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Basic Research Needs for Solar Energy Utilization - Office of ...

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THREE TYPES OF CONCENTRATED SOLAR “THERMAL” SYSTEMS<br />

direct & diffused sunlight<br />

cold water<br />

hot water<br />

Concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) system. Concentrated<br />

photovoltaics, although not a solar thermal process, is included in<br />

this survey because <strong>of</strong> the utilization <strong>of</strong> concentrators.<br />

cold input<br />

direct sunlight<br />

solar to thermal<br />

power conversion<br />

hot output<br />

concentrated<br />

sunlight<br />

optical concentrator<br />

58<br />

process<br />

heat<br />

direct sunlight<br />

heat to electricity<br />

or<br />

heat to chemical potential<br />

power conversion<br />

Low-temperature solar thermal systems.<br />

This system does not involve sunlight<br />

concentration, or occasionally may employ<br />

low-concentration (C ≤ 2). This system is<br />

suitable <strong>for</strong> home use where it usually heats<br />

hot water <strong>for</strong> direct use or home heating.<br />

photovoltaic<br />

power conversion<br />

concentrated<br />

sunlight<br />

optical concentrator<br />

electricity<br />

High-temperature solar thermal systems.<br />

Such systems require optical concentration<br />

<strong>of</strong> direct sunlight at a ratio varying from about<br />

20 to several thousands, depending on the<br />

specific process and system involved.<br />

Concentrated solar thermal systems are<br />

large megawatt(electric) systems that can be<br />

used <strong>for</strong> electricity generation or fuel<br />

production.<br />

Central Receiver Systems. Central receiver systems contain an array <strong>of</strong> Fresnel reflectors<br />

(heliostats) with two axes <strong>of</strong> rotation. The common focus is stationary, located on a solar tower<br />

(Figure 14b). The two-axis tracking enables a higher concentration ratio and the higher operating<br />

temperatures and power conversion efficiency than those <strong>of</strong> the line focus configuration.<br />

However, as the system size increases, the optical efficiency (the ratio <strong>of</strong> sunlight capture to<br />

incident sunlight) declines. Thus, system optimization is required.<br />

Two 10-MWe facilities are situated in the United States near Barstow, Cali<strong>for</strong>nia, and one<br />

2.5-MWe facility is in Almaria, Spain. Present estimates <strong>of</strong> large-scale (>50-MW) facility costs<br />

are about $3/W (Sargent & Lundy 2003; Stoddard et al. 2005). A recent study (Pitz-Paal et al.<br />

2005) indicates that the new developments discussed here should lead to a cost reduction <strong>of</strong> at<br />

least $0.5/W. Materials development aimed at high-temperature per<strong>for</strong>mance would impact<br />

efficiency.

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