Application of Microscale Devices for Megawatt Scale Concentrating Solar Power Plants

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle R. Zada ◽  
M. Kevin Drost ◽  
Brian M. Fronk
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Efficiency ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Modular Design ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Surface Fluxes ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Working Fluid ◽  
High Heat Flux ◽  
Central Receiver

Concentrated solar power (CSP) plants have the potential to reduce the consumption of non-renewable resources and greenhouse gas emissions in electricity production. In CSP systems, a field of heliostats focuses solar radiation on a central receiver, which is ultimately transferred to thermal electrical power plant at high temperature. However, the maximum receiver surface fluxes are low (30–100 W cm−2) with high thermal losses, which has limited the market penetration of CSP systems. Recently, small (∼ 4 cm2), laminated micro-channel devices have shown potential to achieve concentrated surface fluxes over 100 W cm−2 using supercritical CO2 as the working fluid. The present study explores the feasibility of using these microscale devices as building blocks for a megawatt scale (250 MW thermal) open solar receiver. This allows for a modular design of the central receiver with non-standard shapes customized to the heliostat field. The results show that the microscale unit-cells have the potential to be scaled to megawatt applications while providing high heat flux and thermal efficiency. At the design incident flux and surface emissivity, a global receiver thermal efficiency of > 90% can be achieved.

Performance Evaluation of an Integrated Solar Combined Cycle

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Collins O. Ojo ◽  
Damien Pont ◽  
Enrico Conte ◽  
Richard Carroni
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Capital Investment ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Combined Cycle ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Water Steam ◽  
Plant Operator ◽  
Central Receiver ◽  
Solar Field

The integration of steam from a central-receiver solar field into a combined cycle power plant (CCPP) provides an option to convert solar energy into electricity at the highest possible efficiency, because of the high pressure and temperature conditions of the solar steam, and at the lowest capital investment, because the water-steam cycle of the CCPP is in shared use with the solar field. From the operational point of view, the plant operator has the option to compensate the variability of the solar energy with fossil fuel electricity production, to use the solar energy to save fuel and to boost the plant power output, while reducing the environmental footprint of the plant operation. Alstom is able to integrate very large amounts of solar energy in its new combined-cycle power plants, in the range of the largest solar field ever built (Ivanpah Solar Power Facility, California, 3 units, total 392 MWel). The performance potential of such integration is analyzed both at base load and at part load operation of the plant. Additionally, the potential for solar retrofit of existing combined-cycle power plants is assessed. In this case, other types of concentrating solar power technologies than central receiver (linear Fresnel and trough) may be best suited to the specific conditions. Alstom is able to integrate any of these technologies into existing combined-cycle power plants.

Thermal Performance of Steam Receiver in Tower-Type Solar Power Plants

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kai Yan ◽  
Xiaojiang Wu ◽  
Jianbin Liu
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Heat Loss ◽  
Thermal Performance ◽  
Thermal Efficiency ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Working Fluid ◽  
Receiver Design ◽  
Solar Power Plants ◽  
Performance Calculation

In this paper, the thermal performance of steam receiver in tower-type solar power plants has been performed using the tower-type solar receiver design program developed by Shanghai boiler works Co Ltd. In the program, the integrated effect of three types of heat transfer, i.e. heat conduction, convection and radiation, in the process of heat transfer of receivers has been considered. With integrating the characteristics and the working conditions of receivers of both steam and molten salt, the developed program can be used to perform the thermal performance calculations for the receivers of both working fluids. The proposed program was validated through Solar Two project and the satisfactory results achieve. A steam receiver in a tower-type solar power plant with double superheats is selected as an example for thermal performance calculation. In view of the receiver operating in subcritical status, the thermal performance calculation is carried out for two sections, the one for evaporation and that for superheat. In evaporation section, the working fluid is circulated with a circulating pump at a very high circulating ratio. At the outlet of panels, the qualities of working fluid can reach to maximum about 0.35. Besides, the great difference of qualities of working fluid at the outlet of panels is observed. Even for some pipes of some panels, the working fluid at the outlet is in liquid phase. The distribution of metal temperature at fin end of panels in the evaporation region varies dramatically from place to place and reaches to over 520 °C. In superheat region, the temperature of the outer front crown of tubes is concerned. The highest front point temperature of pipe, which reaches to maximum over 660 °C, is in the middle region of the last parts of the primary superheat pass. The thermal efficiency distribution of the receiver, including the evaporation and the superheat regions, are also performed. The results show that the averaged efficiency is about 86%. Besides, the phenomenon of negative thermal efficiency happens in both two regions. That is because the solar incidence cannot compensate the natural heat loss due to incident radiation reflection, the pipe wall infrared radiation and convective heat loss.

