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Department of the Industrial Engineering

Course Name: Mechanical Technology ( Lab )

Final Semester Project

Submitted to: Engr. M. Ashraf

Submitted By: Izhar Sultan Nasir ( 17-IE-33 )

Usama Naveed Butt ( 17-IE-37 )
Sidra Saeed (17-iee-27)
M. Ibrahim Shahzad ( 17-IE-39 )
Date: 09 August, 2018

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Effect of canopy profile on solar thermal chimney

performance

Author’s Name:
 P.J.Cottam
 P.Duffour
 P.Lindstrand
 P.Fromme

Objectives:
This article involves the study of:
 Efficient, steady state analytical simulation of STC power plant.
 Detailed collector model, taking into account varying heat transfer and fluid dynamics.
 Collector outlet height shown to have large impact on power output.
 Different collector canopy profiles studied, best configuration evaluated.
 Simpler to construct, segmented or stepped canopy profile proposed.

About:
This research paper is about the study of Efficient and smooth analytical simulation along
with detailed collector model in order to notice varying heat transfer and fluid dynamics. Collector
height is also the point discussed in the research paper and the impact it produces over power
output is discussed. Different Canopy profiles are studied and their configurations are evaluated.
Results show that the height of the canopy has a significant effect on plant performance and that
the canopy must be sufficiently high at the junction with the chimney to ensure maximum kinetic
energy in the flow at the chimney inlet can be reached. Moreover, Simpler to construct segmented
or stepped canopy profiles are discussed.

Solar Thermal Chimney (STC):

The solar thermal chimney (STC) – also called a solar updraft tower – is a large-scale solar
power plant suited for desert deployment. It consists of a solar collector, which generates buoyant

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air; a tall chimney through which the buoyant air rises; and a turbine and generator set which
extracts power from the pressure difference across it, generating electricity.
It was found that Pretorius and Kröger (2006) simulated both higher heat losses and heat
gains than Bernardes et al. (2003), leading to similar predicted power output. More recently, Zhou
et al. (2014) developed a steady state, compressible-flow model of the collector using a two-phase
working fluid (humid air) to predict the performance of STC power plants in which the collector
is affixed to a mountainside, reducing the required height of the chimney.
The role of collector canopy shape in reducing STC leveled electricity cost has received
limited attention. Pasumarthi and Sherif (1998) studied the performance of a small-scale physical
prototype STC with three different configurations of the collector, varying collector size and
materials used. They concluded that introducing an intermediate absorber in the collector has the
potential to boost mass flow rate. Koonsrisuk and Chitsomboon (2013) studied the impact of
canopy and chimney profile parameters by investigating flow area changes within the STC, with
a view to increasing power output. They derived a theoretical expression showing how a collector
canopy rising towards the chimney and a flaring chimney can boost power output by up to 400%,
validating their theoretical calculations with CFD analysis. Their model was limited to a constant
heat transfer flux to the air over the collector area, and the turbine was not modelled.
However, they provide compelling evidence that canopy designs other than the flat profile
can lead to significant power gains. Beyond this, the impact of changing canopy profile types or
parameters has not been studied in detail.
This contribution develops a theoretical STC model with a detailed thermodynamic analysis of the
air flow and temperature rise under the collector, incorporating collector heat loss and surface
shear stress. Different collector canopy profiles are systematically assessed, with a view to
maximizing power output whilst paying due consideration to engineering practicality.

Model Developed:
In order to assess the maximum power output across a wide range of plant design
parameters. Therefore, a steady-state formulation was chosen, as it is more efficient, with transient
simulations mostly required when start-up and nighttime operation need to be assessed. Therefore,
an analytical model of a solar thermal chimney power plant has been developed in order to compare
systematically different collector canopy profiles.

Details of Model:
The model presented here consists of a comprehensive thermo-fluids model for the
collector and chimney. All flow within the collector is assumed axisymmetric and radial, reducing
the collector to a one-dimensional flow problem with reducing circumferential area. The
simulation problem is treated as steady state and the flow is assumed incompressible, using the
Bossiness approximation to capture the effect of change in fluid density. Turbine efficiency and
the ratio of turbine pressure drop to chimney pressure drop are assumed to be fixed values and the
working fluid is dry air (a single-phase gas).

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Functions of Model:
The model first simulates each STC component – the solar collector, the chimney and the
turbine – separately. These component models are then coupled together to simulate the entire
STC plant through an iterative process so that the input and output of each component converge
to stable values. The steady-state model presented here was implemented in Mat lab. It was
designed to run rapidly in order to investigate systematically the influence of a wide range of key
design parameters and environmental conditions. The reference parameters for the STC simulation
were used.
These reference values were chosen for ease of comparison with existing models published in the
literature. The parametric values along with range are given below:

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Collector and the Final equation:

The collector is discretized along the radial path, forming linked annular discretized
sections. The continuity equation is defined as

Where r is the point on the collector radial

path, measured from the collector center; ρ is the air density; hc is the height of the canopy at
point r; and v is the mean air velocity at point r.
Conservation of momentum is given by

Collector Economy:

Working Air:

Ground Surface:

Collective Energy flow:

All Q terms in above equations are combined and expanded into one of the
following terms:

Where,

Different Canopy Profile Designs:

This section assesses the performance of the three-canopy profile types employed in
literature (flat, constant-gradient sloped and exponential) as well as two proposed new profile types
(segmented and stepped).

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Exponential Canopy Profile:

The exponential canopy shape is defined by

Where hc (r) is the canopy height at point r on the collector radial path, (r decreases
from RC towards zero at the center of the collector); Hci is the canopy height at the collector inlet;
RC is the collector radius; and b is the canopy profile exponent, which defines the shape of the
canopy.

Flat Canopy Profile:

The flat canopy has the same height throughout the collector, and has the advantage of
being simple and relatively cheap to construct and maintain (for moderate heights at least). Due to
its simplicity, it has been used for many physical prototypes.

Constant-gradient Sloped Canopy Profile:

For the constant-gradient profile, the canopy height increases linearly from the collector
inlet height Hci at the periphery to the collector outlet height Hco at the collector center. Depending
on the gradient, this can result in an increasing flow area for parts of the collector and an associated
decrease of the air velocity.

