Solar Thermal Technology

Edward C. Kern, Jr. with additions by

Jeff Tester
Sustainable Energy 10.391J, etc.
Solar Thermal
Resource characteristics
High temperature for electric power
generation
Medium temperature for water heating and
“active” building solar heating (human
comfort)
Low temperature “passive” building solar
heating (human comfort)
Heat for industrial processes

4/26/2005 2
4/26/2005 3
Solar thermal using concentrators
Focusing requires direct, non-diffuse component
Storage or hybridization needed to be dispatchable
Central station option -- power towers 10 – 100 MWe
Distributed mid size capacity -- parabolic troughs
1 -10 MWe
Distributed smaller scale 10 kW -1 MWe -- dishes
Medium temperature for water heating and “active”
building solar heating/cooling of buildings (HVAC)
Low temperature “passive” building solar heating
Industrial process heat

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 Power tower with molten salt storage

Power Tower or Central Receiver

Energy collection
decoupled from
power production
565°C 288°C
Hot Salt Cold Salt

Steam Generator Heliostat

Conventional
EPGS

4/26/2005 5
Courtesy of U.S. DOE.
Power Towers

4/26/2005 Courtesy of U.S. DOE. 6

Heliostat Fields
Current heliostat
prices $125 to $159
m-2
„ Reduction potential
from manufacturing
scale-up
„ Innovative Designs
Compare with trough
and PV

4/26/2005 Courtesy of SunLab (Sandia National Laboratories and NREL partnership). 7

Parabolic Troughs
Developed by Luz for use in
California in 1970s
„ Slowed thinking about large
scale PV
Dispatchable hybrid design
with natural gas backup – no
storage
Participated commercially in
1980s CA green power
markets
354 Megawatts installed by
1991 at Kramer Junction, CA
still operating today

4/26/2005 Courtesy of NREL. 8

Luz International
Failed commercially in
1992 from:
„ Low natural gas and
electricity prices
„ High maintenance cost
„ Lack of certainty about tax
incentives
Restructured company
still in operation at
Kramer Junction
„ Along the learning curve
on O+M innovations, e.g.
receiver replacements and
upgrades, storage,
cleaning, etc.

4/26/2005 Courtesy of SunLab (Sandia National Laboratories and NREL partnership). 9

 Dish technology
with Sterling cycle power generation

Small scale distributed

applications
Of great interest to high
tech industries and
consultants
Moving parts with 2-D
tracking
Exposed mirrors
Shading and land use
considerations

4/26/2005 Courtesy of SunLab (Sandia National Laboratories and NREL partnership). 10

Solar Thermal Chimney
Heated air, being less
dense, rises in tower;
thermal source from
ground based thermal
collector around Figure removed for copyright reasons.
perimeter Source: New York Times.

Concept uses a wind

turbine in the tower
flow to extract energy
Conceptual designs for
India and Australia

4/26/2005 11
The Prototype Manzanares Solar
Chimney, Spain
Manzanares (south of
Madrid).
Delivered power from July
1986 to February 1989 with Figure removed for copyright reasons.
a peak output of 50 kW. Source: New York Times.

Collector diameter of 240

meters, with surface area of
46,000m2.
Chimney was 10 meters in
diameter and 195 meters
tall.

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Not very practical or economic

Figure removed for copyright reasons.

Source: New York Times.

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Solar Heating of Buildings
Active Systems
„ Can be captured in fixed or
tracking modes using flat
plate or focusing collectors
„ Even with storage needs Figure removed for copyright reasons.
backup supplemental supply Source: New York Times
„ Early history had many
failures – robust systems now
„ In today’s markets are easily
supported with subsidies in
mid to high grade regions
available
Passive Systems
„ Vary from ancient to high
tech designs
„ Require integrated designs
for highest payback
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Solar Cooling of Buildings
Active solar energy
capture used to
power Rankine
refrigeration cycle
LiBr absorption air
conditioning for large
building(s)
Thermal storage may
be required

4/26/2005 Courtesy of NREL. 16

Heating Water
Fast growing under Carter
Administration
Potential for 20-30%
capture and use for year
round water heating
demands
Subsidies in US led to rush
to manufacture and install
Quality was compromised
and when subsidies were
cut off market collapsed
„ Lesson has been learned by
PV advocates
4/26/2005 Courtesy of NREL. 17
Space & Water Heating Barriers