scholarly journals Numbering-Up of Microscale Devices for Megawatt-Scale Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Concentrating Solar Power Receivers

2016 ◽  
Vol 138 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle R. Zada ◽  
Matthew B. Hyder ◽  
M. Kevin Drost ◽  
Brian M. Fronk
Keyword(s):  
Solar Power ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Surface Fluxes ◽  
Unit Cell ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Working Fluid ◽  
Incident Flux ◽  
Pin Fin ◽  
Central Receiver ◽  
Unit Cells

Concentrated solar power (CSP) plants have the potential to reduce the consumption of nonrenewable resources and greenhouse gas emissions in electricity production. In CSP systems, a field of heliostats focuses solar radiation on a central receiver, and energy is then transferred to a thermal power plant at high temperature. However, maximum receiver surface fluxes are low (30–100 W cm−2) with high thermal losses, which has contributed to the limited market penetration of CSP systems. Recently, small (∼4 cm2), laminated micro pin-fin devices have shown potential to achieve concentrated surface fluxes over 100 W cm−2 using supercritical CO2 as the working fluid. The present study explores the feasibility of using these microscale unit cells as building blocks for a megawatt-scale (250 MW thermal) open solar receiver through a numbering-up approach, where multiple microscale unit cell devices are connected in parallel. A multiscale model of the full-scale central receiver is developed. The model consists of interconnected unit cell and module level (i.e., multiple unit cells in parallel) submodels which predict local performance of the central receiver. Each full-scale receiver consists of 3000 micro pin-fin unit cells divided into 250 modules. The performance of three different full-scale receivers is simulated under representative operating conditions. The results show that the microscale unit cells have the potential to be numbered up to megawatt applications while providing high heat flux and thermal efficiency. At the design incident flux and surface emissivity, a global receiver efficiency of approximately 90% when heating sCO2 from 550 °C to 650 °C at an average incident flux of 110 W cm−2 can be achieved.

Analyses of Thermal Performance of Solar Power Tower Station Based on a Supercritical CO2 Brayton Cycle

2019 ◽  
Vol 142 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lijun Fang ◽  
Yang Li ◽  
Xue Yang ◽  
Zeliang Yang
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Thermal Efficiency ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Working Fluid ◽  
Brayton Cycle ◽  
Levelized Cost Of Electricity ◽  
Heat Receiver ◽  
Overall Performance ◽  
Solar Power Tower

Abstract Concentrating solar power (CSP) technology, possessing an inherent capacity to couple with energy storage ideally, attracts a great deal of attention nowadays. However, these power plants with various types of CSP system still cannot compete with the traditional thermal power plants in terms of levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), and their potential for utilizing clear and renewable solar energy cannot be overestimated. To improve the total efficiency of the solar power tower (SPT) plant is the key factor for its development. In this present paper, a SPT plant based on an S-CO2 Brayton cycle (with S-CO2 serving as heat transfer and working fluid) is proposed. A numerical simulation is carried out to calculate the effects of key operating parameters, including power cycle and subsystem parameters, on the overall performance of the SPT plant. The results show that there is an optimum value for the compression ratio for the SPT plant. For the heat receiver, the trends of exergy and thermal efficiency varying with turbine inlet temperature are reversed, because of the significant energy loss caused by high temperature of the surface of the heat receiver. As for the overall performance, the SPT plant proposed in this paper is better than other SPT plants based on a steam Rankine system and an S-CO2 Brayton system with molten salt serving as heat transfer fluid (HTF) operating under the similar condition. Its overall thermal efficiency is 1.04% and 3.42% higher than that of two other SPT plants, respectively.

