to the introduction of a the solar thermochemical energy storage in the proposed system, the power generation efficiency is insensitive to the variations of the solar radiation, and thus an efficient and stable utilization approach of the solar thermal energy is achieved at all work condition

Modeling and optimization of a concentrated solar supercritical CO2 power plant

Science.gov (United States)

Osorio, Julian D.

Renewable energy sources are fundamental alternatives to supply the rising energy demand in the world and to reduce or replace fossil fuel technologies. In order to make renewable-based technologies suitable for commercial and industrial applications, two main challenges need to be solved: the design and manufacture of highly efficient devices and reliable systems to operate under intermittent energy supply conditions. In particular, power generation technologies based on solar energy are one of the most promising alternatives to supply the world energy demand and reduce the dependence on fossil fuel technologies. In this dissertation, the dynamic behavior of a Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) supercritical CO2 cycle is studied under different seasonal conditions. The system analyzed is composed of a central receiver, hot and cold thermal energy storage units, a heat exchanger, a recuperator, and multi-stage compression-expansion subsystems with intercoolers and reheaters between compressors and turbines respectively. The effects of operating and design parameters on the system performance are analyzed. Some of these parameters are the mass flow rate, intermediate pressures, number of compression-expansion stages, heat exchangers' effectiveness, multi-tank thermal energy storage, overall heat transfer coefficient between the solar receiver and the environment and the effective area of the recuperator. Energy and exergy models for each component of the system are developed to optimize operating parameters in order to lead to maximum efficiency. From the exergy analysis, the components with high contribution to exergy destruction were identified. These components, which represent an important potential of improvement, are the recuperator, the hot thermal energy storage tank and the solar receiver. Two complementary alternatives to improve the efficiency of concentrated solar thermal systems are proposed in this dissertation: the optimization of the system's operating

Energy and exergy analysis of the Kalina cycle for use in concentrated solar power plants with direct steam generation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Knudsen, Thomas; Clausen, Lasse Røngaard; Haglind, Fredrik

2014-01-01

In concentrated solar power plants using direct steam generation, the usage of a thermal storage unit based only on sensible heat may lead to large exergetic losses during charging and discharging, due to a poor matching of the temperature profiles. By the use of the Kalina cycle, in which...... evaporation and condensation takes place over a temperature range, the efficiency of the heat exchange processes can be improved, possibly resulting also in improved overall performance of the system. This paper is aimed at evaluating the prospect of using the Kalina cycle for concentrated solar power plants...... with direct steam generation. The following two scenarios were addressed using energy and exergy analysis: generating power using heat from only the receiver and using only stored heat. For each of these scenarios comparisons were made for mixture concentrations ranging from 0.1 mole fraction of ammonia to 0...

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - KaXu Solar One | Concentrating Solar

Science.gov (United States)

Power | NREL KaXu Solar One This page provides information on KaXu Solar One, a concentrating solar power (CSP) project, with data organized by background, parcipants and power plant configuration . Status Date: April 14, 2015 Project Overview Project Name: KaXu Solar One Country: South Africa Location

Radioactive emission from thermal power plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Okamoto, K [New South Wales Univ., Kensington (Australia). Dept. of Applied Mathematics

1981-07-01

Radioactive hazards of the emissions and wastes of thermal power plants arising from fuel impurities of uranium and thorium are discussed. The hazard due to radioactive emission is calculated for an average Australian bituminous coal which contains 2 ppm of U and 2.7 ppm of Th. When the dust removal efficiency of a coal-fired power plant is 99%, the radioactive hazard is greater than that of a nuclear reactor of the same electrical output. After 500 years the radioactive toxicity of the coal waste will be higher than that of fission products of a nuclear reactor and after 2,000 years it will exceed the toxicity of all the nuclear wastes including actinides. The results of a recent calculation are shown, according to which the radioactive hazard of a coal-fired power plant to the public is from several hundred to several tens of thousands of times higher than that of a total fuel cycle of plutonium. It is found that in some regions, such as Japan, the hazard due to /sup 210/Po through seafood could be considerable.

Program THEK energy production units of average power and using thermal conversion of solar radiation

Science.gov (United States)

1978-01-01

General studies undertaken by the C.N.R.S. in the field of solar power plants have generated the problem of building energy production units in the medium range of electrical power, in the order of 100 kW. Among the possible solutions, the principle of the use of distributed heliothermal converters has been selected as being, with the current status of things, the most advantageous solution. This principle consists of obtaining the conversion of concentrated radiation into heat by using a series of heliothermal conversion modules scattered over the ground; the produced heat is collected by a heat-carrying fluid circulating inside a thermal loop leading to a device for both regulation and storage.

Decision on thermal power plant can be taken this spring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haga, I.