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The radial path graphs for these canopy profiles discussed in research paper are:

Comparison between Features:

The canopy must have sufficient height to obtain higher power output – this is especially
true of the collector outlet height. Once a certain height threshold has been reached, power output
is less sensitive to canopy height or the actual canopy shape. This means that engineering
practicality can take precedence and simpler collector designs can be chosen, such as the
segmented stepped canopy that generates similar power output at lower construction cost. For
canopies with sufficient height, the plant power output curves follow closely the chimney inlet
velocity. This means that the collector to chimney transition is important and that the mass flow
rate is the key driver for increased power generation.

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Conclusions:
The research paper helped in figuring out the efficient and steady state of analytical
simulation of STC Power plant. Moreover, detailed collector model were taken into consideration
in order to check the varying heat transfer and fluid dynamics. In addition, the collector outlet
height was studied to check its impact on power output and different collector canopy profiles
were studied in order to evaluate the best configuration. We concluded that the stepped canopy
profile proposed is simpler to construct and managed.
We also studied that existing literature has focused mainly on canopy profiles, which are
either flat, sloped at a constant gradient, or exponential. Flat canopies are simple to design, but
cause pressure losses due to the restriction of the air flow cross section, especially close to the
chimney. A constant-gradient sloped canopy can improve power output. The exponential canopy
profile allows performance improvements, but construction and maintenance could be difficult and
costly due to access issues. For the best-performing design of each canopy profile, the
temperature rise and associated density drop under the collector were found to be quite similar.
The canopy outlet height was shown to be an important parameter as it defines the pressure drop
in the flow through the collector-to-chimney transition section. This highlighted the importance of
sufficiently increasing the cross-sectional flow area near the chimney to prevent pressure losses.
This study investigated whether improved canopy designs could reduce cost at little-to-no
loss in power generation. An efficient analytical, steady-state simulation model of the STC power
plant has been developed, with a detailed model of the collector including coupling of the heat
transfer and fluid dynamics along the collector radial path. The model was used to investigate the
peak power output for various system dimensions and collector canopy profiles. The results shown
indicate that the design of the canopy influences the plant power performance in a significant but
non-straightforward way.

Remarks:
Results indicate that the stepped, segmented canopy profile is likely to provide a good
compromise between power outputs to construction cost. The predicted power generation for
such a segmented canopy design was found to be highly robust for a wide range of
environmental conditions. Further work will be required to quantify the potential cost savings
and to investigate additional factors which influence the predicted power generation, such as
ambient wind, frictional and heat losses.

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Advanced hybrid solar tower combined-cycle power

plants

Author’s Name :
 J. Spelling,
 B. Laumert,

 T. Fransson

Objectives :
The main objectives of this article are
 To increase the economic viability of the technology.
 To pinpoint the most promising configurations.
 To identify Pareto-optimal designs and highlight the trade-offs between minimizing
investment costs and minimizing specific CO2 emissions.
 22% reduction in costs and a 32% reduction in CO2 emissions are achieved relative to a
combination of parabolic trough and combined-cycle power plants.

Nomenclature used :

α Capital Return Factor [-]

cC Carbon Content [kgC/kgF]
COT Combustor Outlet Temperature [°C]
DNI Direct Normal Insolation [kWh/m2yr]
DYESOPT Dynamic Energy Systems Optimizer
E
net Net Electricity Production [MWhe/yr]
fCO2 Specific CO2 Emissions [kgCO2/MWhe]
HSGT Hybrid Solar Gas-Turbine
i Real Debt Interest Rate [-]
kins Annual Insurance Rate [-]
LCOE Levelized Cost of Electricity [USD/MWhe]
Mf Annual Fuel Consumption [kgF/yr]
n Power Plant Equipment Lifetime [yr]
TES Thermal Energy Storage

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.Introduction:

Over 90% of the currently installed solar thermal power plant (STPP) capacity is based on
parabolic trough technology, which has been under development since the late 1980s. These power
plants employ Rankine-cycle power blocks with low temperature (below 400ºC [1]) steam-
turbines. the cost of electricity from these power plants remains high, typically above 210
USD/MWhe [2] More recent central receiver STPPs produce higher temperature
steam (~540°C [1]), increasing efficiency, but, in truth, a step change in technology is needed to
drive down electricity costs and thereby increase the economic viability of solar thermal power.

Solar gas-turbine technology :

Solar gas turbine technology is a promising alternative concept and would appear to present a
number of advantages when compared to conventional steam-turbine based STPPs. Advances in
the field of solar air receivers allow solar gas-turbine systems to harness the Sun’s energy at high
temperatures [3]. Coupled with the use of combined-cycle power blocks, higher temperatures
increase the conversion efficiency of the solar energy [4] and thereby reduce the size of the
collector field for a given power output. Solar collector costs dominate the overall cost
of a STPP, so a reduction in the number of collector units will help to reduce the cost of the
electricity produced. The use of gas-turbines instead of steam-turbines also results in a significant
reduction in water consumption [5], allowing STPPs to be deployed in arid or desert locations
which possess excellent solar resources and large areas of unused land [6]. Other advantages of
gas-turbine STPPs include a reduction in start-up times, the use of an inert
working fluid (air) and the possibility for increased flexibility of the power plant through
hybridization.

Hybrid operation :
It is a key feature of solar gas-turbine technology, facilitating control and ensuring the availability
of the power plant to meet demand whenever it occurs. Guaranteed electricity production (by
supplementing solar heat with combustion when the solar irradiation is insufficient) reduces the
economic risks associated with the construction of such plants, and makes hybrid solar gas-turbine
power plants ideally suited to forming the back-bone
of a future low-carbon electricity grid.

Advanced hybrid solar combined-cycle power plants :

A serial hybridization scheme has been selected for the topping HSGT cycle, with the entire main
airflow of the gas-turbine passing through the solar receiver. As the Sun’s energy is to be harnessed
at high temperatures, high concentration ratios are required in order to maintain an acceptable
efficiency at the receiver [15]; this implies the use of a heliostat field solar collector. Given the
large size of the combined-cycle power plant, the power block will have to remain at the base of
the tower, and a concentric piping arrangement is assumed for ducting of the compressor air up
and down the tower. Within the pipes, the incoming air is slightly heated by the hotter air coming
down from the receiver through the inner pipe; the hot air is slightly cooled by the same effect.

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Material limits in the piping ducts

currently restrict tower-mounted solar receivers to temperatures below 950°C [16].

