Thesis Sample

DEVELOPMENT OF A NOVEL SOLAR THERMAL
PROCESS USING MAGNIFICATION
Tyler Martin
Bachelor of Engineering
Major in Mechanical Engineering
Department of Mechanical Engineering

Macquarie University
November 7, 2016
Supervisor: Dr Nazmul Huda

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to thank my supervisor Dr Nazmul Huda for his knowledge and ex-
perience throughout my thesis project. Your engaging teaching has sparked my
interest in thermodynamics as well as pushed me to exceed my academic goals.
Thank you to my family who have supported me throughout my studies with
encouragement and understanding through my demanding schedule. Your love
and guidance has given me the motivation to pursue my passions and enjoy life
to the fullest.
STATEMENT OF CANDIDATE
I, Tyler Martin, declare that this report, submitted as part of the requirement for
the award of Bachelor of Engineering in the Department of Mechanical Engineer-
ing, Macquarie University, is entirely my own work unless otherwise referenced
or acknowledged. This document has not been submitted for qualication or
assessment an any academic institution.
Student's Name: Tyler Martin
Student's Signature:
Date: 07/11/2016
ABSTRACT
This thesis intends to develop a novel solar thermal magnication system using
lenses, to provide higher eciencies and power generation than currently imple-
mented concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) systems. Currently, CSP sys-
tems cannot compete with fossil fuel generated power due to their low eciencies
and high required land use, increasing the cost of the system, as well as the fact
that solar power generates only during the day time, unable to eectively provide
power throughout the night without thermal storage systems. This report looks
into the current state of the renewable energy industry in Australia, primarily
solar systems, which has shown the potential for an eective CSP system, such
as the novel system, to provide base load power to the grid and overcome the
limitations of existing CSP techniques, reducing the need for fossil fuel generated
power. Experimental testing using various sized biconvex lenses has been com-
pleted, which showed strong potential for its use in the novel system. A parabolic
dish reector was also tested and compared to the biconvex lens, with all sizes
of biconvex lenses exceeding the energy collection of the parabolic dish reector,
one of the highest eciency CSP systems currently used. Overall, the extensive
experimental testing and analysis has allowed for the creation of several concep-
tual models. These models are presented such that they can provide a useful base
in the further development of the system into a functional prototype.

Contents
Acknowledgments iii
Abstract vii
Table of Contents ix
List of Figures xiii
List of Tables xv
1 Introduction 1
1.1 Project Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.2 Motivation for Thesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 Project Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2 Background and Related Work 7

2.1 Renewable Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.1.1 Renewable Energy Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.1.2 Solar Energy Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.2 Current Solar Thermal Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.2.1 Currently Implemented CSP Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.2.2 Solar Sunower Prototype . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.3 Issues with Current CSP Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2.3.1 Water Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2.3.2 Environmental Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2.3.3 Constant Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
2.4 Optical Magnication Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2.4.1 Convex Lenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2.4.2 Fresnel Lenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.5 Receiver Designs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.5.1 Tubular Liquid Receivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.5.2 Evacuated Glass Tube Receivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.6 Tracking Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
2.6.1 Single-Axis Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
ix
x CONTENTS
2.6.2 Dual-Axis Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
3 Experimental Testing 25
3.1 Initial Collector Designs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
3.1.1 30ml Uninsulated beaker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
3.1.2 400ml Insulated Aluminium Container . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
3.1.3 Insulated Copper Pipe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
3.2 Experimental Test Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3.2.1 Testing Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3.2.2 Initial Test Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
3.2.3 Final Test Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
3.2.4 Test Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
3.3 Pyranometer and Temperature Sensors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
3.4 Lenses and Reectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
4 Results and Analysis 37

4.1 10 am - 12 pm Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
4.2 12 pm 2 pm Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
4.3 Energy Collection Calculations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
4.3.1 Theoretical Power Potential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
4.3.2 Experimental Power Collected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.3.3 Overall Experimental System Eciency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
4.3.4 Power Potential for Larger Lenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
4.3.5 Temperature Potential for Molten Salts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
5 Conceptual Model 49
5.1 Initial Conceptual Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
5.2 Second Conceptual Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.3 Issues brought up through Conceptual Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
5.4 Conceptual Design using a Fresnel Lens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
6 Conclusions 57
7 Recommendations for Future Work 59
7.1 Development of a Functional Prototype . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
7.2 Experimental Testing and Computer Simulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
7.3 Fresnel Lenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
7.4 Testing Various Working Fluids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
A Arduino Data-Logger Coding 61

B Arduino Circuit Diagrams 65
C Consultation Meetings Attendance Form 67
CONTENTS xi
D References 69
List of Figures
1.1 Gantt chart of initial thesis plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

1.2 Gantt chart of actual thesis project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.1 The contributions of each form of renewable energy in Australia for 2014. . 7
2.2 Schematic diagram of a Photovoltaic power station . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.3 Block diagram of a CSP plant using thermal energy storage . . . . . . . . 9
2.4 Diagram of a Parabolic Trough CSP system with a cross sectional view of
the trough, showing the focus lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.5 Solar tower diagram with two-axis tracking heliostat mirrors focusing onto
a central receiver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2.6 Diagram of a Parabolic Dish system reecting radiation into a point focus
receiver. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.7 Linear Fresnel Reector system showing both the primary and secondary
reection of the solar radiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.8 A prototype of the solar sunower design which uses slightly parabolic
mirrors focusing onto a liquid cooled PV cell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.9 A Bi-convex lens diagram showing the way light is refracted onto a focal
point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2.10 Comparison between the focusing of a convex lens (left) and a fresnel lens
(right) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.11 Basic diagram of a tubular liquid receiver with multiple passes . . . . . . . 20
2.12 Diagram of an evacuated glass tube collector. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
2.13 A parabolic trough CSP system using many rows of single-axis horizontal
tracking reectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
2.14 A two axis tracking system similar to a heliostat mirror used in a solar
tower system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
3.1 The small beaker used in the initial testing of collector designs . . . . . . . 26
3.2 Initial test setup of the insulated aluminium container design (left rear)
with the Apogee SP-110 Pyranometer (Left front). The top view of the
insulated aluminium container with the perspex inlet window (Right) . . . 27
3.3 Copper pipe collector design with thermocouple probe inserted into one
endcap. Insulation has been removed for a better view of the pipe. . . . . . 28
xiii
xiv LIST OF FIGURES
3.4 Experimental Test setup showing how each lens/reector is mounted as

well as the positioning of the collector and various sensors . . . . . . . . . 32
3.5 Solar lighter used as a parabolic dish reector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
3.6 Solar lighter being used during experimental testing with the insulated
copper tube collector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
3.7 The attempted setup of multiple parabolic dish reectors, unable to focus
together on the receiver tube. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
4.1 Experimental test data showing the highest rate of temperature change for
each lens/reector size for the 10am - 12pm tests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
4.2 Experimental test data showing the highest rate of temperature change for
each lens/reector size for the 12pm - 2pm tests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
4.3 Graph of overall eciencies for both 10am - 12pm and 12pm - 2pm tests . 45
4.4 Projected heat transfer rates for lens sizes outside the tested range . . . . . 46
5.1 Initial conceptual model of the novel system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