1978-01-01

Towards the end of the 1960s it appeared that nuclear power would be the natural successor to hydroelectric power, as the latter became less attractive for further exploitation, reinforced by environmentalist opposition to several proposed hydroelectric schemes. Conventional thermal power was also considered, but one proposed stand-by plant was rejected in 1971 largely because of environmental considerations. Preliminary planning and PR information on nuclear power in the early 1970s aroused considerable opposition and a governmental commission was appointed in 1975-6 to evaluate the question of reactor safety and transport and disposal of radioactive waste, to report in 1978. It is therefore not possible to count on nuclear power as a supplement until the end of the 1980s at the earliest. Gas-fired thermal power is environmentally attractive, but at present no gas fields have been found which make this economic. Oil-fired power is quite feasible, but no political decision has yet been taken. Coal fuel, based on the Spitzbergen mines has recently become more interesting, and small power plants for the extreme north of Norway are under consideration. Finally it is pointed out that nuclear power is safer than generally assumed while fluidised bed combustion of coal in a combined steam-gas turbine plant will lead to very high thermal efficiencies. (JIW)

Sandia Laboratories in-house activities in support of solar thermal large power applications

Science.gov (United States)

Mar, R. W.

1980-01-01

The development of thermal energy storage subsystems for solar thermal large power applications is described. The emphasis is on characterizing the behavior of molten nitrate salts with regard to thermal decomposition, environmental interactions, and corrosion. Electrochemical techniques to determine the ionic species in the melt and for use in real time studies of corrosion are also briefly discussed.

Modelling the thermodynamic performance of a concentrated solar power plant with a novel modular air-cooled condenser

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moore, J.; Grimes, R.; Walsh, E.; O'Donovan, A.

2014-01-01

This paper aims at developing a novel air-cooled condenser for concentrated solar power plants. The condenser offers two significant advantages over the existing state-of-the-art. Firstly, it can be installed in a modular format where pre-assembled condenser modules reduce installation costs. Secondly, instead of using large fixed speed fans, smaller speed controlled fans are incorporated into the individual modules. This facility allows the operating point of the condenser to change and continuously maximise plant efficiency. A thorough experimental analysis was performed on a number of prototype condenser designs. This analysis investigated the validly and accuracy of correlations from literature in predicting the thermal and aerodynamic characteristics of different designs. These measurements were used to develop a thermodynamic model to predict the performance of a 50 MW CSP (Concentrated Solar Power) plant with various condenser designs installed. In order to compare different designs with respect to the specific plant capital cost, a techno-economic analysis was performed which identified the optimum size of each condenser. The results show that a single row plate finned tube design, a four row, and a two row circular finned tube design are all similar in terms of their techno-economic performance and offer significant savings over other designs. - Highlights: • A novel air cooled condenser for CSP (Concentrated Solar Power) applications is proposed. • A thorough experimental analysis of various condenser designs was performed. • Heat transfer and flow friction correlations validated for fan generated air flow. • A thermodynamic model to calculate CSP plant output is presented. • Results show the proposed condenser design can continually optimise plant output

A Study on infrared tracing and monitoring of thermal discharge from the power plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Byung Sun; Hong, Wuk Hee; Kim, Yung Bae; Park, Jang Rae; Choi, Yung An; Park, Yung San [Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), Taejon (Korea, Republic of). Research Center

1996-08-01

Massive discharge of cooling water from the nuclear power plants as well as many thermal power plants would cause serious environmental problems. Hence, the task of predicting cooling water dispersion areas has enormous importance for better environmental management related with the power plant operation. For the last two decades, extensive field survey and dispersion modeling have been mainly applied to predict thermal discharge dispersion areas. In this study, the method of infrared thermal sensing was tested as a possible means of measuring the affected areas of thermal discharge at the thermal power plant sites. Many IR images obtained by using the terrestrial camera, or by using the airborne scanner, or from the Landsat iv satellite were analyzed from the pc with the IDRISI and resource software and further enhanced with other image analysis technologies. The result of study proved this IR imaging technology to be an potentially cost-effective tool for assessment of water-temperature increase caused by the thermal discharge from the power plants, however, further elaboration of procedure was highly requested. (author). 9 refs., 24 figs.

Nexant Parabolic Trough Solar Power Plant Systems Analysis; Task 1: Preferred Plant Size, 20 January 2005 - 31 December 2005

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kelly, B.

2006-07-01

The Rankine cycles for commercial parabolic trough solar projects range in capacity from 13.5 MWe at the Solar Electric Generating Station I (SEGS I) plant, to a maximum of 89 MWe at the SEGS VIII/IX plants. The series of SEGS projects showed a consistent reduction in the levelized energy cost due to a combination of improvements in collector field technology and economies of scale in both the Rankine cycle and the operation and maintenance costs. Nonetheless, the question of the optimum Rankine cycle capacity remains an open issue. The capacities of the SEGS VIII/IX plants were limited by Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act requirements to a maximum net output of 80 MWe. Further improvements in the Rankine cycle efficiency, and economies of scale in both the capital and the operating cost, should be available at larger plant sizes. An analysis was conducted to determine the effect of Rankine cycle capacities greater than 80 MWe on the levelized energy cost. The study was conducted through the following steps: (1) Three gross cycle capacities of 88 MWe, 165 MWe, and 220 MWe were selected. (2) Three Rankine cycle models were developed using the GateCycle program. The models were based on single reheat turbine cycles, with main steam conditions of 1,450 lb{sub f}/in{sup 2} and 703 F, and reheat steam conditions of 239 lb{sub f}/in{sup 2} and 703 F. The feedwater heater system consisted of 5 closed heaters and 1 open deaerating heater. The design condenser pressure was 2.5 in. HgA. (3) The optimization function within Excelergy was used to determine the preferred solar multiple for each plant. Two cases were considered for each plant: (a) a solar-only project without thermal storage, and (b) a solar-fossil hybrid project, with 3 hours of thermal storage and a heat transport fluid heater fired by natural gas. (4) For each of the 6 cases, collector field geometries, heat transport fluid pressure losses, and heat transport pump