The pre-heated air produced by the solar receiver is then sent to the gas-turbine combustion
chamber where fuel is injected in order to reach the desired combustor outlet temperature (COT).
Solar preheating of the compressor air allows fuel consumption to be dramatically reduced.
Additionally, fuel-flow to the combustion chamber can easily be adjusted to compensate for
fluctuations in the solar heat input, allowing a stable COT to be maintained. In order to increase
the fraction of solar heat supplied to the power cycle, a high-temperature TES has been integrated
into the topping-cycle, in parallel to the solar receiver. The addition of a TES unit to the HSGT
power plant allows excess solar energy to be stored during daytime and used at night or during the
passage of clouds. In this way, better use can be made of the investment in additional heliostats,
making larger heliostat fields more economically viable. At the same time, solar heat can be
introduced into the gas-turbine over a longer period and, as a result, the annual solar share of the
electricity produced rises.

Thermo economic modeling :

The performance of the different HSGT concepts presented in the preceding sections has been
analyzed using the in-house thermoeconomics tool: DYESOPT. Thermoeconomic analysis
combines thermodynamic performance calculations with equipment cost predictions and financing
concepts; in this way both environmental and economic aspects can be taken into account and the
correct compromise selected to reflect society’s needs.A basic flowsheet of the thermoeconomic
analysis process is shown in Fig. 2. Based on the desired power plant
parameters, a steady-state routine first calculates the nominal operating point and, from these
values, sizes the power plant equipment. The equipment sizes and nominal point data are then sent
to a transient simulation routine where an entire year’s worth of operation can be simulated, based
on a given set of meteorological data and the operating strategy of the plant. Given the high
variability in the solar resource over the year, annual simulation of the power
plants is essential in order to obtain a representative evaluation of their performance.

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The equipment sizes and nominal point data are also used to calculate the capital cost of the power
plant equipment. These cost values are then used together with the plant operating conditions to
calculate the annual maintenance and labor costs. The capital, maintenance and labor costs are
then combined with the performance data from the transient simulation (chiefly fuel and water
consumption) to get complete values for the total investment and operating costs. As output, the
analysis process produces a series of thermoeconomic performance indicators,
such as investment costs, levelized electricity costs, specific CO2 emissions, water consumption,
and many more.

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Multi objective optimization :

The majority of cases of energy system analysis require the consideration of multiple, conflicting,
objectives. This is especially true of hybrid solar power systems, where many different
performance indicators must be considered. It is desirable that the hybrid power plants produce
electricity at the most economically competitive rates, but also produce minimum CO2 emissions
and consume as little water as possible. These different objectives will be conflicting: with the
current high cost of solar components and relatively cheap fuel, designing purely for
cost will result in a low degree of solarization and thus large CO2 emissions, whereas aiming
simply to minimize CO2 emissions alone will result in designs that are too expensive to be
economically viable.
As such, no single optimum can be found for all objectives. In order to examine
the trade-offs that must be made between reduced fuel consumption (resulting from the solar input)
and the added investment cost in solar collector equipment, multi-objective optimization has been
performed. In this way, the different trade-offs can be examined
and a range of solutions is presented to decision makers, who can then choose the desired
compromise between the objectives. The optimal trade-off curve is given by the designs lying on
the Pareto-optimal front [33]. A Paretooptimal design is such that there exists no other design that
is simultaneously better in all objectives, i.e. moving from a Pareto-optimal point to any other
feasible point makes at least one objective worse.

We can check the multi objective optimization through the following processes

1. Optimization decision variables

2. Operational and economic boundary conditions
3. Optimization objective functions
4. Algorithm convergence

Thermo economic analysis :

Having established the set of Pareto-optimal power plant designs for the advanced HSGT power
plant, the designs lying on the trade-off curve can be analyzed in more detail in order to identify
design rules. The Paretooptimal HSGT layouts are presented as a function of the desired annual
solar share.

Optimal gas-turbine parameters

Three key design parameters are presented: the combustor outlet temperature, the nominal receiver
temperature and the compressor pressure ratio. The evolution of these parameters are shown in
Fig. 4 as a function of the annual solar share alongside the values for an optimized simple-cycle
HSGT without TES taken from a previous work [13].

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It can be seen that, similarly to the optimised simple-cycle designs, the evolution of the
temperatures splits the designs for the optimal combined-cycle gas-turbine into three clear
domains, with transition points situated at 37% and 76% annual solar share. In Zone 1, the COT
is maintained high in order to ensure a high conversion efficiency for the gas-turbine, and the
nominal receiver temperature increases in order to increase the nominal solar share. In
Zone 2, the nominal receiver temperature has reached the maximum possible for contemporary
designs (in this case 950°C), and thus cannot increase further. In order to continue increasing the
nominal solar share, and thus integrate more heat into the gas-turbine cycle, it becomes necessary
to reduce the COT. While this reduces the overall conversion efficiency of the power plant, the
total fuel consumption is reduced due to the greater degree of solar heat integration. In Zone 3, the
COT has decreased to the level of the nominal receiver temperature. At this point, no
fuel is burnt in the combustion chamber when the receiver is operating at design conditions and
the nominal solar share is thus 100%. However, the annual solar share is not equal to 100% at this
point; the heliostat field and storage unit are not yet large enough to provide nominal power at all
times, giving an annualised solar share of only 76%. The annual solar share can be increased
further in Zone 3 by increasing the size of the heliostat field and the storage units, reaching a
maximum value of 98% solar share.

Conclusions

In order to overcome the limitations of the simple-cycle HSGT layouts studied in previous works,
two power plant improvements were combined to form an advanced HSGT power plant. High-
temperature TES units were integrated to extend the degree of solar operation, and a conventional
Rankine bottoming-cycle was added to reduce the cost of electricity. The advanced HSGT power
plant was analyzed using thermoeconomic tools in order to determine the performance, economic
viability and environmental impact. Multi-objective optimization was used to examine the trade-
offs between electricity costs and CO2 emissions and the results were compared against existing
power plant concepts. The advanced combined-cycle configuration can achieve annual solar shares
of over 90% while electricity costs range from a minimum of 81 USD/MWhe to a value of 105

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USD/MWhe at an annual solar share of 37% and 157 USD/MWhe at an annual solar share of 76%.
With optimally designed gas-turbines for this application, the performance of these power plants
offer a significantly advantage over a simple combination of conventional power plant designs,
demonstrating both lower emissions and a lower cost of electricity than any combination of
conventional power plant designs For a given cost of electricity, the hybrid solar combined-cycle
power plant with storage offers a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions of up to 34%. Similarly,
for a given level of emissions, the levelised electricity cost can be reduced by up to 22%. Hybrid
solar gas-turbine power plants have been shown to be a promising alternative to conventional
steam-cycle solar thermal power plants. Low water consumption and competitive electricity costs
make hybrid solar gas-turbines an attractive choice for deployment in high-insolation desert areas.
By reducing water conflicts, new regions are opened up for the deployment of solar thermal power
technology, hopefully leading to increased capacity, lower
costs and a reduction in our dependence on fossil-fuels.

