Optical modeling of a solar dish thermal concentrator based on square flat facets

Abstract

Solar energy may be practically utilized directly through transformation into heat, electrical or chemical energy. We present a procedure to design a square facet concentrator for laboratory-scale research on medium-temperature thermal processes. The efficient conversion of solar radiation into heat at these temperature levels requires the use of concentrating solar collectors. Large concentrating dishes generally have a reflecting surface made up of a number of individual mirror panels (facets). Optical ray tracing is used to generate a system performance model. A square facet parabolic solar concentrator with realistic specularly surface and facet positioning accuracy will deliver up to 13.604 kW of radiative power over a 250 mm radius disk (receiver diameter) located in the focal plane on the focal length of 1500 mm with average concentrating ratio exceeding 1200. The Monte Carlo ray tracing method is used for analysis of the optical performance of the concentrator and to identify the set of geometric concentrator parameters that allow for flux characteristics suitable for medium and high-temperature applications.

Design and Three-Dimensional Simulation of a Solar Dish-Stirling Engine

“…It is basically related with the number and size of the facets. In the present study, the identification of the facets number and area is based on an optimization algorithm proposed by Pavlovi et al, [28]. Finally, these facets, of specified number and area, are charted using SolidWorks to accurately identify the facets orientation and the coordinates of each vertex.…”

Influence of Reflective Surface Type on Solar Energy Concentration Efficiency for Concave Solar Dishes

“…The geometric concentration ratio ( CR g ) is defined as the ratio between the dish aperture area (A a ) and the area of the receiver (A r ), (Alarcón et al 2013, Joyee and Rahman 2014, Pavlović et al 2014b, Thakkar et al2015and Barbosa et al 2016 as shown in following equation:…”

Characterization of a micro thermal cavity receiver – Experimental and analytical investigation

“…Measuring the forced convection for an open cylindrical cavity receiver and optimizing the cavity by considering various parameters like the receiver efficiency, lifetime and reliability for a solar tower were reported in [13][14] respectively. Some interesting studies on the optical and thermal analysis both; experimentally and numerically at various operating conditions and working fluids, of a spiral cavity receiver with a parabolic dish concentrator were conducted by Pavlovic et al [15][16][17]. The overall conclusion indicated that water is the best working fluid for low-temperature values due to its high heat transfer coefficient.…”