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DOE OSTI2020

Molten Chloride Thermophysical Properties, Chemical Optimization, and Purification

Next-generation concentrating solar power (CSP) technology requires high-temperature heat-transfer fluids and thermal energy storage that can operate in the temperature range of 500°–720°C. This high temperature demands a new chemistry for the heat-transfer fluids that must have high-temperature thermal and chemical stabilities, high energy density, and low corrosion rate on metallic materials used in the heat exchangers, piping, and thermal energy storage tanks. A ternary MgCl 2 -KCl-NaCl chloride-salt system has been proposed to achieve such goals, given its high-temperature thermal stability. The chloride-salt-based systems have been used by the metallurgy industry as the electrolyte to electrolytically extract metallic magnesium. They have also attracted attentions from the nuclear industry for developing the molten salt fast reactors that can operate at close to atmospheric pressure and at higher temperature than traditional light-water reactors. However, the corrosion properties of the ternary salt are not well known. The corrosion mechanism is believed to be correlated to the presence of MgOHCl impurity at the operation temperature. MgOHCl is fundamentally caused by the hygroscopic nature of the MgCl 2 component. Therefore, the first key objective of this project is to understand the nature of the corrosiveness of the ternary chloride-salt system and its prevention by designing new lab-scale purification processes. Because of its importance, a working group called the Chloride Salt Collective across multiple U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories is established to gain experimental agreement on the corrosion behaviors. In addition, water generation during salt dehydration could lead to highly corrosive HCl/water mixture via a hydrolysis process between water and anhydrous MgCl 2 or MgCl 2 hydrates. MgOHCl will eventually be converted to MgO particulates regardless of the chemical path chosen (i.e., by thermal decomposition, chemical purification with an active metal, or electrochemical purification utilizing the reduction power of electron flows). Large MgO particles with high hardness can wear out bearing and bushing and even clog the delicate channels in the primary heat exchanger. Because of this, a second objective is to understand the chemistry behind salt purification and transfer the scientific understanding to a set of engineering know-how for large-scale salt melter design. Because there is limited information on the thermophysical properties and the sensitivity of these properties around the targeted salt composition, a third objective is to measure thermophysical properties relevant to system and component design and support Topic 1 Liquid Pathway development. For example, composition shift due to salt reaction with water can be a potential issue because it can lead to changes of thermophysical properties, such as (1) melting point (or freeze point), which can jeopardize safe operation of the supercritical CO 2 power cycle proposed for next-generation CSP, and (2) heat capacity and density, which can decrease the overall power-generation capability of the plants. The value of the thermal conductivity of the selected salt composition is also a critical criterion for the solar receiver design.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2018

A comparison of price-taker and production cost models for determining system value, revenue, and scheduling of concentrating solar power plants

Concentrating solar power (CSP) plants convert solar energy into electricity and can be coupled with low-cost thermal energy storage to provide a dispatchable renewable resource. Maximizing the economic benefits of CSP systems requires deliberate selection of the timing of thermal energy dispatch to coincide with high-price or high-value periods. The performance and value of CSP systems have traditionally been evaluated using two distinct approaches: (1) production cost models (PCMs), which optimize commitment and dispatch schedules for an entire fleet of generators to minimize the cost of satisfying electricity demand; and (2) price-taker (PT) models, which optimize dispatch of the CSP system against historical or forecasted electricity prices to maximize revenue available to the CSP operator. The PCM approach is, in principle, superior because of the ability to capture system-level details such as transmission pathways and associated constraints, and feedback between CSP dispatch schedules and operation of other generators. The computationally simpler PT technique cannot explicitly address these concerns, but the comparative reduction in solution time is attractive for sensitivity analysis and rigorous optimization of CSP plant design and operation. In this work, we directly compare the dispatch profiles, net revenue, and operational value of CSP systems using implementations of each technique to assess how closely the solutions from the PT technique can approach those from the PCM for a specific market scenario. The PT implementation produced characteristically similar dispatch profiles as the PCM for both a large solar-multiple configuration and a small solar-multiple peaking configuration, while requiring only 1% of the computational time of the PCM. In addition, dispatching the CSP plant according to the self-scheduled PT solution - as opposed to the system-optimized PCM solution - only reduced the total CSP operational value by 1-5%, with consistent trends across CSP configurations and locations. This analysis validates the ability of the PT approach to substantially capture the economic benefits of CSP systems when pricing profiles are available, and indicates that the PT approach is suitable for initial design and optimization of CSP technologies.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2020