Simulation and evaluation of solar potential in Tehran, Kerman and Yazd for a 500 kW photovoltaic power plant using PVsyst software

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Badri, A.; Emadifar, R.; Eldoromi, M.

2016-01-01

Today, electricity has become an essential part of the life. At present, a large part of the electricity is supplied by thermal power plants and hydropower plants. With increasing concerns about greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental issues new technologies such as using solar energy for electricity generation are recommended. In this paper, a typical 500-kilowatt solar power plant connected to the grid is evaluated. Simulations are implemented by PVsyst software and its performance on different climatic conditions is investigated. Moreover, the performance ratio and different types of energy losses (such as losses due to temperature increases, the domestic network losses, losses of power electronics (convertors)) are calculated. Finally, the amount of energy produced and injected into the network and the annual income from the construction to the south of Tehran, Kerman and Yazd are compared. Results show that the city of Yazd as a suitable site for the construction of the plant is the best alternative among other two options.

Utility-Scale Solar Photovoltaic Power Plants : A Project Developer’s Guide

OpenAIRE

International Finance Corporation

2015-01-01

With an installed capacity greater than 137 gigawatts (GWs) worldwide and annual additions of about 40 GWs in recent years, solar photovoltaic (PV) technology has become an increasingly important energy supply option. A substantial decline in the cost of solar PV power plants (80 percent reduction since 2008) has improved solar PV’s competitiveness, reducing the needs for subsidies and ena...

Thermal impact assessment of multi power plant operations on estuaries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eraslan, A.H.; Kim, K.H.; Harris, J.L.

1977-01-01

The assessment of the thermal impact of multi power plant operations on large estuaries requires careful consideration of the problems associated with: re-entrainment, re-circulation, thermal interaction, delay in the attainment of thermal equilibrium state, and uncertainty in specifying open boundaries and open boundary conditions of the regions, which are critically important in the analysis of the thermal conditions in receiving water bodies with tidal dominated, periodically reversing flow conditions. The results of an extensive study in the Hudson River at Indian Point, 42 miles upstream of the ocean end at the Battery, concluded that the tidal-transient, multi-dimensional discrete-element (UTA) thermal transport models (ESTONE, FLOTWO, TMPTWO computer codes) and the near-field far-field zone-matching methodology can be employed with a high degree of reliability in the assessment of the thermal impact of multi power plant operations on tidal dominated estuaries

Solar-Powered Refrigeration System

Science.gov (United States)

Ewert, Michael K. (Inventor); Bergeron, David J., III (Inventor)

2002-01-01

A solar powered vapor compression refrigeration system is made practicable with thermal storage and novel control techniques. In one embodiment, the refrigeration system includes a photovoltaic panel, a variable speed compressor, an insulated enclosure, and a thermal reservoir. The photovoltaic (PV) panel converts sunlight into DC (direct current) electrical power. The DC electrical power drives a compressor that circulates refrigerant through a vapor compression refrigeration loop to extract heat from the insulated enclosure. The thermal reservoir is situated inside the insulated enclosure and includes a phase change material. As heat is extracted from the insulated enclosure, the phase change material is frozen, and thereafter is able to act as a heat sink to maintain the temperature of the insulated enclosure in the absence of sunlight. The conversion of solar power into stored thermal energy is optimized by a compressor control method that effectively maximizes the compressor's usage of available energy. A capacitor is provided to smooth the power voltage and to provide additional current during compressor start-up. A controller monitors the rate of change of the smoothed power voltage to determine if the compressor is operating below or above the available power maximum, and adjusts the compressor speed accordingly. In this manner, the compressor operation is adjusted to convert substantially all available solar power into stored thermal energy.

Solar Powered Refrigeration System

Science.gov (United States)

Ewert, Michael K. (Inventor); Bergeron, David J., III (Inventor)

2002-01-01

A solar powered vapor compression refrigeration system is made practicable with thermal storage and novel control techniques. In one embodiment, the refrigeration system includes a photovoltaic panel, a variable speed compressor, an insulated enclosure, and a thermal reservoir. The photovoltaic (PV) panel converts sunlight into DC (direct current) electrical power. The DC electrical power drives a compressor that circulates refrigerant through a vapor compression refrigeration loop to extract heat from the insulated enclosure. The thermal reservoir is situated inside the insulated enclosure and includes a phase change material. As heat is extracted from the insulated enclosure, the phase change material is frozen, and thereafter is able to act as a heat sink to maintain the temperature of the insulated enclosure in the absence of sunlight. The conversion of solar power into stored thermal energy is optimized by a compressor control method that effectively maximizes the compressor's usage of available energy. A capacitor is provided to smooth the power voltage and to provide additional current during compressor start-up. A controller monitors the rate of change of the smoothed power voltage to determine if the compressor is operating below or above the available power maximum, and adjusts the compressor speed accordingly. In this manner, the compressor operation is adjusted to convert substantially all available solar power into stored thermal energy.