5.2 Second conceptual model of the novel system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.3 Second conceptual model showing the range of motion of the system . . . . 52
5.4 The green circles depict the biconvex lenses of the system with the red
sections showing the area of solar rays which cannot be concentrated around
them. The left arrangement shows a square arrangement, with the right
arrangement showing a close-packed grid. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
5.5 Conceptual model using fresnel lenses. Left: Fresnel lens is the same width
as the Biconvex lens diameter. Right: Fresnel lens showing the potentially
wider collection area possible when using fresnel lenses . . . . . . . . . . . 55
A.1 Arduino code for data logger - part 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

B.1 Circuit diagram of the Arduino data-logger and sensors . . . . . . . . . . . 66
C.1 Consultation meetings attendance form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

List of Tables
4.1 Theoretical power potential data for both 10am - 12pm and 12pm-2pm tests 42
4.2 Experimental power collected - 10am - 12pm tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.3 Experimental power collected - 12pm - 2pm tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.4 Overall eciencies - 10am - 12pm tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
4.5 Overall eciencies - 12pm - 2pm tests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
4.6 Temperature change potential with molten salts - 10am - 12pm tests . . . . 48
4.7 Temperature change potential with molten salts - 12pm - 2pm tests . . . . 48
xv
Chapter 1
Introduction
The technologically advanced world we live in today relies on vast amounts of electricity
to function. Whilst engineers have been developing new appliances and electronic devices
to be increasingly more ecient, Australia still requires almost 200 terawatt-hours of elec-
tricity per year [1]. With fossil fuels becoming shorter in supply combined with increased
pressure for sustainability from both governments and environmental groups [2], the im-
plementation of renewable energy systems is vital to the development of a sustainable
energy grid.
Currently, renewable energy holds only a 13.47% share in Australia however the Aus-
tralian government, through the renewable energy target scheme, aims to utilise 33000
GWH of large scale renewable energy by 2020, as well as further implementation through
2030 [2]. There are a number of large scale renewable energy methods used throughout
Australia including wind, hydropower, bioenergy, geothermal and solar, with the majority
currently coming from wind and hydropower[3]. Although only 0.4% of this comes from
large scale solar systems, large scale solar is a relatively new technology in Australia and
its use is steadily increasing, showing 29% growth in 2014 [4]. The potential for large scale
solar has been shown in other countries, with solar systems providing 5.2% of Spain's to-
tal energy generation in 2015 [5]. Research also indicates that, due to Australia's high
solar irradiation and largely underutilised land area, there is around 15GW of technical
potential for concentrated solar power (CSP) systems to be installed [6].
With Australia's renewable energy target prompting growth in the renewable energy sec-
tor, combined with the generation potential for large scale solar systems across Australia,
there is no better time to develop and implement new renewable energy technology. This
thesis project aims to develop a novel CSP system which works contrary to current mirror
concentrating systems by utilising lenses to achieve the concentration of solar rays.
1
2 Chapter 1. Introduction
1.1 Project Goals

The goals of this project are to investigate the currently implemented solar thermal tech-
niques, assess the feasibility of using lenses as a magnication device in a solar thermal
system, and to develop a novel solar thermal power generation technique through the
use of magnication device(s). This novel system aims to eliminate the main issues with
current CSP techniques, such as:
The requirement of vast areas of land to capture solar irradiation.
Low overall eciency of land use in capturing solar irradiation.
Low eciencies due to a low maximum operating temperature of the heat transfer
uid.
Damage to the environment and local wildlife from the intense heat generated by
concentrating mirrors.
High cost of electricity per unit produced.
The process of developing the novel system requires a number of stages, including:
An analysis into the feasibility of using lenses in a solar thermal system.
An analysis into the limitations and functionalities of current CSP systems as well
as how well the novel system can improve on current technology.
Experimental and theoretical testing of various lenses and lens setups to determine
the optimal dimensions for use in the novel system.
A conceptual model of the novel system to show its feasibility in construction
A functional prototype of the novel system to exhibit the benets over current
systems (if time permits).
1.2 Motivation for Thesis 3
1.2 Motivation for Thesis

Energy is an integral part of the modern world with almost every task we do requiring some
form of electricity, yet the methods used to generate it are undeniably unsustainable. Due
to this, renewable energy systems are being favoured by governments who are looking to
implement them on a large scale. Australia's vast areas of land, combined with high solar
irradiance levels, make implementing a CSP system ideal, however the low eciencies, low
power outputs and large land requirements of currently implemented CSP plants make the
costs unreasonable to implement on a large scale as a primary source of power for the grid.
Reducing the costs associated with CSP systems can be done through the development of
novel systems which maximise the eciencies, and thus the power output, and minimise
the required land area. With the ability for high generation and thermal storage, allow-
ing for consistent base load power generation, the development of a novel CSP system
which betters both the current CSP and also photovoltaic solar technology is an exciting
endeavour. The research undertaken in this project is fuelled by the need to develop
such a novel system to ensure the state of the environment and electricity grid is kept for
generations to come.
1.3 Project Plan

A project plan is a crucial tool to ensure the project can be completed on time, with for-
ward time management helping to make sure all goals can be met. The initial plan, shown
in gure 1.1 below, was developed in conjunction with the project supervisor at the start
of the project, however due to unforeseen issues and delays, some planned tasks out were
unable to be completed. The actual timeline for the project can be seen in gure 1.2 below.
The initial thesis plan appeared to be ambitious yet feasible, however did not take into
account the time required to determine what lenses should be tested, the time to source
the lenses, nor did it foresee the time required for the development and construction of
the collectors. Poor weather during the re-planned experimental testing phase further
delayed the project, with insucient clear days to collect the data required for analysis
in the initially allocated time. This led to further delays, requiring a longer testing phase
and meant that experimental testing using an automatic tracking system was not able to
be completed. Whilst automatic tracking would have simplied the physical testing of
the lenses, the setup and ne tuning of the tracking system itself would have increased
the complexity of the testing and caused further delays. Combined with the fact that
the lenses were manually adjusted to track the sun every few minutes, the experimental
testing of the automatic tracking was deemed to be unnecessary.
The analysis phase of the project was able to be completed on time as a portion of
the data could be analysed while further testing was taking place. The conceptual mod-
elling of the system was also able to be completed in the scheduled time, however was set
back by three weeks due to experimental testing delays. Overall, the project has met all
of the revised goals set in gure 1.2 and has provided useful research and analysis for the
future development of the novel system.
1.3 Project Plan
Figure 1.1: Gantt chart of initial thesis plan
Figure 1.2: Gantt chart of actual thesis project

5
Chapter 2
Background and Related Work
2.1 Renewable Energy

Energy generation techniques, which harness the sustainable power of nature, have been
around for decades and produce electricity using a variety of dierent methods. The
main, commercially proven methods used globally include solar power, hydro power, bio-
energy, wind power and geothermal energy. In Australia, both hydro power and wind
power make up the majority of the renewable energy production, making up 40 % and
34 % respectively, however these systems are well established technology in Australia [2].
Large scale solar power currently makes up less than 1% of renewable energy in Australia,
yet there is high potential for solar to expand its market share if a more eective solar
technology can be developed [2].
Figure 2.1: The contributions of each form of renewable energy in Australia for 2014.
7
8 Chapter 2. Background and Related Work
2.1.1 Renewable Energy Sources