Assessing geothermal/solar hybridization – Integrating a solar thermal topping cycle into a geothermal bottoming cycle with energy storage

Geothermal and concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies typically use heat at different temperatures in their commercial deployments. This enables a technically viable hybridization of a solar topping cycle and a geothermal bottoming cycle at locations where both resources are available. In this article, an underperforming geothermal power system based at Burley, Idaho is used as a baseline to investigate the technical and economic potential of such a hybrid cycle. A direct thermal energy storage (TES) system is also integrated to overcome the intermittency of the solar resource. Design and off-design behavior of key components are modelled to simulate the annual performance of the hybrid system on an hourly basis. The sizing of the solar field and thermal storage is investigated and is seen to significantly impact the annual electricity generation and efficiency. Various cost scenarios for the solar field and thermal energy storage are investigated. An economic metric - levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) - is used to optimize the solar field sizing and TES capacity. The hybrid plant converts the additional solar heat input into additional work with an efficiency of 32.9%. Retrofitting a geothermal plant with solar and eight hours of energy storage can achieve an LCOE of 0.136 $/kWhe in current cost scenarios and 0.081 $/kWhe in a future cost reduction scenario. Although the hybrid system cannot directly compete with current PV systems without batteries, it has an LCOE 32% lower than that of a PV-battery system. This paper provides insights into the research and development of the future grid with a high renewable energy penetration and encourages further study of energy hybridization for improved efficiencies and economics.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2017

Solar energy dust and soiling R&D progress: Literature review update for 2016

The objective of this literature review and survey is to provide a compilation and assessment of recent published reports for solar-electric device soiling R&D, to extend and update the compendium covering 2012-2015 we published last year. This review provides a comprehensive listing of the publications with references for 2016 - with some preliminary 2017 publications that have appeared at the time of this writing. Photovoltaics (PV) and concentrating solar (thermal) power (CSP) technologies are covered. To guide the reader, tabulated information on the investigative focus of the studies, the location, the duration (if pertinent), the solar-device type, key findings and other useful information within the report is presented.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2025

A proposed high-intensity radiometer calibration method using concentrated solar radiation

Accurate calibration of irradiance measurement devices, or radiometers, is essential for ensuring the reliability of measurements in high heat applications such as concentrating solar power (CSP), aerospace, defense, and pulsed power systems. Despite the critical need, existing calibration standards and service providers are limited to irradiance levels below 100 kW/m 2 and specific radiation sources, which is insufficient for many applications. For instance, CSP technologies, particularly those under the Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) Gen 3 program, require accurate measurements of broadband irradiance at levels exceeding 2000 kW/m 2 . In even more extreme scenarios, such as re-entry vehicles, heat levels can surpass 10000 kW/m 2 . Current ISO standards, specifically ISO 14934–2 and ISO 14934–3, are constrained to lower irradiance levels and dependent on black body heat sources, limiting their applicability for high-intensity broadband irradiance measurements, particularly in concentrated solar applications. Here, to address this shortfall, the National Solar Thermal Test Facility (NSTTF) at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) proposes a calibration method and facility capable of characterizing radiometers up to 2750 kW/m 2 using concentrated solar irradiance. Calibrating with concentrated sunlight is important for solar applications as it aligns the calibration process with the solar spectrum. This alignment is crucial for minimizing systematic errors and avoiding the need for additional corrections that may arise when radiometers designed for solar applications are calibrated using black-body or electrical sources. This paper presents the present day NSTTF characterization facility and procedure, detailing the proposed calibration method and uncertainty quantification. The presented method builds upon 1980′s NSTTF methodology and involves both theoretical and empirical methods to establish a robust relationship between gauge voltage output and irradiance intensity, quantifying both measurement and fitting errors. By addressing the limitations of existing standards and extending the characterization range, this work provides an advancement in the field of high-intensity irradiance measurement and instrumentation characterization.