Comparative analysis of concentrating solar power and photovoltaic technologies: Technical and environmental evaluations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Desideri, U.; Zepparelli, F.; Morettini, V.; Garroni, E.

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► Life cycle was assessed for both concentrated solar power and photovoltaic systems. ► The PV plant has a higher environmental impact than the CSP plant. ► The Global Warming Potential is lower for the CSP than for the PV plant. ► The energy payback time is lower for the CSP than for the PV plant. -- Abstract: Solar energy is an important alternative energy source to fossil fuels and theoretically the most available energy source on the earth. Solar energy can be converted into electric energy by using two different processes: by means of thermodynamic cycles and the photovoltaic conversion. Solar thermal technologies, sometimes called thermodynamic solar technologies, operating at medium (about 500 °C) and high temperatures (about 1000 °C), have recently attracted a renewed interest and have become one of the most promising alternatives in the field of solar energy utilization. Photovoltaic conversion is very interesting, although still quite expensive, because of the absence of moving components and the reduced operating and management costs. The main objectives of the present work are: •to carry out comparative technical evaluations on the amount of electricity produced by two hypothetical plants, located on the same site, for which a preliminary design was made: a solar thermal power plant with parabolic trough collectors and a photovoltaic plant with a single-axis tracking system; •to carry out a comparative analysis of the environmental impact derived from the processes of electricity generation during the whole life cycle of the two hypothetical power plants. First a technical comparison between the two plants was made assuming that they have the same nominal electric power and then the same total covered surface. The methodology chosen to evaluate the environmental impact associated with the power plants is the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). It allows to analyze all the phases of the life cycle of the plants, from the extraction of

Energy and exergy analysis of a closed Brayton cycle-based combined cycle for solar power tower plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zare, V.; Hasanzadeh, M.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • A novel combined cycle is proposed for solar power tower plants. • The effects of solar subsystem and power cycle parameters are examined. • The proposed combined cycle yields exergy efficiencies of higher than 70%. • For the overall power plant exergy efficiencies of higher than 30% is achievable. - Abstract: Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) technology offers an interesting potential for future power generation and research on CSP systems of all types, particularly those with central receiver system (CRS) has been attracting a lot of attention recently. Today, these power plants cannot compete with the conventional power generation systems in terms of Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) and if a competitive LCOE is to be reached, employing an efficient thermodynamic power cycle is deemed essential. In the present work, a novel combined cycle is proposed for power generation from solar power towers. The proposed system consists of a closed Brayton cycle, which uses helium as the working fluid, and two organic Rankine cycles which are employed to recover the waste heat of the Brayton cycle. The system is thermodynamically assessed from both the first and second law viewpoints. A parametric study is conducted to examine the effects of key operating parameters (including solar subsystem and power cycle parameters) on the overall power plant performance. The results indicate that exergy efficiencies of higher than 30% are achieved for the overall power plant. Also, according to the results, the power cycle proposed in this work has a better performance than the other investigated Rankine and supercritical CO_2 systems operating under similar conditions, for these types of solar power plants.

Optical study of solar tower power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eddhibi, F; Amara, M Ben; Balghouthi, M; Guizani, A

2015-01-01

The central receiver technology for electricity generation consists of concentrating solar radiation coming from the solar tracker field into a central receiver surface located on the top of the tower. The heliostat field is constituted of a big number of reflective mirrors; each heliostat tracks the sun individually and reflects the sunlight to a focal point. Therefore, the heliostat should be positioned with high precision in order to minimize optical losses. In the current work, a mathematical model for the analysis of the optical efficiency of solar tower field power plant is proposed. The impact of the different factors which influence the optical efficiency is analyzed. These parameters are mainly, the shading and blocking losses, the cosine effect, the atmospheric attenuation and the spillage losses. A new method for the calculation of blocking and shadowing efficiency is introduced and validated by open literature

SolarOil Project, Phase I preliminary design report. [Solar Thermal Enhanced Oil Recovery project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baccaglini, G.; Bass, J.; Neill, J.; Nicolayeff, V.; Openshaw, F.

