Content Overview

The course “Solar Thermal Power Plants” focuses on technologies for electricity generation by means of solar thermal processes. To generate electricity in a heat engine, usually a turbine, high temperatures are required. These can only be generated by means of concentrated solar radiation. In this course the different technologies for solar concentration are presented, the physical principles are explained and different application examples are shown.

At the beginning, a detailed introduction into the characteristics of “Solar Radiation” is given. A deeper understanding of solar radiation is necessary to design and optimize the systems that will convert this radiation into usable energy. We begin by learning how solar radiation is generated and how it travels through space and the earth's atmosphere. Only a small portion of the total radiation eventually reaches the earth's surface. At the earth's surface, we can use different methods to measure solar radiation. We take a look at different measuring devices and determine suitable orientations of solar collectors to optimize the energy yield.

In the main chapter "Solar Thermal Power Plants", we first discuss the physical principles of solar concentration, review the general concept of a thermal power plant process, and provide an overview of the different categories of concentrating systems: linear concentrating systems and point-focusing systems. The main characteristic components and their properties are then explained for the most common technologies. With this knowledge, the energy balances can be established from which efficiencies and energy yields are determined. Different concepts are then shown in the application and their advantages and disadvantages are discussed. It will also be explained what developments researchers are currently working on. In this context, we will make a virtual visit to a research power plant. Then, a summary of the historical development will be given, as well as a forecast of the further dissemination.

As an additional chapter, we look at "High Temperature Thermal Storage". We review the principles of thermal storage, different storage media and different storage concepts. We discuss current applications of high temperature thermal storage especially in solar thermal power plants and give an overview of current developments and future applications in the energy system.

In the final chapter, the free simulation software System Advisor Model (SAM) from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is presented, which can be used to simulate the financial and technical performance of renewable energy power plants. Together we model an exemplary solar thermal parabolic trough power plant with thermal storage and take a look at the simulation results.