Remarks
Hybrid solar gas-turbine power plants have been shown to be a promising alternative to
conventional steam-cycle solar thermal power plants. Low water consumption and
competitive electricity costs make hybrid solar gas-turbines an attractive choice for
deployment in high-insolation desert areas. By reducing water conflicts, new regions are
opened up for the deployment of solar thermal power technology, hopefully leading to
increased capacity, lower costs and a reduction in our dependence on fossil-fuels.

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eSolar’s modular, scalable molten salt power tower

reference plant design
Objective:
The objective is to understand what this power plant is and its functioning.
About:
This paper describes the details of this molten salt reference plant design as developed over the
past two years, as well as a potential scenario during its deployment. The technology has been
proven at Sierra Sun Tower Generating Station located in Lancaster, California.
This facility, comprised of two thermal modules and associated power generation system, utilizes
our first generation technology, including a B&W direct steam receiver and 24,360 of eSolar’s
1.1-m² heliostats. While this direct steam system is effective for generating power when the sun is
shining, storage is difficult and expensive to incorporate in a direct steam system. Molten salt
system is based on a 50-MWt module comprised of a tower-mounted molten salt receiver
surrounded by a heliostat field utilizing eSolar’s small heliostat technology. The unique feature of
our technology is the ability to replicate the basic thermal module, without scaling or redesign, as
many times as required (typically 2 to 14) to create plant sizes from 50 to 200 MW with capacity
factors ranging from 20 to 75%.
50-MWt B&W-designed, salt-in-tube receiver is factory-built and shipped fully assembled to the
plant site to be lifted by a crane to the top of a 100-m tall steel monopole tower. The hexagonal
heliostat field surrounding the receiver and tower is comprised of about 47,000 of eSolar’s new
2.2-m² SCS5 heliostats, calibrated and controlled by Spectra software system.
Unique to our modular design is the requirement for a field piping system to deliver 288ºC “cold”
molten nitrate salt from the centrally located storage system to the receivers, and return 565ºC
“hot” salt to the storage system.
The Thermal module is ideal for quick loss estimation, and for comparing different operating
conditions, or comparing devices of different manufacturers. Sunshine concentrated onto a tower
by a field of mirrors heats molten salt within the tower to over 1,000 degrees Farenheit, which can
then be used to generate steam and turn a turbine.
They had done trade studies to get the best performance of the tower plant.

 Plant level design consideration:

Solar collector: Hexagonal field layout was found to be close to the optimal circle in terms of
optical performance,while allowing better packing of an array of fields and significantly improving
field piping layouts and decreasing piping costs. Chosen field layout as a 1:1 aspect ratio, a small
north field bias, and 44% heliostat density.
Receiver and module size. Optimal module size depends on several factors. Their final section of
a 50-MWt receiver and module was determined by the maximum receiver size they could ship
fully assembled without excessive over-size shipping costs.

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Configuration of tower: They used the monopole tower instead of concrete and lattice. Because
monopole tower is the lowest cost configuration satisfying performance requirements and
available from many suppliers leveraging the wind industry’s well established supply chain
Configuration of Plant: The Plant Configuration Trade Study (based on Daggett-type weather
(~7.4 kWh/m²-day)) Examined the effects of SCS (Solar collector system)-to-SRS (Solar receiver
system) solar multiple, SRS-to-SGS (Steam generator system) solar multiple, thermal
Storage system size, and power block rating on performance, capital cost, and LCOE (Levelized
cost of electricity).
To assure optimal plant utilization on an annual basis, the SCS-to-SRS solar multiple should be
about 1.2 at our summer solstice design point.
Optimal SRS-to-SGS solar multiple and thermal storage size are interrelated and depend on desired
Capacity factor

 Major System description:

Solar Collector system:
The major function of SCS is to collect and transfer solar energy to the solar receiver
system (SRS). The eSolar design uses thousands of independently controlled 2.2-m² heliostats
organized into modular heliostat fields. The use of small, close-packed heliostats reduces wind
loads, simplifies design and installation, and leverages mass production. In addition, the modular
heliostat fields allow for flexible site layouts for the plant as a whole. eSolar’s software system,
Spectra, automatically calibrates and controls the heliostats.The heliostats are organized in
modular hexagonal heliostat fields, each with a heliostat area of about 103,000 m² sufficient in
size to power a 50-MWt receiver. The hexagonal field shape was chosen to permit the shortest
field piping lengths to each of the towers within the plant. SCS can control function of SCS
including communication with the heliostat field, calibration of the heliostats, controlling flux
delivered to the SRS, as well as performing automated diagnostics to measure various performance
metrics and facilitating O&M activities.
Solar receiver system:
The SRS (consisting of the receiver, tower, field piping, and cold salt pumps) converts
solar flux from the SCS into thermal energy stored as high temperature molten salt. The receivers,
rated at 50 MWt absorbed power, are an external, salt-in-tube design consisting of panels arranged
in a box configuration, similar in shape to B&W’s direct steam receiver deployed at Sierra. The
salt piping system includes all piping, supports, insulation, heat trace, and valves necessary to
transport the cold salt from the cold salt pumps to the receiver inlet vessels and return it from the
receivers to the hot salt storage tank.
Plant characteristics:
A 14-module, 75% capacity-factor plant requires about 10,000 m of cold salt piping and
17,000 m of hot salt piping. While overall the field piping contributes about 1% to total thermal
energy losses, adds a few percent to overall plant capital costs, and adds slightly to the plant
parasitic load (0.3% of total gross annual production),
Insulated carbon steel is used for cold salt and insulated stainless steel is used for hot salt.