Whilst there is a high use of both hydro and wind energy plants in Australia, these
methods have their limitations and can function only in certain locations. For example,
hydro-energy requires a high owing stream or the construction of a dam to be able to
generate electricity, and whilst it is the cheapest renewable energy source per installed
MWh, suitable locations for its implementation are very limited [7]. Similarly, wind en-
ergy can only produce power when the wind is moving at a suitable velocity, meaning
only a small number of locations are suitable. Another issue with a varying-output energy
source, such as wind, is the lack of dispatchability of the electricity, as it is dicult to
store the amount of electricity required to meet the requirements of the electricity grid.
Geothermal energy is another form of renewable energy, which utilises the thermal en-
ergy from radiation stored beneath the earth's crust. Due to the varying thickness and
structure of the earth's crust, locating and accessing areas of geothermal energy is both
dicult and costly as it requires deep drilling and often leads to constructing a site far
away from existing infrastructure.
Bio-energy is a promising form of renewable energy, which uses biological materials such
as wood or plant materials to serve as fuels. Bio-energy can be generated in a number of
ways such as using the biomass directly to generate heat to convert water into steam to
drive a turbine generator or it can be converted into a liquid bio-fuel such as ethanol or
bio-diesel to power combustion engines. Bio-energy is a controversial renewable energy
as bio-fuel can be easily sourced and can be done so sustainably, however the bio-energy
process requires the combustion of biomaterials which produces harmful pollutants.
2.1.2 Solar Energy Systems

Solar energy systems harness the power of solar radiation to generate electricity through
a variety of dierent methods. The methods currently used on a commercial scale, and
the focus of this thesis, will be further detailed below. Solar energy systems can be cate-
gorised as either a passive or an active solar system, depending on its method of capturing
solar rays or generating electricity. A passive system does not convert solar energy into
electricity, it utilises the solar energy primarily for space heating and cooling through
innovative building design, reducing the required air conditioning, and reducing the en-
ergy consumption of the building. Active solar energy systems use a collector, such as a
photovoltaic cell or a reective mirror system to capture the solar energy and convert it
into electricity or heat to store and convert to electricity when required.
Solar energy systems are currently produced on a commercial scale in two main types
Photovoltaic (PV) cells and concentrated solar power (CSP) (Also referred to as con-
centrated solar thermal) systems both with their individual advantages and drawbacks.
2.1 Renewable Energy 9
Figure 2.2: Schematic diagram of a Photovoltaic power station
PV cells work by converting the incoming solar energy into electricity via the photoelectric
electric eect in which photons of incoming solar energy are absorbed by a semiconductor
material, causing an electron to be emitted. The emittance and resulting ow of these
electrons becomes a direct electric current (DC). As the electricity grid uses alternating-
current (AC), inverters are required between the PV panels and the connection to the
grid to convert the collected DC power into AC. The process can be seen in gure 2.2
below.
Figure 2.3: Block diagram of a CSP plant using thermal energy storage
CSP systems work by converting incoming solar irradiation into electricity through the
concentration of rays onto a small area. These concentrated rays then heat a heat transfer
uid (HTF) which then converts water into steam, through a heat exchanger, to power a
turbine electricity generator . After the steam has passed through the turbine it is sent
through a condenser which returns it to a liquid state. The entire process can be seen in
gure 2.3 [8], [9].
There are several dierent setups used in CSP plants including parabolic troughs, parabolic
dishes, linear-Fresnel reectors, and solar towers which all work to concentrate incoming
solar irradiation to use as heat however the concentration is achieved dierently. Some
CSP plants also incorporate thermal energy storage (TES) systems, which stores the heat
collected during the daylight hours, commonly using molten salts in insulated tanks. This
stored heat energy can then be used to power the generator turbines during periods of
low solar irradiance.
Parabolic trough systems are the most widely used CSP system, comprising more than
80% of CSP plants in operation and under construction [8]. Although parabolic trough
systems hold the largest global market share, reports show that solar tower implementa-
tion is on the rise due to its increased eciency and higher working temperatures over
parabolic trough systems [8].
PV systems currently hold a market share of 85% of the solar energy in Australia, with
only 15% coming from CSP systems [8]. This is primarily due to the large cost-revenue
gap of current CSP technology and the relatively recent introduction of CSP to Australia.
There are however some major drawbacks for PV systems, which happen to be strong
points for CSP systems, including:
A low overall eciency, with PV systems capable of around 15% whereas some CSP
systems can produce eciencies as high as 30% [10].
The eciency of PV panels decreases linearly with an increasing temperature, mean-

ing the concentration of solar radiation, and the subsequent increase in temperature
on the panels, limits the performance gains of a concentration system such as the
one detailed in this thesis [11].
CSP plants allow for the dispatchability of energy, meaning the collected energy
is stored and then can be converted into usable electricity when required, through
the use of TES systems. Currently PV systems lack the ability to store the energy
generated and thus are only eective during the hours when the sun is shining.
With the key advantages that CSP has over PV such as an increased eciency, the ability
to be highly concentrated and able to generate and dispatch electricity when required,
CSP systems hold a greater potential to meet the demands of the electricity grid. For
these reasons, CSP technology is an eective renewable source to implement as well as an
ideal system to further develop.
2.2 Current Solar Thermal Techniques 11
2.2 Current Solar Thermal Techniques

Currently the concentration of solar rays is done using mirrors in implemented CSP sys-
tems. Whilst this method achieves high working temperatures, the use of an additional
magnication technique, or a novel technique, could produce an increased working tem-
perature, thus increasing the eciency and power output of the system. The following
sections detail the current magnication systems used in CSP, state-of-the-art prototype
systems and how various lenses function.
2.2.1 Currently Implemented CSP Systems

There are four predominant methods of concentrating solar rays used in CSP systems,
including parabolic troughs, parabolic dishes, linear-Fresnel reectors and solar towers.
The most eective, and widely implemented, systems are currently the parabolic trough
and solar tower systems as these can generate the highest temperatures for the lowest
cost, and are most suitable for use in large-scale generation in combination with TES
systems.
Parabolic Trough
Parabolic trough systems work to focus solar rays linearly along a pipe-shaped receiver
with a heat transfer uid, usually oil, owing within. The receiver commonly consists of
a metal pipe within an evacuated glass tube, which limits the convective heat losses to
the outside air [18]. The mirrors have a parabolic shape with the receiver pipe located
at the focal point of the trough, and require a single axis tracking system to ensure the
optimal amount of solar irradiation is reected onto the receiver [18]. Parabolic trough
systems can achieve temperatures of roughly 400°C at an average annual eciency of 15%.
They are the most commercially proven and commercially implemented system making
up almost 80% of CSP methods [8].
Figure 2.4: Diagram of a Parabolic Trough CSP system with a cross sectional view of
the trough, showing the focus lines
Solar Towers
Solar power towers, also know as central receiver systems consist of a eld of heliostat
mirrors which track the sun in two dimensions to focus solar rays onto a central receiver
located at the top of a tower. The HTF in the solar tower system is pumped up to the
receiver from a storage tank, heated and then pumped back down and used to either
generate electricity or moved to a TES tank for use later. Solar tower systems can reach
temperatures of over 560°C and perform at an average annual eciency of 18% [8]. The
solar tower systems run at a levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) of between US$ 0.17
0.24 when incorporating a TES system, compared with a parabolic trough system with a
LCOE at US $ 0.22 - 0.34 /kWh with a TES system [8].
Figure 2.5: Solar tower diagram with two-axis tracking heliostat mirrors focusing onto
a central receiver
Parabolic Dishes
Parabolic dish systems work to focus solar rays onto a receiver using a parabolic shaped,
reective dish on a two-axis tracker, with the receiver mounted at the focal point of the
dish. The concentration ratios of current solar dishes are the highest of all CSP systems,
however they are not well suited to large scale generation and due to their small, point
focus receiver, integration with a TES system is dicult [8]. Parabolic dishes have some
of the highest eciencies (>30%) as well as high concentration factors, meaning they have
the potential to provide the lowest LCOE for CSP systems, however the inability for TES
integration means the system has limited potential to replace fossil fuel generated power
plants [8].
Figure 2.6: Diagram of a Parabolic Dish system reecting radiation into a point focus
receiver.
Linear Fresnel Reectors