Dropwise Condensation on Carbon Steel Surface

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fangyu Cao ◽  
Sean Hoenig ◽  
Chien-hua Chen
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Carbon Steel ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Heat Dissipation ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Condensation Heat Transfer ◽  
Working Fluid ◽  
High Heat Flux ◽  
Dropwise Condensation ◽  
Two Phase

The increasing demand of heat dissipation in power plants has pushed the limits of current two-phase thermal technologies such as heat pipes and vapor chambers. One of the most obvious areas for thermal improvement is centered on the high heat flux condensers including improved evaporators, thermal interfaces, etc, with low cost materials and surface treatment. Dropwise condensation has shown the ability to increase condensation heat transfer coefficient by an order of magnitude over conventional filmwise condensation. Current dropwise condensation research is focused on Cu and other special metals, the cost of which limits its application in the scale of commercial power plants. Presented here is a general use of self-assembled monolayer coatings to promote dropwise condensation on low-cost steel-based surfaces. Together with inhibitors in the working fluid, the surface of condenser is protected by hydrophobic coating, and the condensation heat transfer is promoted on carbon steel surfaces.

A Study of Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Power Cycle for Concentrating Solar Power Applications Using an Isothermal Compressor

2018 ◽  
Vol 140 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Young Heo ◽  
Jinsu Kwon ◽  
Jeong Ik Lee
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Supercritical Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Thermal Efficiency ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Working Fluid ◽  
Brayton Cycle ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Power Cycle ◽  
Compressor Inlet ◽  
Supercritical Carbon

For the concentrating solar power (CSP) applications, the supercritical carbon dioxide (s-CO2) power cycle is beneficial in many aspects, including high cycle efficiencies, reduced component sizing, and potential for the dry cooling option. More research is involved in improving this technology to realize the s-CO2 cycle as a candidate to replace the conventional power conversion systems for CSP applications. In this study, an isothermal compressor, a turbomachine which undergoes the compression process at constant temperature to minimize compression work, is applied to the s-CO2 power cycle layout. To investigate the cycle performance changes of adopting the novel technology, a framework for defining the efficiency of the isothermal compressor is revised and suggested. This study demonstrates how the compression work for the isothermal compressor is reduced, up to 50%, compared to that of the conventional compressor under varying compressor inlet conditions. Furthermore, the simple recuperated and recompression Brayton cycle layouts using s-CO2 as a working fluid are evaluated for the CSP applications. Results show that for compressor inlet temperatures (CIT) near the critical point, the recompression Brayton cycle using an isothermal compressor has 0.2–1.0% point higher cycle thermal efficiency compared to its reference cycle. For higher CIT values, the recompression cycle using an isothermal compressor can perform above 50% in thermal efficiency for a wider range of CIT than the reference cycle. Adopting an isothermal compressor in the s-CO2 layout can imply larger heat exchange area for the compressor which requires further development.

Operation of Large-Scale Pumps and Valves in Molten Salt

1994 ◽  
Vol 116 (3) ◽  
pp. 137-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. C. Smith ◽  
E. E. Rush ◽  
C. W. Matthews ◽  
J. M. Chavez ◽  
P. A. Bator
Keyword(s):  
Molten Salt ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Test Facility ◽  
Plant Design ◽  
Thermal Test ◽  
Central Receiver ◽  
Solar Power Plants ◽  
Careful Design

The molten salt pump and valve (P&V) test loops at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) National Solar Thermal Test Facility (NSTTF) operated between Jan. 1988 and Oct. 1990. The purpose of the P&V test was to demonstrate the performance, reliability, and service life of full-scale hot and cold salt pumps and valves for use in commercial central receiver solar power plants. The P&V test hardware consists of two pumped loops; the “Hot Loop” to simulate the hot (565°C) side of the receiver and the “Cold Loop” to simulate the receiver’s cold (285°C) side. Each loop contains a pump and five valves sized to be representative of a conceptual 60-MWe commercial solar power plant design. The hot loop accumulated over 6700 hours of operation and the cold loop over 2500 hours of operation. This project has demonstrated that standard commercial scale pump and valve designs will work in molten salt. The test also exposed some pitfalls that must be avoided in specifying such equipment. Although certainly not all of the pitfalls were discovered, careful design and specification should result in reliable or at least workable equipment.

scholarly journals SIMULATION STUDY OF PARABOLIC TROUGH SOLAR POWER PLANTS IN BRAZIL

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (8) ◽  
pp. 17-28
Author(s):  
Antonio Marcos De Oliveira Siqueira ◽  
Gabi Antoine Altabash ◽  
Rayan Fadi Barhouche ◽  
Gabriel Siqueira Silva ◽  
Fábio Gonçalves Villela
Keyword(s):  
Power Plant ◽  
Heat Exchangers ◽  
Solar Collector ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Simulation Software ◽  
Heat Transfer Fluid ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Parabolic Trough ◽  
Power Block

