Annual Report 2006 - Plataforma Solar de Almería

CONCENTRATING SOLAR SYSTEMS UNIT
3.3.2 Development of the molten salt receiver for a solar
thermal power plant
Participants: SENER Ingeniería y Sistemas, S.A. (E), PSA-CIEMAT (E); [2
CIEMAT Divisions participate in this project: a) PSA-CIEMAT, b) CIEMAT-
Structural Materials Division].
Contacts: Juan Ignacio Burgaleta (ignacio.burgaleta@sener.es); Félix M. Téllez
(felix.tellez@ciemat.es)
Funding: Sener (65%) and CIEMAT (35%). Total estimated cost 6 M€, of
which 1.5 M€ are for equipment.
Duration: November 17, 2005 to December 31, 2007.
Background: In 2004-2005, Boeing withdrew its offer to build the Solar Tres
receiver, compromising continuation of the project in the absence of an alternative
commercial offer. In view of this situation, Sener decided to undertake
the engineering and development of the molten salt receiver for Solar Tres on
its own. Nevertheless, in order to reduce the development risk, it requested
CIEMAT assistance in sharing in the design and validation of a tube salt receiver,
including design, building and testing a receiver panel prior to the fabrication
of the Solar tres receiver, which will consist of 16 such panels. In the
second half of 2005, Sener and CIEMAT signed a collaboration agreement for
receiver technology validation (with Sener-CIEMAT technology) and definition
of operating and control strategies to be applied in solar thermal power plants
(starting with Solar Tres).
Purpose: i) Reduce the risk associated with the first own development of a
molten-salt central-receiver solar thermal power plant technology, ii) Experimental
validation of the Solar Tres receiver design, iii) Review of the selection
of materials and geometries to extend the lifetime expectancy of the receiver.
The equipment developed for the experiment is almost the complete system,
lacking only the turbine and generator. It includes the 4-MW thermal receiver
Figure 3.9
Salt Receiver Panel during testing at the 70-m level of the CESA-1 tower;
diagram of the experimental device and front view of the receiver panel
with side shielding.
45