1980-03-01

The preliminary design of the Solar Thermal Enhanced Oil Recovery (SolarOil) Plant is described in this document. This plant is designed to demonstrate that using solar thermal energy is technically feasible and economically viable in enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The SolarOil Plant uses the fixed mirror solar concentrator (FMSC) to heat high thermal capacity oil (MCS-2046) to 322/sup 0/C (611/sup 0/F). The hot fluid is pumped from a hot oil storage tank (20 min capacity) through a once-through steam generator which produces 4.8 MPa (700 psi) steam at 80% quality. The plant net output, averaged over 24 hr/day for 365 days/yr, is equivalent to that of a 2.4 MW (8.33 x 10/sup 6/ Btu/hr) oil-fired steam generator having an 86% availability. The net plant efficiency is 57.3% at equinox noon, a 30%/yr average. The plant will be demonstrated at an oilfield site near Oildale, California.

Life cycle assessment of greenhouse gas emissions, water and land use for concentrated solar power plants with different energy backup systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klein, Sharon J.W.; Rubin, Edward S.

2013-01-01

Concentrated solar power (CSP) is unique among intermittent renewable energy options because for the past four years, utility-scale plants have been using an energy storage technology that could allow a CSP plant to operate as a baseload renewable energy generator in the future. No study to-date has directly compared the environmental implications of this technology with more conventional CSP backup energy options. This study compares the life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, water consumption, and direct, onsite land use associated with one MW h of electricity production from CSP plants with wet and dry cooling and with three energy backup systems: (1) minimal backup (MB), (2) molten salt thermal energy storage (TES), and (3) a natural gas-fired heat transfer fluid heater (NG). Plants with NG had 4–9 times more life cycle GHG emissions than plants with TES. Plants with TES generally had twice as many life cycle GHG emissions as the MB plants. Dry cooling reduced life cycle water consumption by 71–78% compared to wet cooling. Plants with larger backup capacities had greater life cycle water consumption than plants with smaller backup capacities, and plants with NG had lower direct, onsite life cycle land use than plants with MB or TES. - highlights: • We assess life cycle environmental effects of concentrated solar power (CSP). • We compare CSP with three energy backup technologies and two cooling technologies. • We selected solar field area to minimize energy cost for plants with minimal backup and salt storage. • Life cycle greenhouse gas emissions were 4–9 times lower with thermal energy storage than with fossil fuel backup. • Dry cooling reduced life cycle water use by 71–78% compared to wet cooling

Combined heat and power and solar energy; BHKW und solare Energie

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Marchesi, M.; Schmidt, A.

2006-07-01

This illustrated article takes a look at a new apartment complex in Buelach, Switzerland, that meets the 'Minergie' low energy-consumption standard and also features solar-thermal heat generation. This solar installation provides heat for the provision of domestic hot water and, also, heat for the space-heating system of the building complex. The solar collectors cover an area of 153 m{sup 2}; their power is rated at 96 kW. Further elements of the building's technical services include a combined heat and power plant, a heat-pump and a gas-fired boiler. The article discusses ecological and social aspects of the design and construction of the building complex and briefly describes the installations, which also include a 'Minergie' fan-assisted balanced ventilation system.

Availability statistics for thermal power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-01-01

Denmark, Finland and Sweden have adopted almost the same methods of recording and calculation of availability data. For a number of years comparable availability and outage data for thermal power have been summarized and published in one report. The purpose of the report now presented for 1989 containing general statistical data is to produce basic information on existing kinds of thermal power in the countries concerned. With this information as a basis additional and more detailed information can be exchanged in direct contacts between bodies in the above mentioned countries according to forms established for that purpose. The report includes fossil steam power, nuclear power and gas turbines. The information is presented in separate diagrams for each country, but for plants burning fossil fuel also in a joint NORDEL statistics with data grouped according to type of fuel used. The grouping of units into classes of capacity has been made in accordance with the classification adopted by UNIPEDE/WEC. Values based on energy have been adopted as basic availability data. The same applies to the preference made in the definitions outlined by UNIPEDE and UNIPEDE/WEC. Some data based on time have been included to make possible comparisons with certain international values and for further illustration of the performance. For values given in the report, the definitions in the NORDEL document ''Concepts of Availability for Thermal Power, September 1977'', have been applied. (author)

Contribution to the modeling and simulation of solar power tower plants using energy analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benammar, S.; Khellaf, A.; Mohammedi, K.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • The solar tower power plant system (STPP) is divided into four main subsystems. • The energy balance of each subsystem has been developed. • A general nonlinear mathematical model of the studied system (STPP) has been presented. • Using numerical optimization methods, the nonlinear mathematical model has been solved. • The obtained results are presented and analyzed. - Abstract: In this paper, a mathematical model based on energy analysis, has been developed for modeling and simulation of solar tower power plants (STPP) performances without energy storage. The STPP system has been divided into four main subsystems: the heliostat field subsystem, the cavity receiver subsystem (tower), the steam generation subsystem and the power cycle subsystem (Rankine cycle). Thermal and thermodynamic models of main subsystems have been developed. A general nonlinear mathematical model of the studied system (STPP) has been presented and solved using numerical optimization methods. The obtained results are presented and analyzed. The effects of the receiver surface temperature and the receiver surface area on the cavity receiver efficiency and the steam mass flow have been investigated. The effects of other parameters, such as the incident heat flux, the absorbed energy and the heat losses from the receiver are also studied. The analysis of these results shows the existence of an optimal receiver efficiency value for each steam mass flow, receiver surface temperature and receiver surface area

Solar microclimatology. [tables (data) on insolation for application to solar energy conversion by electric power plants

Science.gov (United States)

Mckenney, D. B.; Beauchamp, W. T.