Linear Fresnel reector (LFR) systems work in much the same way as a parabolic trough,
however they are made up of several almost at mirrors aligned on varying angles linearly
to focus the solar radiation onto a receiver tube. The mirrors are angled similarly to
a Fresnel lens, which will be detailed further in section 2.4.2. Utilising atter mirrors,
instead of the curved mirrors on the parabolic trough system, reduces the installation cost
of the LFR system as the mirrors are cheaper to make and to install [18].
Figure 2.7: Linear Fresnel Reector system showing both the primary and secondary
reection of the solar radiation
LFR systems also use a secondary reector mounted around the top of the receiver tube
to refocus the reected light which doesn't hit the receiver, maximising the concentration
of solar rays. Unlike the parabolic trough systems, the receiver does not use an evacuated
tube for heat loss reduction, so the eciency of the system is lower than that of a parabolic
trough system [8]. The removal of the expensive glass tubes, combined with the simpler
reector design means that LFR systems are cheaper to install and run. However, due to
their relatively new development and low implementation of the LFR systems their costs
vary between US$ 0.17 - 0.37 / kWh [8].
2.2.2 Solar Sunower Prototype
Figure 2.8: A prototype of the solar sunower design which uses slightly parabolic
mirrors focusing onto a liquid cooled PV cell
The intense power available through the magnication of solar radiation has been shown
through a new design which uses a collection of concave, mirrored panels to focus incoming
solar rays onto a small cluster of PV cells. This new system, prototyped in 2015, has the
ability to concentrate the sun's rays over 5000 times, creating enough heat energy to melt
iron in one experimental test [19]. As the eciency of PV cells decreases with an increase
in temperature, the large amount of excess heat generated is removed and recovered by
a liquid cooling system surrounding the PV cells [19], [20], [21]. This hot water can then
be used to heat homes or in industrial applications such as water desalination [19], [20],
[22]. This new design shows the potential for a magnication technique to produce the
extremely high temperatures required for developing more ecient CSP systems.
2.3 Issues with Current CSP Techniques

As with any technology, there are issues that aect the performance and feasibility of
implementing a system and there is no exception with CSP systems. The main issues
relating to currently implemented CSP techniques are detailed below and are the issues
that the novel technique aims to eliminate.
2.3.1 Water Usage

A major challenge with CSP systems is their requirement for water, with current systems
3
requiring between 3 and 3.5 m /kWh of water to cool both the heat transfer and structural
equipment as well as to clean the concentrating mirrors [12], [13]. Due to the location
of many CSP plants being in dry, arid regions, or if water restrictions are imposed by
governments [12], the volume of water required is often unavailable. These cooling issues
mean eective dry-cooling systems must be developed and the cleaning water requirement
must be reduced by either reducing the size of the concentrating mirror array, or by
developing a new technique which reduces the water requirements [13].
2.3.2 Environmental Issues

With the collection area of some CSP plants exceeding 3600 acres, the environmental
impacts of CSP plants can be extreme [12]. With the high levels of solar concentration
desired in CSP plants, in some cases the solar ux generated is enough to injure and
kill ying wildlife [12]. The large land area required for the concentrating mirrors and
related structures also impacts the existing environment, damaging habitats in the initial
construction phase of the projects and increasing the rate of habitat loss for land based
wildlife throughout the life of the plant [12], [14]. These impacts, as well as the water
usage issues detailed previously, show a need to minimise the size of the overall system in
order to maintain the environmental health of the area.
2.3 Issues with Current CSP Techniques 17
2.3.3 Constant Power Supply

Solar energy presents an obvious issue where solar irradiation is only able to be gathered
during the day, which unless resolved, will inhibit the potential for using solar power to
replace fossil fuel plants. This has led to the development of TES systems which store
heat in various materials, allowing for it to be used for generating electricity when the
sun is not active. I.e. During the night or time of high cloud cover. The major limiting
factor for TES systems is that the uid, most eciently molten salts, is required to be
kept molten (>100°C for most salts) to be able to function in the CSP system [15]. If
the CSP system can produce higher working temperatures, the thermal losses from the
salts will be reduced and the solution can be kept molten for longer, with no requirement
for an additional backup heater. Higher temperatures also allow for more ecient energy
transfer to the steam generator, allow for higher total generation capacity and reduce the
volume of salt required for the TES system, whilst storing the same amount of energy
[16], [17].
2.4 Optical Magnication Techniques

The following sections describe the two types of lenses tested in the development of the
novel technique as well as the benets and disadvantages associated with each.
2.4.1 Convex Lenses

Convex lenses have been used to heat objects for decades, most prominently as a science
experiment, using magnifying glasses to burn paper or wood at the focal point of the
lens. The principles of how this works is through refraction, where light rays bend as they
pass through the lens of a certain shape and a dierent material to air. With a convex
lens, also known as a converging lens, light rays bend towards the normal to the surface,
as the glass has a higher refractive index than the air around it, as shown in gure 2.9 [23].
Figure 2.9: A Bi-convex lens diagram showing the way light is refracted onto a focal
point
This type of lens is well suited to a potential CSP system as the solar rays from the
sun are parallel, as the focal length to the sun is eectively innity, meaning an optimal
focal point can be achieved. The distance to the focal point, known as the focal length
is measured from the central plane of the lens, perpendicular to the incoming rays. This
focal length can be varied by changing the shape and thickness of the lens, however this
can vary the magnication factor of the lens, limiting the concentration power and thus
the heat generation capacity [24]. This change in focal length will be investigated via
experimental and theoretical testing to determine the optimal focal length for small scale
purposes, as well as scaling the length up to a commercial scale.
2.4 Optical Magnication Techniques 19
2.4.2 Fresnel Lenses

Implementing a magnication technique on a large scale may be dicult due to the size
and weight of both the magnifying glasses and their associated structure. A potential
solution to this is the use of a fresnel lens, which is a at lens with varying angles cut into
the outer surface [25]. These angled grooves cause the solar rays to bend inwards relative
to the angle, focusing the light onto either a focal point, in the case of a point focus lens,
or onto a linear focal plane, in the case of a linear focus lens [25]. While the fresnel lens
concept has been around since the 19th century and has been used in other industries for
concentrating light rays, no CSP system has been able to eciently implement it. As was
detailed previously in section 2.2.1, the fresnel concept has been used in a CSP system,
with the LFR using various angled mirrors to concentrate solar rays.
Figure 2.10: Comparison between the focusing of a convex lens (left) and a fresnel lens
(right)
The fresnel lens looks to be a sound t for implementing in a CSP system as it can
generate very high temperatures at the focal point and has a thin, compact and low
weight design [25], [26]. There are however some drawbacks to the fresnel lens which
could impact its feasibility in a CSP system, the major issue of the grooves collecting
dust and dirt, inhibiting easy cleaning of the lens. This could prove to be both an eco-
nomic and an environmental issue due to the low availability of water where most CSP
plants are constructed. Another issue which would need to be resolved prior to imple-
menting a fresnel lens is that currently used materials for fresnel lenses degrade under
ultraviolet radiation, meaning a suitable material would need to be developed [25]. The
fresnel lens, although requiring material development, shows high potential for generating
the high heats required for CSP generation. Due to time and purchasing delays through-
out the project, the fresnel lens was not able to be experimentally tested however it will
be investigated in future research if the testing of the biconvex lenses proves successful.
2.5 Receiver Designs