Various data reveals the potential of concentrated solar technologies for the electricity production. With global growing energy demand and green-house gas emission, concentrating solar power is considered as one of the promising options and has invited wide attention. In this work, a model for a 30 MW parabolic trough solar power plant system was developed for 31 different locations in Brazil, using TRNSYS simulation software, and TESS and STEC libraries. The power system consists of a parabolic trough solar collector loop connected to a power block by a series of heat exchangers. The solar collector loop consists of a field of parabolic trough collectors, stratified thermal storage tank, pump and heat exchangers to drive the power block and uses Therminol VP1 as heat transfer fluid. The results show that the cities of Recife (PE), Fortaleza (CE), Belterra (PA), Salvador (BA) and Petrolina (PE) stand out for their high monthly values of direct normal irradiation and, resulting the highest production of energy by the same configuration of Solar Central Power Plant.

scholarly journals Thermo-economic Assessment of the first Integrated Solar Combined Cycle System of Hassi R’mel

Mechanika ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 242-251
Author(s):  
M. AMANI ◽  
A. SMAILI ◽  
A. GHENAIET
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Efficiency ◽  
Environmental Effect ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Economic Assessment ◽  
Combined Cycle ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Fuel Saving ◽  
Electricity Cost ◽  
Cycle System ◽  
Solar Electricity

The aim of this study is the thermo-economic assessments of an integrated solar combined cycle (ISCC) system, in terms of thermal efficiency, electricity production and levelized electricity cost (LCOE). During the day light the power plant operates as an ISCC and operates as a conventional combined cycle (CC) during the night or cloudy days. In one hand the obtained results show that at the design point the solar electricity ratio may reach about 17 % and the global thermal efficiency 63 %, leading to lower fuel consumption and carbon emission. On the other hand, the economic assessment depicts that LCOE may reach 0.0222 $/kWh, which is about 28 % higher than that of (CC) power plants. Furthermore, by introducing the environmental effect LCOE becomes equal to 0.0272 $/kWh which is higher. Therefore, the annual solar contribution relatively to this ISCC installation site will allow about 18.45 million $ of fuel saving, avoiding emission of 0.89 million ton of CO2 over 30 years operation.

scholarly journals Optimal Solar Plant Site Identification Using GIS and Remote Sensing: Framework and Case Study

Energies ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 312
Author(s):  
Abdulaziz Alhammad ◽  
Qian (Chayn) Sun ◽  
Yaguang Tao
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Solar Plant ◽  
Plant Site ◽  
Solar Power Plants ◽  
Total Study Area ◽  
Site Identification

Many countries have set a goal for a carbon neutral future, and the adoption of solar energy as an alternative energy source to fossil fuel is one of the major measures planned. Yet not all locations are equally suitable for solar energy generation. This is due to uneven solar radiation distribution as well as various environmental factors. A number of studies in the literature have used multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) to determine the most suitable places to build solar power plants. To the best of our knowledge, no study has addressed the subject of optimal solar plant site identification for the Al-Qassim region, although developing renewable energy in Saudi Arabia has been put on the agenda. This paper developed a spatial MCDA framework catering to the characteristics of the Al-Qassim region. The framework adopts several tools used in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), such as Random Forest (RF) raster classification and model builder. The framework aims to ascertain the ideal sites for solar power plants in the Al-Qassim region in terms of the amount of potential photovoltaic electricity production (PVOUT) that could be produced from solar energy. For that, a combination of GIS and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) techniques were employed to determine five sub-criteria weights (Slope, Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI), proximity to roads, proximity to residential areas, proximity to powerlines) before performing spatial MCDA. The result showed that ‘the most suitable’ and ‘suitable’ areas for the establishment of solar plants are in the south and southwest of the region, representing about 17.53% of the study area. The ‘unsuitable’ areas account for about 10.17% of the total study area, which is mainly concentrated in the northern part. The rest of the region is further classified into ‘moderate’ and ‘restricted’ areas, which account for 46.42% and 25.88%, respectively. The most suitable area for potential solar energy, yields approximately 1905 Kwh/Kwp in terms of PVOUT. The proposed framework also has the potential to be applied to other regions nationally and internationally. This work contributes a reproducible GIS workflow for a low-cost but accurate adoption of a solar energy plan to achieve sustainable development goals.

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