1975-01-01

It has become apparent in recent years that solar energy can be used for electric power production by several methods. Because of the diffuse nature of the solar insolation, the area involved in any central power plant design can encompass several square miles. A detailed design of these large area collection systems will require precise knowledge of the local solar insolation. Detailed information will also be needed concerning the temporal nature of the insolation and the local spatial distribution. Therefore, insolation data was collected and analyzed for a network of sensors distributed over an area of several square kilometers in Arizona. The analyses of this data yielded probability distributions of cloud size, velocity, and direction of motion which were compared with data obtained from the National Weather Service. Microclimatological analyses were also performed for suitable modeling parameters pertinent to large scale electric power plant design. Instrumentation used to collect the data is described.

Preliminary design of the Carrisa Plains solar central receiver power plant. Volume I. Executive summary

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1983-12-31

The design of the 30 MWe central receiver solar power plant to be located at Carrisa Plains, San Luis Obispo County, California, is summarized. The plant uses a vertical flat-panel (billboard) solar receiver located at the top of a tower to collect solar energy redirected by approximately 1900 heliostats located to the north of the tower. The solar energy is used to heat liquid sodium pumped from ground level from 610 to 1050/sup 0/F. The power conversion system is a non-reheat system, cost-effective at this size level, and designed for high-efficiency performance in an application requiring daily startup. Successful completion of this project will lead to power generation starting in 1986. This report also discusses plant performance, operations and maintenance, development, and facility cost estimate and economic analysis.

Intelligent system for a remote diagnosis of a photovoltaic solar power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanz-Bobi, M A; San Roque, A Muñoz; Marcos, A de; Bada, M

2012-01-01

Usually small and mid-sized photovoltaic solar power plants are located in rural areas and typically they operate unattended. Some technicians are in charge of the supervision of these plants and, if an alarm is automatically issued, they try to investigate the problem and correct it. Sometimes these anomalies are detected some hours or days after they begin. Also the analysis of the causes once the anomaly is detected can take some additional time. All these factors motivated the development of a methodology able to perform continuous and automatic monitoring of the basic parameters of a photovoltaic solar power plant in order to detect anomalies as soon as possible, to diagnose their causes, and to immediately inform the personnel in charge of the plant. The methodology proposed starts from the study of the most significant failure modes of a photovoltaic plant through a FMEA and using this information, its typical performance is characterized by the creation of its normal behaviour models. They are used to detect the presence of a failure in an incipient or current form. Once an anomaly is detected, an automatic and intelligent diagnosis process is started in order to investigate the possible causes. The paper will describe the main features of a software tool able to detect anomalies and to diagnose them in a photovoltaic solar power plant.

Upgrading of electrostatic precipitators in old thermal power plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gurumurthy, H V

1987-02-01

Indian thermal power stations installed in the 60's and earlier had dust collectors whose efficiency was well below the acceptable level of emission under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981. This necessitates the need for higher efficiency dust collectors to be installed in old thermal power stations. Further, the poor quality of the coal being received at power stations presently causes severe environmental pollution in and around the plant. This paper deals with the retrofitting of electrostatic precipitators in existing units and the problems encountered in executing the same.

Soil radioactivity levels and radiation hazard assessment around a Thermal Power Plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, Mukesh; Kumar, Pankaj; Sharma, Somdutt; Agrawal, Anshu; Kumar, Rajesh; Prajith, Rama; Sahoo, B.K.

2016-01-01

Coal based thermal power plants further enhance the level of radioactivity in the environment, as burning of coal produces fly ash that can be released into the environment containing traces of 238 U, 232 Th and their decay products. Therefore, coal fired power plants are one of the major contributor towards the Technologically Enhanced Natural Radiation (TENR). Keeping this in view, a study of natural radioactivity in the soil of twenty five villages within 5 km radius around the Harduaganj Thermal Power Plant, Aligarh, UP, India is going on under a BRNS major project, to know the radiological implications on general population living around this plant

Phytomonitoring of air pollution around a thermal power plant

Science.gov (United States)

Agrawal, M.; Agrawal, S. B.

This study was undertaken in order to assess the impact of air pollutants on vegetation around Obra thermal power plant (1550 M W capacity) in the Mirzapur district of Uttar Pradesh. For this purpose, Mangifera indica, Citrus medico and Bouganvillaea spectabilis plants, most common at all sites, were selected as test plants. Five study sites were selected northeast (prevailing wind) of the thermal power plant. A control site was also selected at a distance of 30 km north of Obra. Responses of plants to pollutants in terms of presence of foliar injury symptoms and changes in chlorophyll, ascorbic acid and S content were measured. These changes were correlated with ambient SO 2 and suspended particulate matter (SPM) concentrations and the amount of dust settled on leaf surfaces. The SO 2 and SPM concentrations were quite high in the immediate vicinity of the power plant. There also exists a direct relationship between the concentration of SPM in air and amount of dust deposited on leaf surfaces. Maximum dust deposition was observed on M. indica plants. The levels of foliar injury, chlorophyll and ascorbic acid were found to decrease and that of S increase in plants around the power plant in comparison to those growing at a control site. The magnitude of such changes was maximum in M. indica and minimum in C. medica. A species specific direct relationship between the increase in the amount of S and decrease in chlorophyll content was observed. The study suggests that differential sensitivity of plants to SO 2 may be used in evaluating the air pollution impact around emission sources and M. indica plants can be used as an indicator plant for quantifying biological changes.

