scholarly journals Environment impact of a concentrated solar power plant

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-74 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mladen Bošnjaković ◽  
Vlado Tadijanović
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Water Consumption ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Heat Transfer Fluid ◽  
Air Cooling ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
Concentrated Solar Power ◽  
Environment Impact ◽  
The Impact

More recently, there has been an increasing interest in the use of concentrated solar thermal energy for the production of electricity, but also for the use in cogeneration and trigeneration. In this sense, the increasing use of solar thermal energy in urban areas is expected, and its impact on the environment is inducing an increasing interest. The paper analyses the impact of concentrated solar power technology (linear Fresnel, parabolic trough, parabolic dish, and central tower) on the environment in terms of water consumption, land use, wasted heat, emissions of gases, emissions of pollutants that include the leakage of heat transfer fluid through pipelines and tanks, impact on flora and fauna, impact of noise and visual impact. The impact on the environment is different for different concentrated solar power technologies and depends on whether thermal energy storage is included in the plant. Water is mainly used for cooling the system, but also for cleaning the surface of the mirror. To reduce water consumption, other cooling technologies (e.g. air cooling) are being developed. The available data from the literature show large variances depending on the size of the plant, geographic location and applied technology.

scholarly journals Overall Efficiency of On-Site Production and Storage of Solar Thermal Energy

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1360
Author(s):  
Teodora M. Șoimoșan ◽  
Ligia M. Moga ◽  
Livia Anastasiu ◽  
Daniela L. Manea ◽  
Aurica Căzilă ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Multicriteria Analysis ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
The Impact ◽  
And Storage

Harnessing renewable energy sources (RES) using hybrid systems for buildings is almost a deontological obligation for engineers and researchers in the energy field, and increasing the percentage of renewables within the energy mix represents an important target. In crowded urban areas, on-site energy production and storage from renewables can be a real challenge from a technical point of view. The main objectives of this paper are quantification of the impact of the consumer’s profile on overall energy efficiency for on-site storage and final use of solar thermal energy, as well as developing a multicriteria assessment in order to provide a methodology for selection in prioritizing investments. Buildings with various consumption profiles lead to achieving different values of performance indicators in similar configurations of storage and energy supply. In this regard, an analysis of the consumption profile’s impact on overall energy efficiency, achieved in the case of on-site generation and storage of solar thermal energy, was performed. The obtained results validate the following conclusion: On-site integration of solar systems allowed the consumers to use RES at the desired coverage rates, while restricted by on-site available mounting areas for solar fields and thermal storage, under conditions of high energy efficiencies. In order to segregate the results and support optimal selection, a multicriteria analysis was carried out, having as the main criteria the energy efficiency indicators achieved by hybrid heating systems.

scholarly journals Domestic hot water consumption vs. solar thermal energy storage: The optimum size of the storage tank

2012 ◽  
Vol 97 ◽  
pp. 897-906 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.C. Rodríguez-Hidalgo ◽  
P.A. Rodríguez-Aumente ◽  
A. Lecuona ◽  
M. Legrand ◽  
R. Ventas
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Water Consumption ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Storage Tank ◽  
Hot Water ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Optimum Size ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
Domestic Hot Water

Retrofitting Gas Turbine Units Parabolic Trough Concentrated Solar Power for Sustainable Electricity Generation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wael Alnahdi ◽  
Sara Al Shamsi ◽  
Wafaa Alantali ◽  
Shaikha Al Shehhi ◽  
Mohamed I. Hassan Ali
Keyword(s):  
Gas Turbine ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Gas Turbines ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Heat Transfer Fluid ◽  
Concentrated Solar Power ◽  
Turbine Capacity ◽  
Sustainable Electricity ◽  
Steam Superheating

Shamsl is hybrid solar/natural-gas concentrated solar power (CSP) plants. The plant is also integrated with a booster gas-fired-heaters for steam superheating. In addition to direct fire-heaters to the heat transfer fluid (HTF) for supplying thermal energy during the night or whenever the solar irradiance level is dimmed. However, there is a more sustainable way to avoid power-generation-outages caused by transient weather conditions without a significant plant reconstruction, i.e. integration with gas turbines. In this study, a thermodynamic model of Shamsl integration with gas turbines is developed to investigate the gas turbine capacity and the exergitic efficiency of the supplied gas with and without the gas turbine involvement. The HTF heaters will receive the needed thermal energy from the gas turbines exhaust gases instead of the direct fire-heater (case1). Another potential is replacing the booster fire heaters with the gas turbine system as well. (case2). A parametric study is conducted to determine the size and the requirements of a gas turbine system for the specified power target demand in addition to a feasibility study for the proposed system. The results showed that using two gas turbines for the HTF heater significantly improved the overall efficiency and reduces the CO2 emission. Replacing the booster heater with two gas turbines improves the efficiency up to excess air factor of 2.5.

