Parabolic trough concentrators—design, construction and evaluation

Thomas, A.; Guven, H. M.

doi:10.1016/0196-8904(93)90090-w

Cited by 65 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…[1][2][3][4]). These systems use various optical configurations to concentrate solar radiation to flux levels yielding receiver and reactor temperatures typically in the range of 500-2500 K. Natural solar radiation is used in trough, furnace, central tower and dish systems [5][6][7][8]. A valuable laboratory research tool in the development of materials and solar receivers/ reactors is an indoor high-flux solar simulator capable of providing an artificial source of concentrated radiation with a spectral distribution approaching that of the air mass 1.5 spectrum (AM 1.5) [9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design of a New 45 kWe High-Flux Solar Simulator for High-Temperature Solar Thermal and Thermochemical Research

Krueger

Davidson²,

Lipiński

2011

Journal of Solar Energy Engineering

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In this paper, we present a systematic procedure to design a solar simulator for hightemperature concentrated solar thermal and thermochemical research. The 45 kW¡, simulator consists of seven identical radiation units of common focus, each comprised of a 6.5 kWg xenon arc lamp close-coupled to a precision reßector in the shape of a truncated ellipsoid. The size and shape of each reflector is optimized by a Monte Carlo ray tracing analysis to achieve multiple design objectives, including high transfer efficiency of radiation from the lamps to the common focal plane and desired flux distribution. Based on the numerical results, the final optimized design will deliver 7.5 kW over a 6 cm diameter circular disk located in the focal plane, with a peak flux approaching 3.7 MWIm^.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design of a New 45 kWe High-Flux Solar Simulator for High-Temperature Solar Thermal and Thermochemical Research

Krueger

Davidson²,

Lipiński

2011

Journal of Solar Energy Engineering

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“…Initially, CSP was used for small-scale solar thermal-mechanical applications, with outputs to 100 kW, mainly for water pumping [Duffie and Beckman 1991]. Only after the energy crises of 1973 did the idea of large-scale solar power plants take hold [Thomas and Guven 1993]. Starting in the late 1980s, nine solar electric generating systems (SEGSs) have been built and operated in the Mojave Desert of southern California.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heat Transfer Analysis and Modeling of a Parabolic Trough Solar Receiver Implemented in Engineering Equation Solver

Forristall

2003

526

340

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This report describes the development, validation, and use of a heat transfer model implemented in Engineering Equation Solver (EES). The model determines the performance of a parabolic trough solar collector's linear receiver, also called a heat collector element (HCE). All heat transfer and thermodynamic equations, optical properties, and parameters used in the model are discussed. The modeling assumptions and limitations are also discussed, along with recommendations for model improvement. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to

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“…Absorber tube in the receiver is encapsulated in a glass envelope and the annular space between the glass cover inner surface and the absorber is evacuated. The absorber tube is given a special coating which along with the evacuation leads to better absorption and transfer of heat to the Heat Transfer Fluid (HTF) flowing inside the receiver (Ravi Kumar and Reddy, 2009; Thomas and Guven, 1993). The HTF flows in and out from the absorber tubes through header pipes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Methodology for sizing the solar field for parabolic trough technology with thermal storage and hybridization

et al. 2014

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A detailed methodology to design the size of solar field for a parabolic trough plant is not explicitly available in open literature, particularly if thermal storage and hybridization are also considered, as most of the papers present a gross overview. This paper gives a procedure to determine the annual electricity generated for a parabolic trough based solar plant of a given rated capacity (1-50 MWe), at a chosen location & given hourly annual solar input, specified hours of thermal energy storage using a two-tank molten salt system and specified fraction of hybridization using natural gas. In this methodology losses due to shut down or cloud cover are also covered. The size of the solar field is optimized for the maximum annual solar to electric conversion efficiency using the concept of solar multiple (ratio of actual aperture area to the reference aperture area needed to get rated power output at maximum solar input). This procedure is validated with the existing parabolic trough plants (Solar Energy Generating Systems VI and Solana Generating Station) and it was found that the annual electrical energy generated by the plant matches reasonably well.Jodhpur, in India, was considered as a location for the case study and the results are presented to understand the influence of thermal storage and hybridization for a given capacity of the plant. The results for various combinations of thermal storage hours and fraction of hybridization used with respect to plant capacity, solar multiple, annual plant efficiency etc. have been discussed in detail. It is observed from the results that, under design conditions, the reference aperture area per MW decreases as plant capacity increases and reaches a limiting value asymptotically at a capacity of 50 MW. The optimized size of the solar field, with respect to annual efficiency, is found to be 1.4 and 2.3 times the size under design conditions for zero and six hours thermal storage respectively. The benefit of hybridization is high for lower solar multiples.

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Parabolic trough concentrators—design, construction and evaluation

Cited by 65 publications

References 40 publications

Design of a New 45 kWe High-Flux Solar Simulator for High-Temperature Solar Thermal and Thermochemical Research

Design of a New 45 kWe High-Flux Solar Simulator for High-Temperature Solar Thermal and Thermochemical Research

Heat Transfer Analysis and Modeling of a Parabolic Trough Solar Receiver Implemented in Engineering Equation Solver

Methodology for sizing the solar field for parabolic trough technology with thermal storage and hybridization

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