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This work presents the characteristics of a solar thermal tower power plant in two different places (Seville and Dubai) using three different HTFs (NaNO3-KNO3, KCl-MgCl2 and Li2CO3-Na2CO3-K2CO3) and three different power cycles (Rankine, sCO2 Recompression and sCO2 Partial cooling cycles). An indirect configuration is considered for the Gemasolar power plant. Detailed modelling is carried out for the conversion of incident power on the heliostat to the output electricity. Optimization of the cycle is carried out to determine the most promising cycle configuration for efficiency. The results showed that for the Gemasolar power plant configuration, the performance of the KCl-MgCl2 based plant was poorest amongst all. NaNO3-KNO3 based plant has shown good performance with the Rankine cycle but plant having Li2CO3-Na2CO3-K2CO3 as HTF was best for all three cycles. Partial cooling was the best performing cycle at both locations with all three HTFs. Placing the Seville Plant in Dubai has improved the efficiency from 23.56% to 24.33%, a capacity factor improvement of 21 and 52 GW additional power is generated. The optimization of the plant in Dubai has shown further improvements. The efficiency is improved, the Capacity factor is increased by 31.2 and 77.8 GW of additional electricity is produced.

A substantial part of the global energy mix depends upon fossil fuels that needed to be reduced to overcome the pollution and environment-related challenges. This has directed the world to shift the energy mix towards renewable energy technologies. Among the development in renewable energy technologies, the development of solar tower power plant is an active research topic. Over the past decade, advances in computers and simulation software systems have greatly expanded their use in design and development, which can facilitate the engineering activities of solar tower power plants. However, an important limitation is the visualization of three-dimensional geometrical design data onto two-dimensional computer screens. VR technologies are a great means in the visualization of 3D data. Therefore, this article attempts to illustrate a concept for the application of VR technologies in the development of solar tower power plant and lists down relevant support scenarios. The main focus of the paper is on analyzing the efficiency of the VR technology used in the design of solar tower power plants and learning from the experience gained in this process. A discussion about further scenarios ranging from on-site visualization of solar tower power plant infrastructure, installation and repair, cleaning and maintenance, etc. is included as well as future directions are pointed out. The demonstrator part consists of an Android Smartphone-based VR application and an HMD based VR application. Furthermore, a brief comparison of both the applications as well as of HMD and sVR is also provided.

An important part of future global energy depends on the development of the solar industry. To date, we have noticed the shift from fossil fuels energy towards renewable energy. The past decade has shown significant progress in computer science, and CAD is increasingly used for design and development. Visualization of the data generated from the models in the CAD program plays an important role in the creation of state-of-the-art designs. An important limitation during the design phase is the visualization of three-dimensional geometry. This article attempts to illustrate the use of VR technologies in solar thermal power plant development. This article analyzes various strategies and methods for the visualization of CAD models in virtual reality. Android phone interfaces with a desktop computer, as well as head movement control strategies, are discussed. It is concluded that VR technologies can help with visualization, as well as in the development of the field of solar thermal power plants, having minimal design-related issues.