Solar Thermal Power Plants

SOLAIR TECHNOLOGY
… Clean Electricity from Solar
Energy and Atmospheric Air

Dr. Manuel Romero

CIEMAT
Plataforma Solar de
Almería
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 SOLAIR EUROPEAN CONSORTIUM

HelioTech
Denmark (1)

Germany (1)

Greece (1) CERTH

Spain (3)

A combination of solar R&D, solar engineering,

ceramics and materials science
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What is solar thermal power all about?

SOLAR RADIATION

MIRRORS

RECEIVER

HEAT
STORAGE

HOT
POINT

TURBINE

COLD POINT

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What is solar thermal power all about?

’ Best solar integration

into conventional thermal
power plants.
’ Thermal storage means
dispatchability without
perturbations of the grid.
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 Potential of Solar Thermal Power Plants
- A huge reservoir in the sunbelt -

With Solar Thermal Power Plants,

each square meter of mirror
produces ...............
up to 500kWh of electricity per year,
avoiding.................
12 tons of carbon dioxide emissions
How
and saving .............
relevant are
2.5 tons of fossil fuel those
over its 25 year lifetime. figures?
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Potential of Solar Thermal Power Plants
- A huge reservoir in the sunbelt -
Strong potential
for the
Mediterranean

Less than 1% of arid and semi-arid

areas are enough to supply the annual
World demand of electricity!!
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 The SOLAIR scheme
Solar + Air = Electricity
R&D
needed
Solar Receiver Hot Air 680ºC

Fresh air Steam

(20ºC) Generator

Thermal
Storage ~

Steam
65 bar, 460ºC
Heliostat Field Blower Air return Blower
110ºC
Power Block
Concentrating Electric Power
solar system Air circuit Generating System

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 SOLAIR Project Objectives

Develop receiver (technology not available in 1999):

•Efficient
•Low-cost
•Simple

Ceramic solar absorber, that allows:

•high solar concentration
•longer material lifetime
•stable at high temperatures (over 1,000ºC)

Modular design strategy

(from 200kW to 3,000 kW and upwards!!!!!)
1999 ----------Æ 2003 --------Æ2006
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 SOLAR FACILITIES USED

Plataforma Solar Solar Furnace

de Almería, German Aerospace Centre,
CIEMAT (Spain) Cologne (Germany)

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 SOLAIR EC PROJECT:
THE ACHIEVEMENTS

3000 kW 200 kW 30 kW
2004 2002 2001 2000
Commercial module Proof-of-concept module
Ceramic cups
Ceramic Honeycomb

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 Receiver design : Maximum modularity

2.5m
• Any size
2.5m
• The same
module 11
 SOLAIR 3MW receiver testing

-Producing superheated steam

at 440ºC 80% efficiency from solar to air!!!!
- Pilot plant including receiver, Up to 1000ºC air temperature
heat storage and steam achieved!!!!
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generator
 SOLAIR absorber working principle:
A Solar hair dryer!!!

Solar radiation
Air
1000 kW/m2

High efficiency because:

-Solar photons trapped inside
- Heat transfer is volumetric
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 SOLAIR absorber working principle:
A Solar hair dryer!!!

to steam
generator

3 MWth Receiver

Test-bed 0ºC
0
Air 0- 1,0
68
Air 20ºC

Solar
radiation

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 What follows?
Early commercial project by 2006
Somewhere in Spain

Nominal power
• 10 MW (electric power)

Heliostats
SOLAIR-10
• Mirrors 90,000 m2 power plant
Tower
• Height 95 m
Receiver
• Height 10m
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 Project spin-off

•Solar power plants:

• Technology required and detailed engineering
ready for first-of-its-kind commercial plant
• KAM (Germany) have expressed interest in
supplying turn-key plants.
• LiqTech/Heliotech (Denmark) and Saint Gobain
Ceramics (Germany), have expressed interest in
supplying an industrial-scale ceramic absorber.

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 Project spin-off
Use of ceramic material as a filter for separating
particles from liquids and hot gases:
gases
• for diesel engine exhaust on buses, trucks, trains, etc
• for separating yeast and sterilizing beer in breweries
• for sterilizing milk by separating bacteria and viruses in dairies,
avoiding the pasteurization

LiqTech144mm: ceramic
module for sterilizing beer
Diesel Particle Filter for a city and milk
bus

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 Conclusions

• SOLAIR means electricity production by profiting from solar

energy and air available for free in nature.
• After testing of a 3-MW pilot module, the SOLAIR receiver (key
system) has been proven efficient and mature.
• Modularity and simplicity is its distinctive feature: From dozens
to thousands of kW with the same module architecture.
• The European SOLAIR consortium offers the technology to
Independent Power Promoters and Utilities.
• Detailed engineering for an early plant has already been
completed.
• The potential is enormous for arid and semi-arid areas, all over
the world.
• Spin-off, as a filter for liquids.
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