Gardon gauge↗

DOE OSTI2017

Design of Particle-Based Thermal Energy Storage for a Concentrating Solar Power System

Solid particles can operate at higher temperature than current molten salt or oil, and they can be a heat-transfer and storage medium in a concentrating solar power (CSP) system. By using inexpensive solid particles and containment material for thermal energy storage (TES), the particle-TES cost can be significantly lower than other TES methods such as a nitrate-salt system. The particle-TES system can hold hot particles at more than 800 degrees C with high thermal performance. The high particle temperatures increase the temperature difference between the hot and cold particles, and they improve the TES capacity. The particle-based CSP system is able to support high-efficiency power generation, such as the supercritical carbon-dioxide Brayton power cycle, to achieve >50% thermal-electric conversion efficiency. This paper describes a solid particle-TES system that integrates into a CSP plant. The hot particles discharge to a heat exchanger to drive the power cycle. The returning cold particles circulate through a particle receiver to absorb solar heat and charge the TES. This paper shows the design of a particle-TES system including containment silos, foundation, silo insulation, and particle materials. The analysis provides results for four TES capacities and two silo configurations. The design analysis indicates that the system can achieve high thermal efficiency, storage effectiveness (i.e., percentage usage of the hot particles), and exergetic efficiency. An insulation method for the hot silo was considered. The particle-TES system can achieve high performance and low cost, and it holds potential for next-generation CSP technology.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2015

Coupled optical/thermal/fluid analysis and design requirements for operation and testing of a supercritical CO 2 solar receiver.

Recent studies have evaluated closed-loop supercritical carbon dioxide (s-CO 2 ) Brayton cycles to be a higher energy-density system in comparison to conventional superheated steam Rankine systems. At turbine inlet conditions of 923K and 25 MPa, high thermal efficiency (~50%) can be achieved. Achieving these high efficiencies will make concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies a competitive alternative to current power generation methods. To incorporate a s-CO 2 Brayton power cycle in a solar power tower system, the development of a solar receiver capable of providing an outlet temperature of 923 K (at 25 MPa) is necessary. To satisfy the temperature requirements of a s-CO 2 Brayton cycle with recuperation and recompression, it is required to heat s-CO 2 by a temperature of ~200 K as it passes through the solar receiver. Our objective was to develop an optical-thermal-fluid model to design and evaluate a tubular receiver that will receive a heat input ~1 MWth from a heliostat field. We also undertook the documentation of design requirements for the development, testing and safe operation of a direct s-CO 2 solar receiver. The main purpose of this document is to serve as a reference and guideline for design and testing requirements, as well as to address the technical challenges and provide initial parameters for the computational models that will be employed for the development of s-CO 2 receivers.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2014

SERIIUS-MAGEEP Visiting Scholars Program

Recent studies have assessed closed-loop supercritical carbon dioxide (s-CO 2 ) Brayton cycles to be a higher energy-density system in comparison to equivalent superheated steam Rankine systems. At turbine inlet conditions of 700°C and 20 MPa, a cycle thermal efficiency of ~50% can be achieved. Achieving these high efficiencies will help concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies to become a competitive alternative to current power generation methods. To incorporate an s-CO 2 Brayton power cycle in a solar power tower system, the development of a solar receiver capable of providing an outlet temperature of 700°C (at 20 MPa) is necessary. To satisfy the temperature requirements of an s-CO 2 Brayton cycle with recuperation and recompression, the s-CO 2 must undergo a temperature rise of ~200°C as it flows through the solar receiver. The main objective is to develop an optical-thermal-fluid and structural model to validate a tubular receiver that will receive a heat input ~0.33 MWth from the heliostat field at the National Solar Thermal Test Facility (NSTTF), Albuquerque, NM, USA. We also commenced the development of computational models and testing of air receivers being developed by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay (IIT-B). The helical tubular receiver is expected to counteract the effect of thermal expansion while using a cavity to reduce the radiative and convective losses. Initially, this receiver will be tested for a temperature range of 100-300°C under 1 MPa of pressurized air. The helical air receiver will be exposed to 10kWth to achieve a temperature rise of ~200°C. Preliminary tests to validate the modeling will be performed before the design and construction of a larger scale receiver. Lastly, I focused on the development of a new computational tool that would allow us to perform a nodal creep-fatigue analysis on the receivers and heat exchangers being developed. This tool was developed using MATLAB and is capable of processing the results obtained from ANSYS Fluent and Structural combined, which was limited when using commercial software. The main advantage of this code is that it can be modified to run in parallel making it more affordable and faster compared to commercial codes available. The code is in the process of validation and is currently being compared to nCode Design Life.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗

DOE OSTI2017

Concentrating Solar Power Gen3 Demonstration Roadmap

Today's power-tower concentrating solar power (CSP) technology exists in large part as a result of Department of Energy (DOE) and utility industry funding of demonstration systems in the 1980s and 1990s. Today's most advanced towers are integrated with molten-salt thermal energy storage, delivering thermal energy at 565 degrees C for integration with conventional steam-Rankine cycles. The supercritical carbon dioxide power cycle has been identified as a likely successor to the steam-Rankine power cycle due to its potential for high efficiency when operating at elevated temperatures of 700 degrees C or greater. Over the course of the SunShot Initiative, DOE has supported a number of technology pathways that can operate efficiently at these temperatures and that hold promise to be reliable and cost effective. Three pathways - molten salt, particle, and gaseous - were selected for further investigation based on a two-day workshop held in August of 2016. The information contained in this roadmap identifies research and development challenges and lays out recommended research activities for each of the three pathways. DOE foresees that by successfully addressing the challenges identified in this roadmap, one or more technology pathways will be positioned for demonstration and subsequent commercialization within the next ten years. Based on current knowledge of the three power tower technologies, all three have the potential to achieve the SunShot goal of 6 cents/kilowatt-hour. Further development, modeling, and testing are now required to bring one or more of the technologies to a stage where integrated system tests and pilot demonstrations are feasible.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2019

Hyperlight Energy 7342 10-26-19 (Final Report)

One of the principal issues preventing the widescale deployment of Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) technologies for power and process heat generation is the high cost per unit energy produced. While the operating expenses of a solar plant are often far less than those of a comparable natural gas plant due to zero fuel costs, the increased capital costs of the system, and the collector field in particular, are a significant barrier to project feasibility. Hyperlight Energy has been funded under the DOE COLLECTS program to further develop its novel Linear Fresnel Reflector (LFR) design to meet the DOE’s programmatic goal of creating a solar collector that has an installed cost of less than $\$$99/m2 with a pathway towards a future price of $\$$50/m2. Hyperlight Energy has a unique, inexpensive design featuring four-inch-wide mirror slats mounted on 48 ft long extruded plastic D-profile tubes. By removing the steel and concrete of a traditional collectors Hyperlight is able to drastically decrease the materials and fabrication costs of the primary reflectors. The goal of this project was to prove the manufacturability of these reflectors, install a half-acre system of the collector, and test the performance of the field to determine the actual cost of the energy produced by the solar field. During the course of the project the half-acre system was successfully manufactured and deployed at the company’s demonstration site in Brawley, CA. The total collector cost came in under the desired $\$$99/m2 goal and proved the feasibility of this new type of solar field. With further planned cost reductions the DOE’s ultimate goal of $\$$50/m2 appears to be achievable. The data generated from this project has already been sufficient to secure Hyperlight Energy’s first commercial project, and continued operations will help to validate the product’s lifespan and performance over time. This will provide invaluable support for future installations. Hyperlight Energy has won a contract for a three-acre commercial project, but the company plans to aggressively pursue multiple similar and larger-scale projects in the near future. At present, these projects will serve to replace natural gas fired boilers in industrial processes, reducing the emissions of the associated plants. In the future, potential project sites will expand to include enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and other uses in the transportation fuel pathway, leading to fuels with a lower carbon intensity (CI). This path will allow renewable energy to begin to make an impact on the industrial process heat sector, which is one the primary consumers of natural gas and other fossil fuels in the country, and which is beyond the scope of other existing renewable technologies that exclusively generate electricity. Only by replacing the fossil fuels burned in industrial processes will the DOE’s emissions goals be achieved.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2021