The receiver in a solar thermal system is what solar rays are concentrated on and it
carries the heat transfer uid throughout. As there are so many dierent methods of
concentration, combined with the fact that CSP is a relatively new technology, there are
many dierent designs for receivers, each highly specialized for its concentration technique.
Only receiver designs which can be utilised in the novel technique will be detailed in this
section.
2.5.1 Tubular Liquid Receivers

The tubular liquid receivers are one of the simplest receiver designs as it uses a series of thin
metal tubes which transport the heat transfer uid across the area of concentrated solar
rays [27]. Commonly tubular liquid receivers are arranged as a at panel with multiple
tubes positioned running parallel to each other. Sometimes the tubes are curved at the
ends, allowing for multiple passes through the area of concentrated solar rays. The tubes
are positioned with a very minimal gap between them to allow for thermal expansion,
whilst ensuring the maximum solar irradiation can strike the tubes directly. In smaller
scale systems, the receivers are simply metal tubes making a single pass through the area
of concentrated solar rays. A basic version of a singular tubular liquid receiver, however
without a owing uid, is used during the experimental testing phase, detailed in section
3.1.3.
Figure 2.11: Basic diagram of a tubular liquid receiver with multiple passes
2.5 Receiver Designs 21
The material used for these receivers varies depending on the temperatures generated and
the environmental conditions, with a commonly used material being a high temperature
stainless steel or alloy [28]. There is no specic diameter and thickness combination
which provides the best eciencies, it is dependent on several factors including pumping
pressures, temperatures and material costs which will vary between applications. The
metal tubes are commonly coated in a high-temperature absorber coating to maximise the
absorption of solar rays and reduces the thermal emittance from the surface. This coating
is the main form of insulation used in tubular liquid receivers however it is currently the
only limitation for an otherwise highly ecient receiver method [29].
2.5.2 Evacuated Glass Tube Receivers

Another form of liquid receiver is the evacuated glass tube receiver (EGT) which utilises
the benets of either air or a vacuum for their convective insulating properties to ensure
maximum energy capture in the heat transfer uid. The EGT uses a glass tube mounted
concentrically around a metal tube with a exible seal at both ends [30]. The void between
them is either lled with air or a vacuum is created which eectively insulates the metal
tube inside by reducing the convective losses to the outside air [30], [31]. As the glass tube
is highly transmissive, solar rays can pass directly through it and strike the metal tube,
however as the glass surface is somewhat reective, an additional anti-reective coating
is applied to the glass tube to reduce the reection of solar rays away from the receiver
tube inside [32].
Figure 2.12: Diagram of an evacuated glass tube collector.
Like the tubular uid receivers, the metal tube is coated in a high-temperature absorber
coating to minimise reective losses and maximise the energy absorption of the tube,
limiting the heat losses in the receiver to only 10% [30]. The EGT receiver design, whilst
more ecient, has a much higher cost due to the complexity of construction and the
additional materials required to create the vacuum tube. Due to high costs and the
inability to source small-scale EGTs they were not selected to be experimentally tested,
however appear to be an optimal receiver for the novel system when developed to a larger
scale.
2.6 Tracking Systems

Solar trackers are a crucial component in a CSP plant as they align the concentrators with
the sun as it moves across the sky throughout the day. Trackers can function as either
single-axis or dual-axis trackers, and commonly use an electrically driven mechanical
system of gears or actuators to rotate the mirror or panel in both axes. Depending on
the type of mirror concentrator, one or two-dimensional tracking is the optimal system;
Single-Axis trackers are commonly used for parabolic trough and linear Fresnel reector
setups, whilst dual-axis trackers are required for solar towers and parabolic dish reectors
as they necessitate focus to be on a single point rather than a linear area.
2.6.1 Single-Axis Tracking
Figure 2.13: A parabolic trough CSP system using many rows of single-axis horizontal
tracking reectors
For single-axis trackers, there are several dierent setups which can be used, with diering
latitudes and longitudes beneting from each setup, however only one single-axis tracking
setup is functional for CSP systems. The most common and cost eective setup is a
horizontal single axis tracker, which aligns the receiver tube, and thus the axis of rotation,
horizontally along the north-south line for maximum solar irradiation. The horizontal
tracker is made up of rows of many connected concentrators, as shown in gure 2.13, which
can usually rotate through close to 180° to capture the entire day's sunlight. This setup
allows for more concentrators to be focused at once and requires less tracking actuators
and associated structure, which reduces its installation cost. The other methods of single-
axis tracking, including vertical, tilted and polar axis tracking, are not suitable for CSP
systems and will not be detailed in this report.
2.6 Tracking Systems 23
2.6.2 Dual-Axis Tracking
Figure 2.14: A two axis tracking system similar to a heliostat mirror used in a solar
tower system
For both solar tower and parabolic dish reectors, accuracy is key to the eective genera-
tion of heat and thus highly accurate, and more expensive, tracking systems are required.
An example of how a heliostat mirror can be focused using dual-axis tracking can be seen
in gure 2.14. With heliostat mirrors for the solar tower system being located up to 300
metres away from the receiver, the accuracy of the tracking system must be within +/-
0.1 degrees to ensure minimal losses from misaligned mirrors [33]. Solar tower systems
have one of the most expensive and detailed dual-axis tracking systems of CSP techniques.
They are commonly made up of hundreds of individual mirrors with each one requiring
its own computer controlled trajectory due to their varying angles to the sun [33]. The
novel system, as it will incorporate lenses, looks to require a dual axis tracking system to
allow for solar rays to strike perpendicularly in both axes to the face of the lens. This
ensures the maximum concentration power can be achieved with limited reectance and
losses due to misalignment.
Chapter 3
Experimental Testing
The testing phase of this thesis requires the development of a solar receiver, which is
used to measure the collected solar energy for each type of lens and mirror system. To
determine the most reliable and accurate receiver to use for the nal testing, several
receiver designs were developed and tested, with the results of the tests used to rene
the design. The components required for the experimental testing are detailed in this
chapter, along with the development of the circuitry and coding used for the information
data-logger. After developing and trialling a test method for the lenses, it was found that
several improvements were required, resulting in a nal test method which allowed for
accurate and reliable testing to be completed throughout the testing phase. The setup
of the experiments as well as issues encountered throughout the testing phase are also
detailed in this chapter.
25
26 Chapter 3. Experimental Testing
3.1 Initial Collector Designs

As the accuracy of the collector is of high importance to the reliability of the research,
initial testing of various designs was required to ensure the most accurate receiver is used.
As research into developing and constructing a receiver like what is used in a CSP plant
was not feasible due to cost and time restrictions, the design of using a measured mass
of a uid inside a container was chosen as the simplest and cheapest design whilst still
providing accurate results.
3.1.1 30ml Uninsulated beaker