Study on key technologies of optimization of big data for thermal power plant performance

Science.gov (United States)

Mao, Mingyang; Xiao, Hong

2018-06-01

Thermal power generation accounts for 70% of China's power generation, the pollutants accounted for 40% of the same kind of emissions, thermal power efficiency optimization needs to monitor and understand the whole process of coal combustion and pollutant migration, power system performance data show explosive growth trend, The purpose is to study the integration of numerical simulation of big data technology, the development of thermal power plant efficiency data optimization platform and nitrogen oxide emission reduction system for the thermal power plant to improve efficiency, energy saving and emission reduction to provide reliable technical support. The method is big data technology represented by "multi-source heterogeneous data integration", "large data distributed storage" and "high-performance real-time and off-line computing", can greatly enhance the energy consumption capacity of thermal power plants and the level of intelligent decision-making, and then use the data mining algorithm to establish the boiler combustion mathematical model, mining power plant boiler efficiency data, combined with numerical simulation technology to find the boiler combustion and pollutant generation rules and combustion parameters of boiler combustion and pollutant generation Influence. The result is to optimize the boiler combustion parameters, which can achieve energy saving.

Technical data for concentrated solar power plants in operation, under construction and in project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ugo Pelay

2017-08-01

Full Text Available This article presents technical data for concentrated solar power (CSP plants in operation, under construction and in project all over the world in the form of tables. These tables provide information about plants (e.g., name of the CSP plant, country of construction, owner of the plant, aim of the plant and their technical characteristics (e.g., CSP technology, solar power, area of the plant, presence and type of hybridization system, electricity cost, presence and type of TES, power cycle fluid, heat transfer fluid, operating temperature, operating pressure, type of turbine, type and duration of storage, etc.. Further interpretation of the data and discussions on the current state-of-the-art and future trends of CSP can be found in the associated research article (Pelay et al., 2017 [1].

Efficient Biomass Fuel Cell Powered by Sugar with Photo- and Thermal-Catalysis by Solar Irradiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Wei; Gong, Yutao; Wu, Weibing; Yang, Weisheng; Liu, Congmin; Deng, Yulin; Chao, Zi-Sheng

2018-06-19

The utilization of biomass sugars has received great interesting recently. Herein, we present a highly efficient hybrid solar biomass fuel cell that utilizes thermal- and photocatalysis of solar irradiation and converts biomass sugars into electricity with high power output. The fuel cell uses polyoxometalates (POMs) as photocatalyst to decompose sugars and capture their electrons. The reduced POMs have strong visible and near-infrared light adsorption, which can significantly increase the temperature of the reaction system and largely promotes the thermal oxidation of sugars by the POM. In addition, the reduced POM functions as charge carrier that can release electrons at the anode in the fuel cell to generate electricity. The electron-transfer rates from glucose to POM under thermal and light-irradiation conditions were investigated in detail. The power outputs of this solar biomass fuel cell are investigated by using different types of sugars as fuels, with the highest power density reaching 45 mW cm -2 . © 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Assessing the potential role of concentrated solar power (CSP) for the northeast power system of Brazil using a detailed power system model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fichter, Tobias; Soria, Rafael; Szklo, Alexandre; Schaeffer, Roberto; Lucena, Andre F.P.

2017-01-01

One of the technologies that stand out as an alternative to provide additional flexibility to power systems with large penetration of variable renewable energy (VRE), especially for regions with high direct normal irradiation (DNI), is concentrated solar power (CSP) plants coupled to thermal energy storage (TES) and back-up (BUS) systems. Brazil can develop this technology domestically, especially in its Northeast region, where most of VRE capacity is being deployed and where lies most of the CSP potential of the country. This work applies the Capacity Expansion Model REMix-CEM, which allows considering dispatch constraints of thermal power plants in long-term capacity expansion optimization. REMix-CEM calculates the optimal CSP plant configuration and its dispatch strategy from a central planning perspective. Results showed that the hybridization of CSP plants with jurema-preta biomass (CSP-BIO) becomes a least-cost option for Brazil by 2040. CSP-BIO contributes to the Northeast power system by regularizing the energy imbalance that results from the large-scale VRE expansion along with conventional inflexible power plants. CSP-BIO plants are able to increase frequency response and operational reserve services and can provide the required additional flexibility that the Northeast power system of Brazil will require into the future. - Highlights: • Concentrating solar power (CSP) plants provide flexibility to power systems. • CSP configuration is optimized endogenously during capacity expansion optimization. • CSP hybridized with biomass supports grid-integration of variable renewable energy. • CSP become the least-cost option for the Northeast power system of Brazil by 2040.

