Concentrated Solar Power: Actual Performance and Foreseeable Future in High Penetration Scenarios of Renewable Energies

Abstract

Analyses proposing a high share of Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) in future 100% renewable energy scenarios rely on the ability of this technology, through storage and/or hybridization, to partially avoid the problems associated with the hourly / daily (short-term) variability of other variable renewable sources such as wind or solar photovoltaic. However, data used in the scientific literature are mainly theoretical values. In this work, the actual performance of CSP plants in operation from publicly available data from 4 countries (Spain, the USA, India and UAE) has been estimated for 3 dimensions: capacity factor, seasonal variability and Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROI). In fact, the results obtained show that the actual performance of CSP plants is significantly worse than that projected by constructors and considered by the scientific literature in the theoretical studies: a capacity factor in the range of 0.15-0.3, low standard EROI (1.3:1-2.4:1), intensive use of materials -some scarce-, and significant seasonal intermittence. In the light of the obtained results, the potential contribution of current CSP technologies in a future 100% renewable energy system seems very limited.

MEDEAS: a new modeling framework integrating global biophysical and socioeconomic constraints

“…The resulting net energy is given by eqn (13): Net energy ¼ gross energy returned Á 1 À 1 EROI (13) Note that, in the literature, the EROI st of individual technologies is usually defined as (1)/(2) (final energy content) or (1)/(0) (primary energy content of the source). 123,136 The following assumptions are taken to compute the EROI st system : Dynamic and endogenous calculation of the EROI st of each RES variable technology for electricity generation computing the required energetic costs taking as a starting point the materials required in the construction, operation, maintenance and dismantling phases (see Section 2.2.3) and combining this data with the energy consumption per unit of material consumption from Life Cycle Analysis (LCA). 145 Estimates are derived from physical inputs and no indirect estimates based on associated economic costs are considered.…”

New Energy Technologies: Microalgae, Photolysis and Airborne Wind Turbines

“…The potential for solar energy appears enormous, since the quantity of annual solar radiation intercepted at the top of Earth's atmosphere is four orders of magnitude larger than present global primary energy consumption [29]. (Nevertheless, de Castro et al [4,5] argued that the technical potential for solar electricity is far less than usually estimated.) As is also a problem for wind power, solar energy is intermittent, though more predictable than wind.…”

“…Because of the near-term risk of extreme weather events and other adverse consequences from climate change, and in the longer term at least, global fossil fuel depletion, there is world-wide interest in shifting to noncarbon energy sources, especially renewable energy (RE). Although the ability of RE to provide for expected future global energy levels is hotly debated, some researchers have argued that RE cannot take over from fossil fuels (FF) [1][2][3][4][5][6][7]. They have variously argued that land constraints will limit output, that several existing forms of RE, especially bioenergy and hydro, have their own serious environmental problems, and that the intermittent nature of the output of the two most promising sources, wind and solar, will necessitate energy conversion and storage [1,2].…”

New Energy Technologies: Microalgae, Photolysis and Airborne Wind Turbines

“…Because of the near-term risk of extreme weather events and other adverse consequences from climate change and, in the longer term at least, global fossil fuel depletion, there is worldwide interest in shifting to noncarbon energy sources, especially renewable energy (RE). Although the ability of RE to provide for expected future global energy levels is hotly debated, some researchers have argued that RE cannot take over from fossil fuels (FF) [1][2][3][4][5][6]. They have variously argued that land constraints will limit output and that several existing forms of RE, especially bioenergy and hydro, have their own serious environmental problems.…”