No subsidies to defray initial cost from

restructuring of electric companies (only
US source of renewable energy
subsidies)
Little infrastructure to provide service
Overcoming bad reputation from the
1980’s

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Passive Solar
Southern openings
Thermal mass for
diurnal stabilization
Window technolgy to
accept winter and reject
summer direct radiation
Hard to characterize
and promote since all
south facing glass is
passive solar

4/26/2005 Courtesy of U.S. National Park Service. 19

Solar thermal summary -- part 1

Central station electric power

„ Wide areas of high temperature collection
involving tracking devices
„ Must have high direct normal resource and
lots of land, access to transmission lines
„ Thermodynamic cycle efficiency at end of
process – upper limit of 35 to 40% heat to
power efficiency
„ Thermal storage enables dispatchability

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Solar thermal summary-- part 2
Distributed electric power generation
„ Requires direct normal resource, tracking and concentrating
issues
„ Potential for smaller scale installation using troughs and
dishes
„ Heat to power conversion still limits performance to 30 to
40% efficiency
Solar thermal heating
„ Passive and active system opportunities
„ Wide applicability for domestic water heating, less for space
heating and cooling
„ Market growth provides better service infrastructure and
more robust technology

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Value of Thermal Storage Sunlight

Storage benefits
Energy in Storage
1) Lowers LEC
2) Increases market
value Output
Power
„ Dispatch to meet
peak loads
mid- noon mid-
night night

„ operation through
Sunlight Sunlight

clouds
Energy in Storage
solar-only
‘base-load’

„ Capacity factors
plant
Output
Power
>70% possible4/26/2005 mid- noon mid- noon mid-
night
night night

“Solar salt”
23
 Tower Technology Projections
Solar
Solar Solar Tres Solar Solar Solar Solar
One Two USA 50 100 200 220
Design Details Units 1988 1999 2004 2006 2008 2012 2018
Plant output, net MWe 10 10 13.7 50 100 200 220
# Plants built (A) Volume 1 1 1 5 22 6 1
# Plants built (B) Min Volume 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Heliostat size m2 39 39/95 95 95 148 148 148
Heliostat type Std Std Std Std Std Std Adv
Storage Duration hours N/A 3 16 16 13 13 13
Rankine Cycle
Pressure Bar 125 125 180 180 180 180 300
Live steam Temp C 510 510 540 540 540 540 640
Reheat #1 Temp C 540 540 540 540 640
Reheat #2 Temp C 540 640
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Number of staff 32 33 30 38 47 66 67
 Tower Installed Cost
14,000
Aerospace Grade
Demo Scale $/kW
Water/Steam
12,000 $/kWpeak
$/kW peak = $/kW / Solar Multiple
Installed Cost ($/kW or $/kWpeak)

10,000

8,000 Commercial

Receiver size
Helio size &
6,000 volume EPGS size
Receiver
Lg. Salt Storage
size
Efficiency
EPGS effic.
4,000 Switch to salt HTF
Helio design
Demo scale
advances
Costs assuming new,
"commercial" plant is
2,000 built

0
Solar One "New" Solar Tres Solar 50 Solar 100 Solar 200 Solar 220
4/26/2005 Solar Two USA 25
 Tower Levelized Electricity
Cost (LEC)
1.600

FCR=14%
1.400 FCR=8%

1.200

1.000
LEC ($/kWh)

0.800 Expensive
Prototype
(Demo) Plants
0.600

0.400
'Commercial' Plants
0.200

0.000
Solar One "New" Solar Solar Tres Solar 50 Solar 100 Solar 200 Solar 220
4/26/2005 26
Two USA
‘Commercial Plant’ LEC
0.200
FCR=14%
FCR=8%
0.180
Min Deploy (B)
0.160 Min Deploy (B)
Financial
0.140 Terms

0.120
LEC ($/kWh)

0.100

0.080

0.060

0.040

0.020

0.000
Solar Tres Solar 50 Solar 100 Solar 200 Solar 220
4/26/2005 27
USA
 Heliostat Cost
Current heliostat prices
„ Numerous studies by
industry, labs
„ A.D. Little 2001 study
estimated price at $128/m2
installed (not including $5-
10/m2 for controls)
„ Spanish company publicly
offered heliostats for sale
at $120/m2
„ $145/m2 used for Solar
Tres USA
4/26/2005
Cost Reduction
28
Courtesy of SunLab (Sandia National Laboratories and NREL partnership).