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Thermal storage system: The TSS (consisting of nitrate salt (60 wt % NaNO3, 40 wt % KNO3),
cold and hot storage tanks with passively cooled foundations, and salt melting and handling
equipment) stores thermal energy in molten salt so as to decouple solar energy collection from
electrical energy production. In this design, the molten nitrate salt thermal storage medium also
serves as the heat transfer fluid.
Working:
The two-tank heat storage system design is very similar to the Solar Two TSS. Cold nitrate
salt (nominally 288°C) is stored in an externally-insulated, cylindrical tank. During solar
collection, cold salt is pumped from the cold tank, though the SRS where heat is added, and flows
by gravity into the hot tank at a nominal temperature of 565°C. During energy dispatch, the hot
salt is pumped from the hot tank, through the SGS, and back to the cold tank.
Hot and cold molten salt tanks= conventional ground storage tanks= 79m in dia and17.5m tall
Both are sized to contain entire inventory of molten salt. There is also useable inventory tank that
have different dimensions.
Steam generator system (SGS):
The SGS (consisting of heat exchange vessels, hot salt pumps, feed water pumps, and
supporting systems) transfers thermal energy from hot molten salt to water to generate superheated
steam. Hot salt is pumped from the hot salt storage tank of the TSS to the SGS. The heat is extracted
in the SGS heat exchangers and the cooler molten salt is then returned to the TSS cold salt tank.
The steam drives a steam turbine generator within the Power Generation System (PGS) to produce
electricity. Molten salt is delivered to the SGS from the hot tank by the hot salt pumps, and first
split between the super heater and reheater. It then recombines and flows through the evaporator,
followed by the preheater, before returning to the cold tank. Water flows the opposite direction,
first entering the preheater where it is heated to near saturation temperatures. The water is then
converted to saturated steam in the evaporator and then enters the super heater which raises the
temperature to 540°C to meet the design steam temperature of the steam turbine.
Since the Power Generation System (PGS) is designed with a reheat cycle, steam exiting the high
pressure turbine is sent back to the SGS where it enters the reheater to be heated back to 538°C.
For a 100-MW plant, SGS thermal capacity is 275 MWt.

1Fig: Power block layout, including turbine/generator building (left), SGS structure (center),
and thermal storage tanks (right)

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Figure 3a SGS configuration 2SGS layout

Power generating system: Thermal energy in steam is converted into the electrical energy to
electric grid. Its major components include a Rankine-cycle reheat steam turbine generator;
feedwater pumps; four feedwater heaters; air-cooled condensers; deaerator; transmission and
interconnection hardware; and auxiliary steam and other auxiliary equipment. The waste heat is
removed by the air cooled condenser, on the other hand condensers for cooling the lines are also
mounted in system.
Plant control system (PCS): The PCS consists of an integrated Distributed Control System (DCS)
located in the control room building. It is designed to facilitate a high degree of automation to
allow a single operator to control all the solar fields. Due to the distances between the control room
and major hardware nodes, multimode fiber optic cable is used to interconnect the remote IO
cabinets with the DCS processors located in the control room building. As a result of this
automation and the need for centralized control, redundancy in all major controls and interconnects
is required. Automated infrared cameras and other sensors tested at our Sierra plant are used to
monitor receiver conditions.
Balance of plant (BOP): The BOP contains all portions of the plant not specifically contained in
the other plant systems. The BOP contains electrical distribution, water treatment, compressed air,
buildings, site security, fencing, landscaping, roads, parking, lighting, fire suppression,
evaporation ponds, and hydrology. The requirements of the BOP are derivative of the systems
served.
Predicted design performance:

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Remarks
Replicate the basic thermal module, without scaling or redesign, as many times as required (typically 2
to 14) to create plant sizes from 50 to 200 MW with capacity factors ranging from 20 to 75%.

A wind tunnel study of indoor air movement and

thermal comfort cooling
About:
This research paper is about the optimization of the wind tower cooling performance. Wind tunnel
testing and thermal comfort simulation was conducted to explore the performance of wind tower
in subtropical area of Sydney. The research design consisted of three phases; first, wind tunnel
experiments measured pressure distributions over the surface of a four-story apartment building
model scaled at 1:100.Secondly, hourly indoor air velocities were predicted for the six warmest
months in Sydney using the Typical Meteorological Year 2013. Finally, thermal comfort
simulations evaluated the comfort cooling potential of the wind towers.
BACKGROUND OF RESEARCH:
Numerous earlier studies have attempted to evaluate the function and the cooling performance of
wind towers.
Bahadori analyzed the function of wind tower and suggested two new designs of evaporative wind
towers.
Karakatsanis assessed the wind tower cooling performance with an adjoining courtyard in the
building. They concluded that the courtyard could increase the cooling efficiency of the tower.
They also noted that the wind direction and the tower’s opening configurations play a significant
role on the overall efficiency of the wind tower.

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WORKING:

A 1:100 scaled empirical model of a 4 storey apartment building was fabricated to analyze the
impact of the exterior and interior design of the tower on the indoor air movement. Wind tunnel
experiments in three separate configurations were conducted at Cermak Peterka Peterson (CPP)
laboratory in Sydney Australia to measure the surface pressures over the sealed model.
 Boundary level wind tunnel:
It has dimensions of 20 m length, 3.0 m width, and 2.4 m height, with the testing section’s
roof designed to mitigate blockage effects. A variable frequency fan drives the wind tunnel.
Testing section for pressure and volume instrumentation.
 Model design Fabrication:
Urban design, building form, dimension, and height all influence pressure distributions
over a building. The model is a four storey development consisting of two separate
apartments, each spanning two storeys. The living room, dining room, and kitchen areas
are co-located on the first of the two floors, while the bedrooms are on the second floor.
 Empirical model setup:
A model of a four storey apartment building was fabricated with transparent acrylic
plastic (3 mm thickness) by printing in 3D stereo lithography at 1:100 scale. Ninety nine
pressure taps were installed over the five external façades of the scale model which was 19
cm in height, 17 cm in length, and 10 cm in width.
Pressure measurement:
Surface Pressure distribution over the openings of the wind tower on south side has been
calculated against the pressure coefficient over the windows of the building on north and south
facade.
Cpe = (pm-ps)/0.5pve(sq)
Where,
Cpe = mean surface pressure coefficient at building height
Pm = mean surface pressure (Pa)
Ps = mean static pressure at reference height (Pa)

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ρ = density of air (kg/m3)

Ve = mean wind speed at building height (m/s)

The maximum rate of tower openings yields 1.12, which is around 1.5 times the maximum pressure
over the building windows at 0.77 at the north façade.
Pressure coefficient difference:
The pressure coefficient difference between the wind tower openings and the building windows
have been measured under sixteen azimuth angles of wind direction.
a) Between the south opening of the wind-tower and the windows of the building on the north
façade.
b) Cross ventilation between windows on the south and north façades
Results show that case (a) represents a considerable mean pressure coefficient differential of 0.85
with a maximum of 1.64 obtained during north - north east (NNE) winds, while the case (b)
generates average of 0.68 and maximum of 1.2 of pressure coefficient difference under the same
wind direction (NNE).