scholarly journals Solar-Augment Potential of U.S. Fossil-Fired Power Plants

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Craig S. Turchi ◽  
Nicholas Langle ◽  
Robin Bedilion ◽  
Cara Libby
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Combined Cycle ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Separate Analysis ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
Parabolic Trough ◽  
Natural Gas Combined Cycle ◽  
The Difference

Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) systems utilize solar thermal energy for the generation of electric power. This attribute makes it relatively easy to integrate CSP systems with fossil-fired power plants. The “solar-augment” of fossil power plants offers a lower cost and lower risk alternative to stand-alone solar plant construction. This study ranked the potential to add solar thermal energy to coal-fired and natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) plants found throughout 16 states in the southeast and southwest United States. Each generating unit was ranked in six categories to create an overall score ranging from Excellent to Not Considered. Separate analysis was performed for parabolic trough and power tower technologies due to the difference in the steam temperatures that each can generate. The study found a potential for over 11 GWe of parabolic trough and over 21 GWe of power tower capacity. Power towers offer more capacity and higher quality integration due to the greater steam temperatures that can be achieved. The best sites were in the sunny southwest, but all states had at least one site that ranked Good for augmentation. Geographic depiction of the results can be accessed via NREL’s Solar Power Prospector at http://maps.nrel.gov/.

Prospects for Use of Solar Thermal Energy in High-Temperature Process Heat Applications

2016 ◽  
Vol 819 ◽  
pp. 16-20
Author(s):  
Hany Al-Ansary
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Levelized Cost ◽  
Central Receiver ◽  
Cost Of Energy ◽  
Receiver System ◽  
Process Heat

Concentrating solar power is a family of solar energy technologies that have been used for decades to produce power. These technologies have a unique advantage, which is the ability to store thermal energy for prolonged periods of time such that stable and dispatchable energy can be provided to the electricity grid. However, concentrating solar power has been recently losing market share to photovoltaic technology due to the former’s significantly higher initial cost. There are many efforts worldwide to develop innovative solutions that reduce the cost and/or increase efficiency of concentrating solar power systems. However, concentrating solar thermal energy already has great promising area of application that is still largely unexplored, and that is high-temperature industrial process heat. This study attempts to make the case for using concentrating solar thermal energy in process heat applications by examining the economic feasibility (represented by the levelized cost of energy) for three scenarios of deployment, where the temperature levels are 400°C, 550°C, and 700°C, respectively. The first scenario uses parabolic trough collectors, while the second uses a central receiver system, both with 12 hours of molten salt storage. The third scenario uses a central receiver system that employs the innovative falling particle receiver concept to push the operating limit to 700°C, and silica sand is used to store thermal energy for 12 hours. The location chosen for this analysis is Alice Springs, Australia, due to its high direct normal irradiance and the presence of mining industries in its vicinity. The analysis shows that all three scenarios have a lower levelized cost of energy when compared to natural gas. To further confirm these findings, the analysis needs to be extended to other locations to account for different solar resources and different economic constraints.

3D FEM Model to Improve the Heat Transfer in Concrete for Thermal Energy Storage in Solar Power Generation

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Panneer Selvam ◽  
Marco Castro
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Flow Line ◽  
Heat Transfer Fluid ◽  
Maximum Temperature ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
3D Fem ◽  
Storage Unit

Solar thermal energy has been shown to be a viable alternative resource. At this time, the concentrating solar power systems costs are 13–17 cents/kWh. The goal of DOE is to reduce the cost to 5 cents/kWh by 2015 using energy storage techniques. Several storage schemes and materials have been developed over the past two decades. Concrete is an inexpensive storage medium for sensible heat. Research has been done lately using concrete blocks which are heated up by circulating synthetic oil at a maximum temperature of 390 °C through a series of pipes embedded in the concrete. However, the efficiency of the storage unit can be improved by increasing the operating temperature, which is in turn limited by the materials used. A 3-D finite element computer model was written in order to perform parametric studies during the thermal charging and discharging of concrete. The program allows modifying the physical properties of the heat transfer fluid and storage material. A feature to add fins attached to the flow line was developed to evaluate improvements in heat transfer. Several fin configurations were studied. The increase in energy stored in the system, and the corresponding cost increase are reported.

