Technology Status - NET Nowak Energie & Technologie AG

90
innovations have influenced all Solar Tres system elements and have
resulted in two insulated tanks (hot and cold) storing 6,250 tonnes of molten
nitrate salt with capacity for 24 hour-a-day full electrical energy production
(with 16 hours of storage). The thermal storage will raise annual plant
capacity from 20-22% for Solar Two over 60% for Solar Tres. Long term
developments in thermal-storage technology include the formulation of
organic heat transfer fluid.
Dish/Engine Systems
At the Plataforma Solar Almería (PSA), the EuroDish project aims to bring the
system cost down from the current USD 11,000/kW to USD 5,000-6,000/kW.
The major cost-reduction potential lies in the manufacturing process and in
the efficient production of modular parts. Remote control and monitoring,
the use of low-cost elements like cheaper drive and control systems, and an
enhanced procedure for manufacturing the solar receiver should also deliver
cost reductions. The first prototype started operating in February 2001 and
has already reduced costs to USD 5,000/kW. Since this is only a prototype,
cost reductions have to be proven by further project experience. However,
the EuroDish targets seem realistic.
In the medium to long term, installed system costs are expected to decrease
dramatically as series production of dish units increases. At the same time,
annual efficiencies of dish/engine systems are expected to rise in conjunction
with greater reliability and availability.
Hybrid operation (including the use of hydrogen fuel) has been demonstrated
in recent dish/Stirling testing. Advanced hybrid heat pipe receivers are being
developed to allow concurrent solar/fossil operation; however, hybrid
operation has proved very difficult with dish/Stirling systems.
● Market Opportunities
Market Potential
Because CSP plants can only focus direct solar radiation and cannot
concentrate diffuse sky radiation, they only perform well in very sunny
locations, specifically in arid and semi-arid regions. CSP technology is most
likely to develop in regions with radiation levels exceeding 1,700kWh/m2yr, i.e. southern Europe, North and southern Africa, the Middle East, western
India, western Australia, the Andean Plateau, north-eastern Brazil, northern
Mexico and the US Southwest. Although the tropics have high solar
radiation, it is highly diffuse. Long rainy seasons also make these regions
unsuitable for CSP technology.
CONCENTRATING SOLAR POWER X4