Indoor air speed calculation:

To predict the air speed within the occupied zone, the relationship between pressure and velocity
has been analysed through the dynamics of a particle of fluid. Following Bernoulli’s equation and
the First Law of Thermodynamics on conservation of energy, a drop in pressure is accompanied
by an increase in velocity, and vice versa. Therefore, the higher the pressure differential (ΔCp)

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over the building, the higher the velocity indoors. The indoor air speed calculations have been
carried out based on the following constants:
� Room volume, L = 158 m3
� Surface roughness, k = 3.00E-04 m
� Kinematic viscosity, ν = 1.50E-05 m²/s
� Number of duct bends =1
� Wind tower opening area, Ao = 3 m2 (1.5m height * 2 m width)
� Cross-sectional area of duct, Ad = 3 m2
� Perimeter of duct, P = 7 m (1.5 m * 2 m)
� Building Windows area, Aw = 1 m2
A number of indoor air speed calculations have been conducted to optimise the wind tower design
in an extensive parametric study examining the height, area and the sides of the tower openings.

3. Case study: Sydney Typical Meteorological Year 2013

This section analyses wind tower cooling performance in the humid-subtropical context of Sydney,
Australia, by applying the findings from the wind tunnel experiments.

Indoor air speed prediction:

Average indoor air speed is determined through a south-facing opening compared with through
window cross ventilation. Wind tower ventilation delivered an average hourly indoor air speed of
0.33 m/s, with the highest hourly average of 0.49 m/s recorded for the NNE wind direction
(azimuth 22.5o), which was more than twice the average speed recorded for through-window cross
ventilation (average of 0.15 and maximum 0.21 m/s) during the same wind direction in January
2013.

Hourly indoor air speed simulation:

To analyse the hourly cooling performance of the wind tower for the six warm/hot months in
Sydney, the results of wind tunnel studies have been imported into the TMY. Two sets of hourly
indoor air speed (Vi) calculations were performed for the six warm/hot months of the year
(October-March) using TMY 2013. Wind tower ventilation achieved an average Vi of 0.43 m/s
during the warm/hot months in Sydney 2013, compared to an average Vi through window
ventilation speed of 0.17 m/s.

Thermal comfort analysis;

It is defiend as “condition of mind expressing satisfaction with the thermal environment.”
According to existing literature, the envelope of acceptable indoor temperature can be stretched
by elevating indoor air speeds [4-8]. To analyse the thermal comfort condition created by the wind
tower, the Standard Effective Temperature (SET*) index has been applied to assess the impact of
increased air speed in the occupied zone.

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Conclusion:
As the experiment is performed to measure the surface pressure of a building. The use of equation
is developed to transform the exterior pressure to mean airspeed. Using the optimised design of
wind tower, the model was exposed to the subtropical Sydney contemporary climate (TMY 2013)
for the hourly indoor air speed calculations. In the next step, indoor thermal comfort analyses were
preformed to calculate SET* to represent the cooling potential of the wind tower in comparison
with the case of through-window cross ventilation.For wind-driven natural ventilation, the pressure
differential between air inlet and outlet (fenestrations) is the driving force. The external design of
the wind tower, building, and its neighbouring buildings all affect the wind generated surface
pressures. The height and the orientation of the inlet and outlet openings should be considered in
the application of wind towers. In Sydney’s TMY, the NNE wind direction produced the maximum
pressure coefficient between the wind tower openings in south, and windows in the building’s
north façade, and this was consistently higher than the case of window cross ventilation.
The internal configuration of the tower (length of duct and number of bends) affects the total
energy loss and consequently affects indoor air speeds. Air speed in the occupied zone was
discovered to be particularly sensitive to cross sectional area of the duct. During Sydney’s hottest
summer month January 2013, a wind tower with south facing opening and a cross sectional area
of just 3 m2 generated, on average, 0.2 m/s higher indoor air speeds compared with the through-
window cross ventilation default scenario. Thermal comfort analyses revealed that a wind tower
with south-facing opening in the conservative configuration for this research project could reduce
SET* by up to 6°C, and an average reduction of 1.1°C during the six warm/hot months of the year
2013, compared to the default scenario of through-window cross ventilation. Preliminary analysis
with numerical modelling of the thermal performance of this apartment building in Sydney’s
climate indicate that the SET* reduction (ΔSET*) resulting from installation of a wind tower
(termed the comfort cooling potential) is significantly greater than 1.1oC once the effects of
ventilation purging of heat stored in building thermal mass, leading to indoor mean radiant
temperature reductions, have been take into account.

Remarks:
Results indicate that, during Sydney's warm hours (≥23°C), elevated air speeds resulting from
the wind-tower improved in indoor comfort by 1725.8 degree hours (SET*) compared to the
default design relying on through-window cross ventilation under the same conditions.

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TITLE:
A design study for regenerator-type heat storage in solar tower
plants – Results and conclusions of the HOTSPOT project
Author names:
S. Zunft a , M. Hanelb , M. Krugera , V. Dreibigacker

Regenerator heat storage is a cost-effective solution to provide solar tower power plant with operational
flexibility and load following capability a key factor for marketability. There has been only little research
activity in this field. In the early 1990s, a first conceptual investigation and a system test on such a plant
was the subject of the work of the PHOEBUS Technology Program Solar Air Receiver. A packed bed
storage based on ceramic spheres was part of the system, offering a thermal storage capacity of 1 MWh.

