Aerogel-based solar thermal receivers

McEnaney, Kenneth; Weinstein, Lee A.; Kraemer, Daniel; Ghasemi, Hadi; Chen, Gang

doi:10.1016/j.nanoen.2017.08.006

Cited by 75 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…The microstructure of the aerogel, comprised of cross-linked particles (primary particles) which form an open cell and highly porous network, gives rise to its unusual combination of properties. [1][2][3][4] In particular, the optical transparency of silica aerogel in the solar spectrum is crucial for many solar related applications [5][6][7][8] and has been studied extensively. [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] J.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling silica aerogel optical performance by determining its radiative properties

et al. 2016

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Silica aerogel has been known as a promising candidate for high performance transparent insulation material (TIM). Optical transparency is a crucial metric for silica aerogels in many solar related applications. Both scattering and absorption can reduce the amount of light transmitted through an aerogel slab. Due to multiple scattering, the transmittance deviates from the Beer-Lambert law (exponential attenuation). To better understand its optical performance, we decoupled and quantified the extinction contributions of absorption and scattering separately by identifying two sets of radiative properties. The radiative properties are deduced from the measured total transmittance and reflectance spectra (from 250 nm to 2500 nm) of synthesized aerogel samples by solving the inverse problem of the 1-D Radiative Transfer Equation (RTE). The obtained radiative properties are found to be independent of the sample geometry and can be considered intrinsic material properties, which originate from the aerogel’s microstructure. This finding allows for these properties to be directly compared between different samples. We also demonstrate that by using the obtained radiative properties, we can model the photon transport in aerogels of arbitrary shapes, where an analytical solution is difficult to obtain.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling silica aerogel optical performance by determining its radiative properties

et al. 2016

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“…173 This makes aerogel receivers a promising candidate for more efficient receivers in line-focus systems (illustrated in Figure 13b). 174 There is active research into making aerogels more transparent, and methods such as a two-step sol-gel process, 175 heat treatment, 176 and a "pin-hole" drying technique 177,178 have all shown improved solar transmittance compared to conventionally fabricated aerogels.…”

Section: Lfr Receiversmentioning

confidence: 99%

Concentrating Solar Power

et al. 2015

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Concentrating solar power (CSP) is a reliable and wellknown form of solar power. Nine solar trough plants producing more than 400 megawatts (MW) of electricity have been operating reliably in the California Mojave Desert since the 1980s. With a renewed sense of urgency to commercialize renewable energy sources, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is ramping up its CSP research, development, and deployment efforts. These efforts, which are leveraging both industry partners and the national laboratories, are directed toward the development of parabolic trough, dish/engine, and power tower CSP systems.

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“…The side areas of the device were packaged with low thermal conductivity materials, polystyrene (PS) foam, which assured the heat being enclosed in the system. Thus, the solar efficiency could be rather high since the energy loss is main because of the slight heat radiation and convection on the surface of the absorber . Moreover, two‐level collectors were designed for utilizing the latent heat.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, the solar efficiency could be rather high since the energy loss is main because of the slight heat radiation and convection on the surface of the absorber. [13] Moreover, two-level collectors were designed for utilizing the latent heat. As shown in the lower part of Figure 1a, the first level collector worked as a thermal source, which heated the next level PVA Global Challenges 2018, 2, 1800001 sponge to generate vapor, further enhancing the water productivity.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Highly Efficient Water Harvesting with Optimized Solar Thermal Membrane Distillation Device

et al. 2018

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Water distillation with solar thermal technology could be one of the most promising way to address the global freshwater scarcity, with its low cost and minimum environmental impacts. However, the low liquid water productivity, which is caused by the heat loss and inadequate heat utilization in solar‐thermal conversion process, hinders its practical application. Here, a compact solar‐thermal membrane distillation system with three structure features: highly localized solar‐thermal heating, effective cooling strategy, and recycling the latent heat, is proposed. The steam generation rate is 0.98 kg m −2 h −1 under solar illumination of 1 kW m −2 in the open system, while the liquid water productivity could be 1.02 kg m −2 h −1 with the solar efficiency up to 72% with a two‐level device. The outdoor experiments show a water productivity of 3.67 kg m −2 with salt rejection over 99.75% in one cloudy day. These results demonstrate an easy and high‐efficiency way for water distillation, especially suitable for household solar water purification.

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Aerogel-based solar thermal receivers

Cited by 75 publications

References 40 publications

Modeling silica aerogel optical performance by determining its radiative properties

Modeling silica aerogel optical performance by determining its radiative properties

Concentrating Solar Power

Highly Efficient Water Harvesting with Optimized Solar Thermal Membrane Distillation Device

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