Concurrent Optimization of Capital Cost and Expected O&M

Concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies can utilize heat from concentrated sunlight from a field of tracking mirrors to generate electricity, reform fuel, provide process heat, or augment fossil plant heat sources. Electricity-generating power tower systems focus light from thousands of independent heliostats onto a thermal receiver, which uses the focused light to warm a heat transfer fluid (HTF), typically, a molten nitrate salt. The HTF is then sent to a power generation cycle or diverted into thermal energy storage (TES) for later use. Thermal storage is – in principle – a straightforward proposition. However, optimal utilization of a TES resource is complex and multi-faceted: thermal energy may be dispatched to produce electricity immediately upon first availability, or thermal energy may be reserved for next-day peak periods at risk of filling storage and dumping energy, or a portion of the thermal energy can be reserved to maintain equipment temperatures, reducing power cycle startup time, etc. Many possible dispatch permutations variously emphasize producing peak power, operating through transients, expediting daily startup, etc. The best operation strategy can change day-to-day throughout the year, depending on the weather and market pricing forecasts. The project we describe in this report develops a software package that allows users to explore design optimization, operations decisions, and performance characterization of concentrating solar power tower plants. Users interface with the tool through a scripting language, and results are reported in time series tables, plots, runtime logs, and design outputs. Users choose from a list of variables such as tower height, solar multiple, design-point irradiance, thermal storage size, etc., and specify information about the system using a list of parameters. The software can then optimize the specified variables to reduce the cost of energy produced by the system while meeting certain production requirements, accounting for uncertain weather and electricity price forecasts, and correcting for equipment failures or repair time. The software we develop is the first comprehensive design tool of its kind to incorporate all of these aspects while being deployed as open source.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2024

Spectral and Temperature-Dependent Optical Metrology: Towards More Robust, Effective and Durable Materials for Concentrated Solar Power

The primary objective of this project is to develop reliable and standardized spectroscopic measurement techniques to determine radiative properties, specifically the emittance and reflectance, of materials relevant for the next generation (Gen3) concentrated solar power (CSP) technologies. Experimental measurements will span near- and mid-infrared wavelengths (1–20 µm) with emphasis on quantifying the influences of: (1) operating temperatures of 25–1000 °C, (2) thermal cycling, and (3) environmental exposure of materials during operation (vacuum/air). A secondary goal is to develop open-access and digitized databases to host and share experimental data, together with standardized measurement protocols and operating procedures to determine optical properties of materials. This project will also include reasonable emphasis on developing predictive modeling tools to augment experimental data to extract more fundamental and material-specific radiative properties.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

NASA NTRS1998

Chip Scale Package Integrity Assessment by Isothermal Aging

Many aspects of chip scale package (CSP) technology, with focus on assembly reliability characteristics, are being investigated by the JPL-led consortia. Three types of test vehicles were considered for evaluation and currently two configurations have been built to optimize attachment processes. These test vehicles use numerous package types. To understand potential failure mechanisms of the packages, particularly solder ball attachment, the grid CSPs were subjected to environmental exposure. Package I/Os ranged from 40 to nearly 300. This paper presents both as assembled, up to 1, 000 hours of isothermal aging shear test results and photo micrographs, and tensile test results before and after 1,500 cycles in the range of -30/100 C for CSPs. Results will be compared to BGAs with the same the same isothermal aging environmental exposures.

Ghaffarian, Reza↗

NASA NTRS1999

Chip Scale Package Integrity Assessment by Isothermal Aging

chipscale↗

DOE OSTI2019

Technical Potential of Solar in Peru Using the Renewable Energy Data Explorer

Fact sheet details the Renewable Energy Data Explorer (RE Data Explorer) tool created for the Peruvian Ministry Energy and Mines (MINEM). The Peruvian RE Data Explorer is used to perform an initial technical potential analysis to calculate the available land area and technical potential for PV and CSP technologies in Peru.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2019

Dispatch optimization of concentrating solar power with utility-scale photovoltaics