2. Project scope and major development aspects

The overall objective of the project was to improve efficiency, reliability and investment costs of this
storage type for the pressure-less operation and thus provide the basis for subsequent implementation
in demonstration scale.

TES concept development and thermal design aspects:

A set of TES design specifications has been derived. An unpressurized air receiver system driving a steam
cycle with a thermal capacity of 150 MWth was used as a reference application. Additionally, a pressurized
air receiver system operated at 5 bars with a thermal output of 11 MW has been considered.

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For
each
of
the storage subcomponents and their setup several choices exist: The containment could be made from
welded steel, concrete or could be assembled on-site from prefabricated steel parts. The storage
inventory may consist of a stacked arrangement of regularly shaped refractory brickwork or a packed
bed. Usable inventory materials include oxide ceramics, such as alumina-silicate ceramics, some metals
or natural stone, opening a wide range of thermal and mechanical properties, possible shapes and also
costs.

From the selected storage variants, for a permissible discharge temperature drop of 60 K, the lowest
inventory mass of about 10 t/MWhth is obtained with ceramic saddles, multi-layer media and honeycomb
ceramics. This is due to large specific surfaces and the resulting high thermal utilisation of these materials.

Packed beds from ceramic media, or packed beds from broken basalt and stacked checker bricks still have
a favourable specific mass demand of about 20 to 30 t/MWhth, but, to comply with the thermal
specifications, should offer a specific surface of at least 75 m2 /m3 . With cast iron and sawn basalt, the
highest mass requirements are obtained.

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Relative investment costs for three

different TES concepts for use in an unpressurised solar
system (“System 1”)

All TES concepts exhibit relatively low absolute overall costs. Figure summarises the investment cost
estimates in a relative presentation. The most eye-catching feature in the cost breakdown is the clear
difference in inventory costs. For concept #3 (honeycomb-based TES) inventory is the determining cost
fraction. Though more costly, the use of honeycomb ceramics is well justified: its shape allows an excellent
thermal utilisation und this inventory type is a low-risk variant when applied to a modular containment
configuration with moderate height. TES concept #2 (packed bed with ceramic balls) can save part of the
inventory costs; this however at the expense ofadditional technical risks stemming from the thermo-
mechanical loads in the bed. These loads also add to the costs of the high-temperature insulation, which
must be protected with the help of additional functional layers. TES concept #1 (packed bed with broken
basalt) taps further cost reduction potential, but introduces further technical uncertainties with respect
to durability and erosion. These results suggest that all three TES concepts are well justifiable.

The elaborated design tools and TES concepts have also been experimentally validated in pilot scale. To
that end, a test bed for the investigation of high-temperature regenerator-type TES was designed, erected
and finally put into operation at DLR Stuttgart in early 2010. It has a wide operation range and allows to
investigate TES concepts with an inventory mass of up to 5 tons at charge temperatures of up to 830 °C
with repeatable test conditions, see Figure 3 (right). The experiments have provided valuable insight into
the relevant thermal effects and thus helped to achieve a reliable prediction of the TES operation.

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Thermo-mechanical design aspects:

Large-scale regenerator storage based

on a packed bed has advantages with
respect to cost and performance, but
is subject to technical uncertainties
stemming from thermo-mechanical
aspects. In particular during thermo-
cyclic operation periods of bed
expansion and shrinking tend to To
quantify the resulting mechanical
loads and as a design tool, suitable
simulation tools have been developed.
They are based on a particle-discrete
mechanical model of the packed bed
coupled to a thermal model describing
the development of the temperature field. As a result, the spatial and temporal distribution of the forces
acting on each single particle is obtained. These are again used as an input for a continuum-based contact
model to calculate the local contact stress between the particles and the insulation wall,continuously
increase the mechanical forces on the particles and the containment walls.

Figures (left) shows the distribution of the mechanical stresses at a single particle-insulation contact point
before thermal-cyclic operation (symmetry exploited). As expected, the stress analysis reveals
compressive loads both at the contact point and at some distance from the contact point, see figure 5 left
top. Less expected, also tensile stresses occur in adjacent zones around the contact point, due to the
stretching of the near-surface insulation, see figure 5 left bottom in blue colors. The location of the
maximum tensile stress is in immediate vicinity of the contact point and quickly decreases to a flat curve
with increasing distance.

Summary and conclusions:

Regenerator heat storage are best suited to provide CSP plants with air-cooled receivers with load-
following capability and thus to promote their marketability. The recently completed project HOTSPOT
addresses open design questions of this storage technology and reduces technical risks with respect to
thermal design and thermo-mechanical aspects. For the first time, design solutions based on packed beds
have been looked at, and their specific technical risks have been systematically dealt with. A choice of TES
concepts has been developed, based on target figures for market-scale CSP. Design studies and
investment cost estimates for a number of options have identified three lead concepts, based on
honeycomb ceramics and two packed bed variants. They have also been successfully tested in pilot-scale.
Cost estimates reveal their cost-effectiveness, and also indicate a substantial cost reduction potential with
the packed bed variants, which however come with a higher degree of technical uncertainties. The
honeycomb-based concept on the other hand is an advancement of existing technology and is considered
ready for demonstration and industrial use. A low pressure-drop design of regenerator storage is feasible,
but raises the need for a careful fluid-dynamic analysis to avoid non-uniform flow distributionsThermo-
mechanical design calculations are essential to avoid material damage with packed beds. The resulting
stress levels are not negligible, but can be handled through proper design. The project results indicate
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excellent prospects for the technology, but also point out solutions for a near-term demonstration in the
100 MWh scale.

TITLE:
Assessment of improved molten salt solar tower plants

AUTHORS:
Cs. Singer, S. Giuliano, R. Buck
The temperature level increase of molten salt solar tower plants is one important task on the development
schedule to increase the system’s overall efficiency. In the conventional power plant technology, modern
supercritical steam power plants work with life steam temperatures near 620°C. To apply these modern power
blocks in molten salt solar tower plants, salt temperatures near 650°C are required. Today’s molten salt tower plants
reach salt temperatures of 565°C. To follow the positive development tendencies of fossil power plants, in the
present work the combination of supercritical steam power plants with solar towers is analyzed.

The analyzed power level is 125 MW, while the steam process parameters are varied from low temperature level
(550°C) and subcritical steam to high temperature level (620°C) and supercritical steam.

