scholarly journals Development of a Concentrating Solar Power System Using Fluidized-bed Technology for Thermal Energy Conversion and Solid Particles for Thermal Energy Storage

2015 ◽  
Vol 69 ◽  
pp. 1349-1359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. Ma ◽  
M. Mehos ◽  
G. Glatzmaier ◽  
B.B. Sakadjian
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Power System ◽  
Energy Conversion ◽  
Fluidized Bed ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Solid Particles ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Thermal Energy Conversion

Fluidized Bed Technology for Concentrating Solar Power With Thermal Energy Storage

2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiwen Ma ◽  
Greg Glatzmaier ◽  
Mark Mehos
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Fluidized Bed ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Performance Metrics ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Solid Particles ◽  
Thermal System ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
And Storage

A generalized modeling method is introduced and used to evaluate thermal energy storage (TES) performance. The method describes TES performance metrics in terms of three efficiencies: first-law efficiency, second-law efficiency, and storage effectiveness. By capturing all efficiencies in a systematic way, various TES technologies can be compared on an equal footing before more detailed simulations of the components and concentrating solar power (CSP) system are performed. The generalized performance metrics are applied to the particle-TES concept in a novel CSP thermal system design. The CSP thermal system has an integrated particle receiver and fluidized-bed heat exchanger, which uses gas/solid two-phase flow as the heat-transfer fluid, and solid particles as the heat carrier and storage medium. The TES method can potentially achieve high temperatures (>800 °C) and high thermal efficiency economically.

Design of Particle-Based Thermal Energy Storage for a Concentrating Solar Power System

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiwen Ma ◽  
Ruichong Zhang ◽  
Fadi Sawaged
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
High Performance ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Solid Particles ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Hot Particles ◽  
Power Cycle

Solid particles can operate at higher temperature than current molten salt or oil, and they can be a heat-transfer and storage medium in a concentrating solar power (CSP) system. By using inexpensive solid particles and containment material for thermal energy storage (TES), the particle-TES cost can be significantly lower than other TES methods such as a nitrate-salt system. The particle-TES system can hold hot particles at more than 800°C with high thermal performance. The high particle temperatures increase the temperature difference between the hot and cold particles, and they improve the TES capacity. The particle-based CSP system is able to support high-efficiency power generation, such as the supercritical carbon-dioxide Brayton power cycle, to achieve >50% thermal-electric conversion efficiency. This paper describes a solid particle-TES system that integrates into a CSP plant. The hot particles discharge to a heat exchanger to drive the power cycle. The returning cold particles circulate through a particle receiver to absorb solar heat and charge the TES. This paper shows the design of a particle-TES system including containment silos, foundation, silo insulation, and particle materials. The analysis provides results for four TES capacities and two silo configurations. The design analysis indicates that the system can achieve high thermal efficiency, storage effectiveness (i.e., percentage usage of the hot particles), and exergetic efficiency. An insulation method for the hot silo was considered. The particle-TES system can achieve high performance and low cost, and it holds potential for next-generation CSP technology.

Numerical Analysis of Latent Thermal Energy Storage System With Embedded Thermosyphons

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karthik Nithyanandam ◽  
Ranga Pitchumani
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Storage System ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Discharge Performance ◽  
Low Thermal Conductivity

Latent thermal energy storage (LTES) system offers high energy storage density and nearly isothermal operation for concentrating solar power generation. However, the low thermal conductivity possessed by the phase change material (PCM) used in LTES system limits the heat transfer rates. Utilizing thermosyphons to charge or discharge a LTES system offers a promising engineering solution to compensate for the low thermal conductivity of the PCM. The present work numerically investigates the enhancement in the thermal performance of charging and discharging process of LTES system by embedding thermosyphons. A transient, computational analysis of the LTES system with embedded thermosyphons is performed for both charging and discharging cycles. The influence of the design configuration of the system and the arrangement of the thermosyphons on the charge and discharge performance of the LTES installed in a concentrating solar power plant (CSP) is analyzed to identify configurations that lead to improved effectiveness.

scholarly journals Comparative Analysis of Single- and Dual-Media Thermocline Tanks for Thermal Energy Storage in Concentrating Solar Power Plants

2015 ◽  
Vol 137 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Mira-Hernández ◽  
Scott M. Flueckiger ◽  
Suresh V. Garimella
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Molten Salt ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Filler Material ◽  
Tank Wall ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Wall Boundary Conditions ◽  
Thermal Ratcheting

A molten-salt thermocline tank is a low-cost option for thermal energy storage (TES) in concentrating solar power (CSP) plants. Typical dual-media thermocline (DMT) tanks contain molten salt and a filler material that provides sensible heat capacity at reduced cost. However, conventional quartzite rock filler introduces the potential for thermomechanical failure by successive thermal ratcheting of the tank wall under cyclical operation. To avoid this potential mode of failure, the tank may be operated as a single-medium thermocline (SMT) tank containing solely molten salt. However, in the absence of filler material to dampen tank-scale convection eddies, internal mixing can reduce the quality of the stored thermal energy. To assess the relative merits of these two approaches, the operation of DMT and SMT tanks is simulated under different periodic charge/discharge cycles and tank wall boundary conditions to compare the performance with and without a filler material. For all conditions assessed, both thermocline tank designs have excellent thermal storage performance, although marginally higher first- and second-law efficiencies are predicted for the SMT tank. While heat loss through the tank wall to the ambient induces internal flow nonuniformities in the SMT design over the scale of the entire tank, strong stratification maintains separation of the hot and cold regions by a narrow thermocline; thermocline growth is limited by the low thermal diffusivity of the molten salt. Heat transport and flow phenomena inside the DMT tank, on the other hand, are governed to a great extent by thermal diffusion, which causes elongation of the thermocline. Both tanks are highly resistant to performance loss over periods of static operation, and the deleterious effects of dwell time are limited in both tank designs.

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