Thermodynamic Analysis of Non-Stoichiometric Perovskites as a Heat Transfer Fluid for Thermochemical Energy Storage in Concentrated Solar Power

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin J. Albrecht ◽  
Robert J. Braun
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Oxygen Partial Pressure ◽  
Partial Pressure ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Specific Energy ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Solid Particles ◽  
Heat Transfer Fluid ◽  
Concentrated Solar Power ◽  
Component Size

The implementation of efficient and cost effective thermal energy storage in concentrated solar power (CSP) applications is crucial to the wide spread adoption of the technology. The current push to high-temperature receivers enabling the use of advanced power cycles has identified solid particle receivers as a desired technology. A potential way of increasing the specific energy storage of solid particles while simultaneously reducing plant component size is to implement thermochemical energy storage (TCES) through the use of non-stoichiometric perovskite oxides. Materials such as strontium-doped lanthanum cobalt ferrites (LSCF) have been shown to have significant reducibility when cycling temperature and oxygen partial pressure of the environment [1]. The combined reducibility and heat of the oxidation and reduction reactions with the sensible change in temperature of the material leads to specific energy storage values approaching 700 kJ kg−1. A potential thermochemical energy storage system configuration and modeling strategy is reported on, leading to a parametric study of critical operating parameters on the TCES subsystem performance. For the LSCF material operating between 500 and 900°C with oxygen partial pressure swings from ambient to 0.0001 bar, system efficiencies of 68.6% based on the net thermal energy delivered to the power cycle relative to the incident solar flux on the receiver and auxiliary power requirements, with specific energy storage of 686 kJ kg−1 are predicted. Alternatively, only cycling the temperature between 500 and 900°C without oxygen partial pressure swings results in TCES subsystem efficiencies up to 76.3% with specific energy storage of 533 kJ kg−1.

scholarly journals Analysis of CO2 Abatement Cost of Solar Energy Integration in a Solar-Aided Coal-Fired Power Generation System in China

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (16) ◽  
pp. 6587
Author(s):  
Jun Zhao ◽  
Kun Yang
Keyword(s):  
Power Generation ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Power System ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Abatement Cost ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Energy Integration ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
Carbon Abatement

Utilization of renewable energy, improvement of power generation efficiency, and reduction of fossil fuel consumption are important strategies for the Chinese power industry in response to climate change and environment challenges. Solar thermal energy can be integrated into a conventional coal-fired power unit to build a solar-aided coal-fired power generation (SACPG) system. Because solar heat can be used more efficiently in a SACPG system, the solar-coal hybrid power system can reduce coal consumption and CO2 emissions. The performance and costs of a SACPG system are affected by the respective characteristics of its coal-fired system and solar thermal power system, their coupling effects, the solar energy resource, the costs of the solar power system, and other economic factors of coal price and carbon price. According to the characteristics of energy saving and CO2 emission reductions of a SACPG system, a general methodology of CO2 abatement cost for the hybrid system is proposed to assess the solar thermal energy integration reasonably and comprehensively. The critical factors for carbon abatement cost are also analyzed. Taking a SACPG system of 600 MW in Jinan, Shandong and in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia in China as an example, the methodology is further illustrated. The results show that the efficiency of solar heat-to-electricity should be high and it is 0.391 in the scheme of SIH1 in Hohhot, and that the designed direct normal irradiation (DNI) should be greater than 800 W/m2 in order to make full use of solar energy resources. It is indicated that the abatement cost of a SACPG system depends significantly both on the cost of solar power system and its relevant costs, and also on the fuel price or the carbon prices, and that the carbon abatement cost can be greatly reduced as the coal prices or CO2 price increase. The methodology of carbon abatement cost can provide support for the comprehensive assessment of a SACPG system for its design and optimal performance.

scholarly journals Experimental Investigation of a Medium Temperature Single-Phase Thermosyphon in an Evacuated Tube Receiver Coupled With Compound Parabolic Concentrator

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javed Akhter ◽  
S. I. Gilani ◽  
Hussain H. Al-Kayiem ◽  
Mubbashar Mehmood ◽  
Muzaffar Ali ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Single Phase ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Heat Transfer Fluid ◽  
Outlet Temperature ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
Medium Temperature ◽  
Temperature Range ◽  
Evacuated Tube

The integration of evacuated tube receivers with non-imaging compound parabolic concentrators (CPCs) operating in thermosyphon mode provides the opportunity to deliver solar thermal energy in the medium temperature range that is suitable for many industrial applications. However, the performance of single-phase thermosyphon in the medium temperature range has not been comprehensively investigated. This paper presents the design, development, and performance evaluation of a single-phase thermosyphon in an evacuated tube receiver integrated with a modified CPC solar collector. The thermohydraulic performance of the developed system is evaluated in the tropical climate using Therminol-55 oil as heat transfer fluid. The results demonstrate that the maximum outlet temperature reached over 120°C using thermal oil as heat transfer fluid while it remained at 100°C in case of water. The zero-loss thermal efficiency reached up to 70% on a clear sky day. Comparing the thermal performance of the developed CPC collector with an existing model of a non-concentrating collector showed much improvement at elevated temperatures. This indicates that this system can effectively operate in tropical weather conditions to provide sustainable solar thermal energy in the medium temperature range.

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