The rst container used to test the feasibility of heating a mass of uid was a 30ml glass
beaker lled with 15ml of water. The choice of an uninsulated beaker was used as a
simple proof of concept to show that the lenses could indeed heat a uid, in this initial
test the uid was water, and the heat transfer could be measured to determine the energy
collected. The beaker test was successful, with the temperature of the water increasing
by 12°C in 40 minutes. This result proved that the lenses can heat a volume of water a
measurable amount. The lack of insulation around the beaker, combined with the small
water volume and open top of the beaker, led to heat loss to the surrounding environment,
shown by the temperature remaining constant after 10 minutes of the test.
Figure 3.1: The small beaker used in the initial testing of collector designs
From this test, it was clear that the container must be insulated to ensure the tem-
perature measurements are only recording incoming heat energy and that the heat loss
to the surrounding environment is not included.
3.1 Initial Collector Designs 27
3.1.2 400ml Insulated Aluminium Container

The second container design used an aluminium container with bre insulation wrapped
around it to reduce the heat loss to the outside air. A rectangular section was cut away
from the side of the container and a Perspex sheet was secured over the hole. This Perspex
`window' was implemented to test whether the focusing of the lens should take place on
the water itself or on the outside of the container. Initial testing showed that focusing
the lens onto the water itself would not provide eective heat transfer as the temperature
of the uid did not increase in temperature over the course of 30 minutes. The focus was
then shifted to the Perspex sheet, however the temperature change in the water was still
0°C. Another contributor to the zero temperature change is the large volume of water
used, with the lenses used being too small to concentrate enough energy to heat the
volume of water used. This test showed a number of design failures, however they have
led to the development of a more promising collector design, shown in section3.1.3. To
ensure the lack of temperature change was not a result of low solar radiation levels, a
solar pyranometer was used, which conrmed that there was sucient solar irradiation
incident on the lens to generate heat.
Figure 3.2: Initial test setup of the insulated aluminium container design (left rear) with
the Apogee SP-110 Pyranometer (Left front). The top view of the insulated aluminium
container with the perspex inlet window (Right)
3.1.3 Insulated Copper Pipe

From the prior tests conducted, the implemented testing receiver was required to have a
thermally conductive surface to focus the lens onto, be thoroughly insulated and contain
a suitable amount of test uid relative to the size of concentrator being tested. An option
was to use a length of pipe, enclosed at both ends, wrapped in insulation. A section of
the pipe would need to be exposed to allow for the lens to focus on the pipe. Initially
a galvanised steel pipe was chosen, however the high wall thickness and low thermal
conductivity of the material were not suitable for this testing purpose.
Figure 3.3: Copper pipe collector design with thermocouple probe inserted into one
endcap. Insulation has been removed for a better view of the pipe.
A 12.07 mm diameter, 0.91 mm wall thickness, 100 mm long section of copper pipe was
selected as it has a high thermal conductivity as well as a low wall thickness, meaning heat
transfer to the uid would be increased compared to the galvanized steel. Endcaps were
attached on both ends of the pipe with high temperature silicon for ease of construction,
with a hole drilled into one end to insert the temperature probe. The pipe section was
painted with a dark black paint to increase the energy absorption of the pipe, ensuring
accurate measurements could be taken. From initial performance tests of the copper pipe
collector, it showed high temperature conductivity and held the heat generated inside with
minimal thermal losses. With the end caps being of the same thickness, and therefore the
same thermal conductivity through it as the pipe walls, the ends of the collector were able
to be used when testing the parabolic dish reector. This was necessary as the parabolic
dish reector's focal length was so small that the receiver had to be placed perpendicular
to the dish as if it were in a horizontal position, incoming solar rays would be blocked
and would limit the generation potential of the dish.
3.2 Experimental Test Method 29
3.2 Experimental Test Method

To ensure accurate results from experimental testing, a test method was devised which
ensures that tests conducted on dierent days, with varying solar irradiation, are compa-
rable. Testing was initially to be conducted all at the same location, outside of the F9C
110 laboratory at Macquarie University, however due to poor weather conditions and dif-
culty in transporting and setting up the testing equipment, the testing was conducted
at a private residence in St Ives, NSW. This allowed for testing to be conducted when
optimal weather conditions were occurring and as such, time was not wasted in travelling
to the testing location only for the conditions to become unsuitable for testing. Testing
was limited to days with minimal cloud cover and low winds for accurate measurements,
however a solar pyranometer was used to measure the incident solar radiation to further
ensure that accurate comparisons are made between tests. Testing was conducted in two
timeslots, the rst from 10 am - 12 pm and the second from 12 pm 2 pm allowing data
be collected at the various times of peak solar intensity for further accuracy.
3.2.1 Testing Components

The test method requires various components including:
Apogee SP-110 Solar pyranometer to measure incident solar irradiation
Jaycar K-type thermocouple probe to measure the temperature of the test uid
Various lenses of dierent focal lengths and diameters
Associated Arduino data logger circuitry, SD card and computer to record the data
from the sensors (the coding for the sensors and data logger can be found in appendix
A, with circuit diagrams in appendix B)
Various stands and mounts to hold the lenses and collectors
Plastic syringes for inserting the test uid into the collectors
Safety equipment to be used during testing, including eye protection, insulated

gloves for handling high temperature materials, and shaded areas to protect skin
from sun damage
3.2.2 Initial Test Method

The initial test method is to be conducted following the steps described below:
1. Fill the collector container with the testing uid and record the mass of the uid
used.
2. Place the collector in its mount in the test location to allow for the uid to reach
ambient temperature and insert the temperature probe into the collector.
3. Set up the pyranometer on the same angle as the lens will be to gather accurate
incident radiation data.
4. Set up the data logger and insert the SD card to start recording temperature and
solar irradiance levels.
5. Record initial readings from the temperature probe and pyranometer.
6. Place the lens or reector to be tested into its mount and focus onto the open section
of the collector.
7. Readings will be gathered every one minute on the data recorder, with the lens
being refocused every 15 minutes.
8. Once the test time is reached, extract the data from the SD card using a card reader
to then analyse the results.
This test method was used for the initial tests however it was required to be modied to
increase the accuracy and usability of the test rig.
3.2 Experimental Test Method 31
3.2.3 Final Test Method

Upon completion of the initial tests it became apparent that the movement of the sun, as
well as the temperatures generated in the collector, were changing too quickly for the ini-
tially set parameters. This meant that the temperature needed to be recorded at intervals
of only a few seconds and the lenses required refocusing every few minutes. Poor weather
conditions also led to changes in the testing phase with an additional thermocouple probe
required to allow for more tests to be conducted in the same timeframe. This addition
of an extra thermocouple probe also led to an increase in accuracy for the tests as com-
parisons were more accurate by testing two lens/reector types under identical solar and
weather conditions. The initial test method also led to an optimal mass of water to use in
the experiments, 8 grams, as this allowed for the thermocouple probe to be inserted into
the collector whilst still allowing for moderately fast heating of the water. Larger masses
of water were tested previously and made for low heating rates and would overow when
the thermocouple probe was inserted.
The Final test method is detailed below.
1. Fill the two collector containers with 8 grams of water each using a measured syringe.
2. Place the collector containers in their mounts using the retort stands and clamps
and insert the two thermocouple probes into the ends of the collectors.
3. Set up the pyranometer on the same angle as both lenses will be to ensure accurate
incident radiation data is collected.
4. Set up the data logger and insert the SD card to begin recording test temperatures,
solar irradiance levels and ambient temperature and humidity levels.
5. Place both lenses or reectors into their mounts using the retort stands and clamps
and focus them onto the open section of their respective collectors.
6. Record temperature, solar irradiance and ambient conditions every 5 seconds with
the lenses or reectors being refocused every 5 minutes.
7. Once the test time is reached, extract the data from the SD card using a card reader
to then analyse the results.
3.2.4 Test Setup