Solar Thermal Utilization: Past, Present and Future

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-01

SO•C NON-FOCUSSING FLAT PLATE / (FPC) 100- 150•C For low temperature 50- 200•C COMPOUND applications PARABOLIC EVACUATED CONCENTRATOR ~ (ETC...2030 Ø 200GW BY 2050 Ø 20 MILLION SQ.METER SOLAR THERMAL COLLECTORS (20GW power) Ø 20 MILLION SOLAR LIGHTS LAUNCHING OF SOLAR INDIA SOLAR THERMAL...Temperature (20oC- 80oC) NALSUN ApplicationsThermal Conversion range SOLAR ENERGY COLLECTORS 40- GO•C UNGLAZED COLLECTORS 60- 90•C SOLAR POND 60

Solar Air Heaters with Thermal Heat Storages

OpenAIRE

Saxena, Abhishek; Goel, Varun

2013-01-01

Solar energy can be converted into different forms of energy, either to thermal energy or to electrical energy. Solar energy is converted directly into electrical power by photovoltaic modules, while solar collector converts solar energy into thermal energy. Solar collector works by absorbing the direct solar radiation and converting it into thermal energy, which can be stored in the form of sensible heat or latent heat or a combination of sensible and latent heats. A theoretical study has be...

Development of Molten-Salt Heat Transfer Fluid Technology for Parabolic Trough Solar Power Plants - Public Final Technical Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grogan, Dylan C. P.

2013-08-15

Executive Summary This Final Report for the "Development of Molten-Salt Heat Transfer Fluid (HTF) Technology for Parabolic Trough Solar Power Plants” describes the overall project accomplishments, results and conclusions. Phase 1 analyzed the feasibility, cost and performance of a parabolic trough solar power plant with a molten salt heat transfer fluid (HTF); researched and/or developed feasible component options, detailed cost estimates and workable operating procedures; and developed hourly performance models. As a result, a molten salt plant with 6 hours of storage was shown to reduce Thermal Energy Storage (TES) cost by 43.2%, solar field cost by 14.8%, and levelized cost of energy (LCOE) by 9.8% - 14.5% relative to a similar state-of-the-art baseline plant. The LCOE savings range met the project’s Go/No Go criteria of 10% LCOE reduction. Another primary focus of Phase 1 and 2 was risk mitigation. The large risk areas associated with a molten salt parabolic trough plant were addressed in both Phases, such as; HTF freeze prevention and recovery, collector components and piping connections, and complex component interactions. Phase 2 analyzed in more detail the technical and economic feasibility of a 140 MWe,gross molten-salt CSP plant with 6 hours of TES. Phase 2 accomplishments included developing technical solutions to the above mentioned risk areas, such as freeze protection/recovery, corrosion effects of applicable molten salts, collector design improvements for molten salt, and developing plant operating strategies for maximized plant performance and freeze risk mitigation. Phase 2 accomplishments also included developing and thoroughly analyzing a molten salt, Parabolic Trough power plant performance model, in order to achieve the project cost and performance targets. The plant performance model and an extensive basic Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) quote were used to calculate a real levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of 11.50�

Experience in connecting the power generating units of thermal power plants to automatic secondary frequency regulation within the united power system of Russia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhukov, A. V.; Komarov, A. N.; Safronov, A. N.; Barsukov, I. V.

2009-01-01

The principles of central control of the power generating units of thermal power plants by automatic secondary frequency and active power overcurrent regulation systems, and the algorithms for interactions between automatic power control systems for the power production units in thermal power plants and centralized systems for automatic frequency and power regulation, are discussed. The order of switching the power generating units of thermal power plants over to control by a centralized system for automatic frequency and power regulation and by the Central Coordinating System for automatic frequency and power regulation is presented. The results of full-scale system tests of the control of power generating units of the Kirishskaya, Stavropol, and Perm GRES (State Regional Electric Power Plants) by the Central Coordinating System for automatic frequency and power regulation at the United Power System of Russia on September 23-25, 2008, are reported.

Solar thermal power systems point-focusing thermal and electric applications projects. Volume 1: Executive summary

Science.gov (United States)

Marriott, A.

1980-01-01

The activities of the Point-Focusing Thermal and Electric Applications (PETEA) project for the fiscal year 1979 are summarized. The main thrust of the PFTEA Project, the small community solar thermal power experiment, was completed. Concept definition studies included a small central receiver approach, a point-focusing distributed receiver system with central power generation, and a point-focusing distributed receiver concept with distributed power generation. The first experiment in the Isolated Application Series was initiated. Planning for the third engineering experiment series, which addresses the industrial market sector, was also initiated. In addition to the experiment-related activities, several contracts to industry were let and studies were conducted to explore the market potential for point-focusing distributed receiver (PFDR) systems. System analysis studies were completed that looked at PFDR technology relative to other small power system technology candidates for the utility market sector.