Small-scale CSP · Numerical and experimental analysis of a novel thermal energy storage for a small-scale concentrated solar power plant
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2018-06-01 → 2020-05-31
- EU contribution
- €212,195
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF-EF-ST
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Numerical and experimental analysis of a novel thermal energy storage for a small-scale concentrated solar power plant
The biggest challenge for renewable energy sources is to match the demand with the supply. By using thermal energy storage for concentrated solar power plants, the stability, reliability, and capacity factor of the plants are improved. Currently used concentrated solar power technologies (parabolic trough collector, solar power tower, linear Fresnel reflector) use heavy and very expensive glass mirrors and receivers. Apart from that, conventional thermal storages are also expensive as these are based on molten salts, which are expensive and their handling requires special materials. As a result, conventional concentrated solar power technologies are only suitable for large-scale installations in regions with high annual direct normal irradiance. This project addresses the development of a cost-effective concentrated solar energy driven cogeneration system with thermal energy storage. To this end, the project addresses the investigation of a novel micro-structured polymer foil-based concentrated solar power system and investigations of a novel packed-bed rock thermal energy storage system. The micro-structured polymer foil-based concentrated solar power system has the advantages of a low installation cost and a low operation and maintenance cost. The thermal energy storage is based on a packed-bed rock with heat storage charging and discharging using evaporation and condensation of heat transfer fluid. The results indicate that the micro-structured polymer foil-based concentrated solar power plant with packed-bed rock thermal energy storage is a promising alternative for cogeneration/multi-generation plants. The project contributes to the development of a cost-efficient renewable energy systems, reducing the dependence on fossil fuels and reducing the carbon dioxide emissions of the heat and power generation sector, thus helping to attain socio-economic and environmental targets in the context of the EU 2020 vision.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
The biggest challenge for renewable energy sources is to match the demand with the supply. By using thermal energy storage for concentrated solar power (CSP) plants, the stability, reliability, and capacity factor of the plants are improved. Conventional CSP plants typically use mirrors, which are expensive to produce, install, and maintain. Apart from that, conventional thermal storages are also expensive as these are based on molten salts, which are expensive and their handling require special materials. Based on a novel micro-structured polymer foil, Heliac, Denmark, has demonstrated cost-effectiveness of the Fresnel reflector integrated foil based CSP plants. The primary objective of “Small-scale CSP” is to design a novel thermal storage for Fresnel reflector integrated foil based CSP plants. Detailed numerical works as well as experimental demonstrations are included. The intention is to design a packed bed storage system with heat storage charging and discharging using evaporation/condensation of one or more heat transfer fluids. For the thermal storage to be designed in this project, the cost is estimated to be around 4 €/kWh which is less than half of the cost of conventional storage system using molten salt (~ 11 €/kWh). The estimated cost of electricity and heat generation from the Fresnel reflector integrated foil based CSP plant with storage (at Seville, Spain) is 38 €/MWh and 8 €/MWh, respectively. By involving research topics from different fields and collaborations with world-leading organizations from industry and academia, this is a truly inter-disciplinary and inter-sectorial project, ensuring its successful completion. In broader terms, the project will contribute to the development of cost-efficient renewable energy systems, reducing the dependence on fossil fuels and reducing the carbon dioxide emissions of the heat and power generation sector, thus helping to attain socio-economic and environmental targets in context of the EU 2020 vision.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- DANMARKS TEKNISKE UNIVERSITET · Kongens LyngbyCoordinatorDenmark
Links
- View on CORDIS
- DOI: 10.3030/794562
- https://orbit.dtu.dk/en/projects/small-scale-csp-numerical-and-experimental-analysis-of-a-novel-th
Data: CORDIS, © European Union