To ensure accuracy between tests, each test was set up in an identical way, using the same
model of thermocouple probe. The tests were set up as shown in gure 3.4 below (only
one lens setup is shown for simplicity).
Figure 3.4: Experimental Test setup showing how each lens/reector is mounted as well
as the positioning of the collector and various sensors
The use of an angled timber section to which the pyranometer is mounted was used to
keep the pyranometer at an appropriate angle, perpendicular to the sun, to ensure accu-
rate irradiation readings were obtained. The use of retort stands and clamps to mount the
lenses and collectors aided in the simplication of refocusing and as the retort stands and
clamps are owned by Macquarie University, initial purchasing costs and delivery time was
eliminated. The lens surface was aligned to be perpendicular to the sun when in optimal
focus, meaning the entire area of the lens is being used to capture solar rays, ensuring
consistent results between tests. As can be seen by the shadows created by the lens and
collector, the collector is positioned centrally in line with the lens also indicating accurate
focus.
Prior to the commencement of each test, the temperature of the water was measured
using a mercury-tube thermometer to ensure the thermocouples were reading accurately.
The Arduino boards and all connecting wires were checked prior to the commencement of
the tests as well as during the tests in case a cable had been disconnected inadvertently.
3.3 Pyranometer and Temperature Sensors 33
3.3 Pyranometer and Temperature Sensors

The thermocouple probe and solar pyranometer sensor are used to gather data from the
experimental testing and work together to allow for comparisons between dierent days
and weather conditions. The thermocouple probe is a K-Type thermocouple which can
read in increments of 0.25°C from -40°C to +750°C, without losing accuracy, which are
ideal characteristics for these tests [34]. K-Type thermocouples were used due to their low
cost and ease of acquisition and were of acceptable accuracy for the project. The solar
pyranometer used is an Apogee SP-110 pyranometer which measures the direct solar rays
2
as well as diuse radiation and will be measured in units of kW/m [35]. The pyranometer
was used to measure this solar radiation to ensure comparisons between lenses are made
accurately and variations in temperatures are not due to dierent solar intensities skewing
the results. An additional ambient temperature and humidity sensor was also included to
ensure accurate comparisons could be made.
The wiring for these sensors was completed in a previous project by Niko De Leon, another
Macquarie University student, however additional functionality required for the previous
project was removed and replaced with functions more suitable for this project. To enable
the sensors to read and record the data gathered during the tests, an Arduino microcon-
troller was used as a data logger.
This required the coding of an Arduino program which was initially based o of the
code written for a project undertaken by Niko De Leon. The code however was required
to be almost completely rewritten as there were several bugs which caused the system
to malfunction and not record results. Assisting in the debugging and initial rewriting
of the code was Sajad Ghatrehsamani, an electronics tutor in the Macquarie University
Engineering department. In addition to this initial rewriting, further coding was required
to allow for additional thermocouples and a combined ambient temperature and humidity
sensor to be attached. The code required for the various sensors can be found in appendix
A with the circuit diagram found in B.
3.4 Lenses and Reectors

The experimental testing required several components to be purchased in order to com-
plete the research. The main components required were the various lenses, each with
diering focal lengths and diameters. Lenses were purchased in three dierent diameters
of 50 mm, 75 mm and 100 mm as procuring lenses larger than this size is very dicult,
having long delivery times and high costs which were decided to be unnecessary for this
project. Various sized fresnel lenses, detailed in section 2.4.2, were unable to be purchased
as their costs exceeded the scope of the project and had long delivery times meaning the
lenses would not be available in time for testing to be completed. The focal lengths for
the selected lenses are 150 mm for both the 50 mm and 75 mm diameter lenses, with the
100 mm diameter lens having a focal length of 300 mm. The results from the various
lenses will be then used to determine the most suitable lens type for the novel technique.
To compare the lenses with a currently implemented CSP technique, reective parabolic
dishes were used. The dishes were in the form of a solar lighter for small scale testing
purposes and can be seen in gure 3.5 , however were used without the protruding spring.
The choice to use these reectors was made as the reectors were already owned by the
university and were an ideal candidate to use in the comparison due to their similar shape
and the fact that parabolic dish reectors have one of the highest eciencies in currently
developed CSP systems [8]. The setup for this testing can be seen in gure 3.6. The
dishes are made from a reective coated polymer and are shaped in an 85 mm diameter
circle, with a depth of 8 mm and a focal length of 45 mm.
Figure 3.6: Solar lighter being

used during experimental testing
Figure 3.5: Solar lighter used as a with the insulated copper tube col-
parabolic dish reector lector
3.4 Lenses and Reectors 35
To investigate the other CSP techniques to use for comparison with lenses, primarily solar
towers, parabolic trough reectors and linear fresnel reectors (detailed in section 2.2.1),
small scale reectors must be acquired and tested. The solar tower system was proposed
to be tested using small, at mirrors to focus solar rays onto the collector, simulating
the heliostat mirrors used in the large-scale system. However, during the design of the
testing apparatus needed for the at mirrors, several diculties were encountered. As the
heliostat mirrors to be tested are at, the solar rays are reected directly, creating a focal
point of the same shape and area of the mirror, providing limited concentration. With
the small size of the copper tube collector, the size of mirror which could focus onto the
2
collector would need to be around 1 cm , which would not provide enough heat energy
to generate a measurable temperature change. The use of multiple mirror sections, all
2
in 1 cm sections, all focused onto the collector was decided not to be undertaken as the
mounting of these sections would not be feasible with the equipment available and the
focusing of the mirror sections would be too dicult to achieve accurately by hand, poten-
tially introducing high levels of error to the results. The mirrors used in large scale solar
towers each have individual, dual-axis tracking systems, making the small-scale recreation
of this impossible to achieve in the scope of this project.
For similar reasons to the solar tower testing, the linear fresnel reector technique was
unable to be tested. The linear fresnel reector required several long sections of at mir-
ror to be aligned and mounted underneath the copper tube collector. The Linear fresnel
reector system also requires tracking to focus the lenses, and with so many mirror sec-
tions, combined with inappropriate equipment available, the system was not feasible to
test. The redesign of a collector suitable for testing the mirror sections was also not able
to be completed due to time restrictions.
Similarly, the testing of a small scale parabolic trough system was not able to be com-
pleted due to small scale testing issues encountered. Research was conducted into the
purchasing of a small scale parabolic trough reector however no products were suitable
to use for testing. The development and construction of a small-scale trough reector
required components which were unavailable to be acquired in time for testing. The po-
sitioning of the copper tube collector onto the parabolic trough would have also caused
a large shadow to fall onto the collector area of the mirror, reducing the solar energy
captured, introducing error to the results and nal comparisons.
Due to some initial delays in both acquiring lenses and constructing an adequately func-
tioning collector, the time available for experimental testing was reduced, which when
combined with the small-scale testing limitations encountered for these techniques, meant
testing was unable to be completed. Allowing for a comparison to be conducted with cur-
rent CSP systems, fortunately the parabolic dish reector could be tested and adequate
experimental results were gathered.
After the rst few tests were conducted and some basic conceptual ideas were brain-
stormed, most incorporating a number of lenses in a row, it was suggested to experi-
mentally test multiple lenses/reectors on the same receiver to determine the eect they
would have on the energy collection. Two lenses of the same diameter were set up next
to each other in an attempt to focus them onto a similar focal point, however due to the
converging nature of biconvex lenses and the short focal lengths of the lenses, the two
focal points were not able to be accurately positioned close to each other, with one lens
focusing at one end of the receiver tube and the other focusing slightly o the other end.
With such short focal lengths when compared to the diameter, the angles required to
accurately focus multiple lenses on the same focal point is not possible.
Figure 3.7: The attempted setup of multiple parabolic dish reectors, unable to focus
together on the receiver tube.
A similar issue arose when trying to test multiple parabolic dish reectors as their focal
lengths were even shorter than that of the lenses tested. This meant that the testing
of two reectors was not possible and thus only single lens/reector data was recorded
for this report. The positioning issue of multiple parabolic dish reectors can be seen in
gure 3.7, where the left parabolic dish is accurately focused on the receiver and the right
dish is unable to focus on the copper tube.
Chapter 4
Results and Analysis
This chapter examines the experimental testing and theoretical generation potential for
using lenses in a CSP system and compares the experimental results for the various sizes
of biconvex lenses with the reective parabolic dish results. As the testing conducted in
this report is aiming to determine the highest potential for the use of lenses in CSP sys-
tems, combined with the fact that the testing was conducted using a static, non-owing
mass of water, the sections of test data with the fastest heating rate were used to make
comparisons. Tests were conducted starting with room temperature uids, however due
to the selective data sampling used in the charts, there is some variation in the initial
temperatures in gures 4.1 and 4.2 .
The times in the following sections, 10 am - 12 pm testing and 12 pm - 2 pm test-