Concentrating solar power (CSP) tower technologies capture thermal radiation from the sun utilizing a field of solar-tracking heliostats. When paired with inexpensive thermal energy storage (TES), CSP technologies can dispatch electricity during peak-market-priced hours, day or night. The cost of utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) systems has dropped significantly in the last decade, resulting in inexpensive energy production during daylight hours. The hybridization of PV and CSP with TES systems has the potential to provide continuous and stable energy production at a lower cost than a PV or CSP system alone. Hybrid systems are gaining popularity in international markets as a means to increase renewable energy portfolios across the world. Typically, CSP-PV hybrid systems have been evaluated using either monthly averages of hourly PV production or scheduling algorithms that neglect the time-of-production value of electricity in the market. To more accurately evaluate a CSP-PV-battery hybrid design, we develop a profit-maximizing mixed-integer linear program ($\mathcal{H}$) that determines a dispatch schedule for the individual sub-systems with a sub-hourly time fidelity. We introduce the mathematical formulation of such a model and show that it is computationally expensive to solve. To improve model tractability and reduce solution times, we offer techniques that: (1) reduce the problem size, (2) tighten the linear programming relaxation of ($\mathcal{H}$) via reformulation and the introduction of cuts, and (3) implement an optimization-based heuristic (that can yield initial feasible solutions for (($\mathcal{H}$) and, at any rate, yields near-optimal solutions). Applying these solution techniques results in a 79% improvement in solve time, on average, for our 48-h instances of (($\mathcal{H}$); corresponding solution times for an annual model run decrease by as much as 93%, where such a run consists of solving 365 instances of (($\mathcal{H}$), retaining only the first 24 h' worth of the solution, and sliding the time window forward 24 h. We present annual system metrics for two locations and two markets that inform design practices for hybrid systems and lay the groundwork for a more exhaustive policy analysis. A comparison of alternative hybrid systems to the CSP-only system reflects that hybrid models can almost double capacity factors while resulting in a 30% improvement related to various economic metrics.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2025

CSP Systems Analysis 2022-2024 (Final Technical Report)

The CSP Systems Analysis project estimates the current market cost of CSP subsystems and technologies for use by the DOE Program and within NREL analysis tools. The project addresses upgrades to NREL's System Advisor Model (SAM) related to CSP, as well as development of new modules within SAM to expand the types of CSP systems that can be simulated and new tools for evaluating CSP subsystem performance or optimizing CSP system layouts, for example, SolarPILOT and SolTrace. The project evaluates the potential cost and performance of new CSP-relevant technologies and generally includes assessment of CSP technologies in support of the DOE subprogram. A primary goal of the CSP System Analysis project is to provide timely and accurate cost data to the DOE to assess the current state of CSP technologies as well as predict performance and cost for pre-commercial and emerging technologies that may impact the industry. Prior work in this task has produced technology cost reports and roadmaps for DOE and highlighted promising research paths that could reduce overall CSP cost, such as the supercritical CO2 power cycle and molten-salt trough systems. CSP Systems Analysis produces modeling tools to evaluate the performance of CSP systems, subsystems, or components, and journal articles, conference papers, technical reports and databases to disseminate information to the CSP industry. CSP technology costs are estimated and tracked using these tools as well as analysis of literature and industry sources. The CSP modeling tools and NREL analysis results are used by researchers; government, financial, and industry analysts; and other CSP stakeholders. The purpose of this final technical report is to summarize the key accomplishments of the past three years of this project. The project was divided into seven separate tasks, and in what follows, we describe the background, objectives, key accomplishments, and path forward for each task within the project, with one section of this report summarizing each task.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2017

Dish systems for CSP

Parabolic dish technology, for concentrating solar power (CSP) applications, has been continuously modified and improved since the pioneering work in the 1970s. Best practice dishes now have features such as lightweight structure, balanced design, high-quality, low-cost mirror panels, and can be deployed rapidly with little in-field labour. This review focuses on the evolution of dish design, by examining features such as mode of tracking, structure and mirror design, for a wide selection of CSP dish examples. Finally, the review includes a brief summary of power generation options – both on-dish and central plant – as well as a discussion about options for storage and hybridisation.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