In the past the fossil fired steam power plant park developed from low over marginal to high steam process
parameters. Modern steam turbine processes have today life steam parameters of around 300 bar / 620°C / 610°C,
as with higher temperatures and pressures higher efficiencies of the steam turbine process can be reached. That
leads to lower fuel consumption and lower levelized electricity costs (LEC) and also to lower greenhouse gas
emissions. These development tendencies could be pathbreaking also for today’s development and market
introduction of point focusing solar thermal tower plants (STTP) with central receiver system (CRS) technology.

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3. Receiver concepts and model references:

3.1. External Tubular Receiver (ETR):

The reference receiver concepts is the state of the art modular 360° cylindrical ETR. The model is then used
to gain the efficiency-load characteristics of the receiver, considering an appropriate irradiation profile provided by
the heliostat field layout tool after optimization.

3.2. Internal Tubular Receiver (ITR):

The internal tubular receiver concept uses the assumption, that the absorber tubes, which are similarly
arranged in serpentine flow-through panels compared to the ETR, whereas the panels consists of parallel tubes. The
difference to the ETR is that these panels are located inside of a cylindrical cavity and at its internal lateral surface.
The irradiation of the absorber tubes falls into the cylinder through a circular downwards facing open aperture, while
the opposite side of the cavity is closed to reduce free convection losses.

3.3. Internal Direct Absorption Receiver (IDAR):

Recently a new receiver concept with a directly irradiated liquid molten salt film as the coolant of inclined
absorber walls was introduced [5]. The developed IDAR-CFD-Model was used to analyze the open parameters
concerning the feasibility and functionality of the concept and considers the optics of the open free film surface and
of the inclined opaque absorber wall, as well as the
convective heat transfer between the absorber
surface and the liquid film. The model allows to carry
out the required detailed calculations at full size
receiver geometries.

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4. Methodology of the concept assessment and tools:

The used tools for the entire concept assessment are HFLCAL [10] for the heliostat field layout optimization
and SPRAY [11] for the ray-tracing from the heliostat field to the receiver. The optimization of the heliostat field
leads to the concentrator configuration with optimal cost, which comprises the estimated optimal number of
heliostats, an estimated optimal height of the solar tower and the estimated optimal area of the receiver aperture.
ANSYS-CFX is used for the fluid mechanical and thermodynamical modeling and optimization of the IDAR. The
receiver models of the ETR and the ITR are less detailed and the analytical and numerical interrelations are
implemented into ExcelSheets with additional VBA-Macros. FEMRAY, an internal DLR tool, is used for the adaptation
of the irradiation data to the CFD-Mesh of the IDAR. The receiver models use the irradiation flux distribution on the
absorber surfaces of the particular receiver concept to calculate the receiver efficiency matrix for a given optimal
concentrator system and for given geometrical and thermal boundary conditions. The receiver efficiency matrix is
used for the annual performance assessment to interpolate the receiver efficiency for each incident radiation and
ambient temperature of each daytime of the considered year.

As optimized STTP power plants are compared to each other and the annual yield of the STTP is mainly
defined by the power block (125 MWel) and a solar multiple (1.5-3.5), which by definition lead to the
receivers thermal power level at the DP. Because of this reason the resulting cost optimal field size
(number of heliostats) of the concepts variants is differing. It seems likely, that a concept with a higher

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total net efficiency requires less heliostats to fulfill the same set demand at the DP. This again leads to
different annual yields of the concepts that are significant for the LEC calculation.

The sensitivity curves of the thermal storage system and the O&M cost assumptions run almost
parallel to the sensitivity curves of the receiver.

Related to the actual power block cost assumptions, the statement has to be made that neither
the temperature increase, nor the pressure increase and also both cannot lead to a cost reduction, as
these types of power blocks will be too expensive for the next generation STTP. Additional cost
assumptions from the turbine manufacturer state, that in case of a temperature increase of the Rankine

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process, nickel based alloys could be necessary mainly because of corrosion reasons. If this is the case,
the power blocks with increased temperatures had instead of 18 % or 29 % higher costs than the reference
power block a significantly higher offset of 67 % and 78 %. With this the chances of supercritical STTP with
increased temperatures seem to shrink.

6. Conclusions:
After the discussion of the results of this study the following conclusions can be made:

1. With the made technical and economic assumptions, which comprise the same component
specific cost estimates and correlations expect of the power block variants, neither the
temperature increase, nor the pressure increase of the STTP’s Rankine cycle would lead to a
reduction of the LEC compared to the state of the art.
2. The only and not significant cost reduction potential of ~0.5 % can be observed, if ITR or IDAR type
receivers are used and the reference Rankine cycle is not changed.
3. If the cost estimations of SNL related to DAR with liquid film cooling apply, an IDAR could have
specific receiver costs, which are ~30 % lower than the reference ETR or the ITR. If this is the case,
a LEC reduction of up to 6 % could be reached by changing the receiver from ETR to IDAR, without
a temperature increase or the increase of the steam parameters.
4. The application of power blocks with increased steam parameters and thus increased thermal
efficiencies leads to increased total net efficiencies of the entire STTP. However, with the used
power block cost assumptions this effect doesn’t result in reduced LEC.

Findings and Analysis from all Research Papers

Sr no Authors name Chemicals usedConcentratiom Work Type
01. P.J.Cottam Dry Air We used direct Experimental
P.Duffour Buoyant Air heating in order Optimal
P.Lindstrand
P.Fromme
to observe Simulated
appropriate
Canopy Profile
so concentration
is Nill.
02 J. Spelling, Carbon di oxide We used gas Experimental
B. Laumert, ( CO2) therefore in this Optimal
T. Fransson Carbon content research paper Calculations
( C) concentration is
nill
03 C. Tyner & D. Nitrate salts (60 wt % Experimental
Wasyluk (NaNO3, KNO3) NaNO3, 40 wt %
KNO3
04 Mahsan transparent (3mm thickness) Experimental
Sadeghi*, acrylic plastic with Simulation
Richard de Dear Flow Rate.

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Bijan Samali,
Graeme Wood
05 S. Zunft a cast iron and sawn No concentration Improvement
M. Hanelb basalt is given data analysis
M. Krugera
V. Dreibigacker
06 Cs. Singer Solar Salt NaNo3 60 % Experimental
S. Giuliano NaNo3 , KNO3 KNO3 40% Graphical
R. Buck Analysis

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