ing, are the general start nish times for the tests, with some variation in start time due
to technical issues or poor weather. These time periods were chosen as they represent
both the peak solar irradiation and lower intensity irradiation levels of the day's sun,
with times earlier than 10 am and later than 2 pm giving too little solar irradiation for
testing at the test location. This data was organized using Microsoft Excel, with linear
trendlines used to observe heating rate results. The linear trendline was applied as the
sections of data selected for comparison were from relatively linear sections of the testing
data, where the heating rates were at their highest.
37
38 Chapter 4. Results and Analysis
4.1 10 am - 12 pm Testing
With generally lower levels of solar irradiance occurring from 10 am 12 pm, the temper-
atures and rates of heating achieved during this period are lower than that of the 12 pm
- 2 pm period, however they were still able to generate useful temperature changes. The
heat transfer rates and maximum temperatures can be observed in order with the 100
mm diameter lens having both the highest temperatures and the fastest rate of heating,
followed by the 75 mm and 50 mm diameter lenses, and the parabolic dish reector hav-
ing the lowest maximum temperature and slowest heat transfer rate. The temperatures
achieved by each of the concentrators was in the same order to the heat transfer rates,
which can be seen in gure 4.1, however the very similar maximum temperatures of both
the 50 mm diameter lens and the parabolic dish is due to the fact that the parabolic
dish reector's initial temperature was higher, meaning if both were taken from the same
initial temperature, the 50 mm diameter lens would have a far higher maximum temper-
ature relative to the parabolic dish reector. This higher initial temperature is due to the
section of data for the parabolic dish starting from midway through the test, whilst the
50 mm diameter lens data starts shortly after the beginning of a test.
During this period of the day, the position of the sun appeared to be moving at a faster
rate than during the 12 pm - 2 pm test and due to this required refocusing at a higher
rate. Interestingly, as was observed in the 12 pm - 2 pm test, the parabolic dish reector
required up to two times fewer refocuses than the lenses.
The testing undertaken during the lower solar irradiation period, from 10 am 12 pm, has
given a strong indication that lenses have high potential to outperform current techniques
if they could be implemented into a CSP system.
4.1 10 am - 12 pm Testing
Figure 4.1: Experimental test data showing the highest rate of temperature change for each lens/reector size for the
10am - 12pm tests.
39
4.2 12 pm 2 pm Testing
The tests during conducted from 12 pm 2 pm resulted in the highest heat transfer
rates from all tests conducted and showed a consistent increase in heat transfer across
each size of lens/reector compared to the 10 am - 12 pm tests. The order of how each
lens/reector performed has remained the same, however all at a slightly higher heat
transfer rate. The temperatures achieved by each of the concentrators was in a similar
order to the heat transfer rates, which can be seen in gure 4.2 , however the parabolic
dish reector generated a higher nal temperature than the 50 mm diameter lens. This
higher temperature is due to the longer duration of data used for the analysis meaning
the parabolic dish reector could collect energy for longer, resulting in a higher temper-
ature change. The initial temperature of the 50 mm lens was also lower than that of the
parabolic dish reector, which subsequently resulted in a lower nal temperature for the
50 mm lens as it was not tested for as long.
The tests conducted from 12 pm 2 pm give further evidence of the higher concen-
tration and higher heating rates that lenses can achieve over a parabolic dish reector
system providing both higher temperatures at higher heating rates.
4.2 12 pm 2 pm Testing
Figure 4.2: Experimental test data showing the highest rate of temperature change for each lens/reector size for the
12pm - 2pm tests.
41
4.3 Energy Collection Calculations

4.3.1 Theoretical Power Potential
To determine if lenses can capture a useful amount of heat energy, a theoretical calculation
was conducted on each size of lens, as well as the parabolic dish reector being tested.
This calculation used the average solar irradiance of each testing period, taken from the
solar pyranometer data, and determined the theoretical maximum amount of energy which
could be captured with ideal eciency (i.e. 100% ecient with no losses).
W
Energy P otential (W ) = Solar Irradiance ( ) × Area of Concentrator (m2 ) (4.1)
m2
Table 4.1: Theoretical power potential data for both 10am - 12pm and 12pm-2pm tests
These theoretical values can be seen in table 4.1 above for both the 10 am 12 pm tests
and the 12 pm 2 pm tests and were calculated using equation 4.1 above. The value of
2
solar irradiance for the 10 am 12 pm test is 1.32 kW/m and is the average of tests used
in the 10 am 12 pm analysis. The value of solar irradiance for the 12 pm 2 pm test is
2
2.03 kW/m and is the average of tests used in the 12 pm - 2 pm analysis. These values
are to show the maximum available energy that the lens/reector could collect, taking
into account the area of solar rays that strike the lens/reector and the intensity of those
solar rays. These values do not represent the expected energy capture of the test lenses
and reectors, they will be used to determine the eciencies of each of the lenses and
reectors by creating a reference energy per unit area, allowing for easier comparisons to
be made.
4.3 Energy Collection Calculations 43
4.3.2 Experimental Power Collected

Using the experimental test data detailed previously in this chapter, an analysis was con-
ducted into the amount of energy that was captured by each lens/reector. To complete
the analysis several equations were used including equations 4.2 and 4.3. Several proper-
ties and variables were required to be set, such as the mass of water used set to 8 grams,
the reasoning has been discussed in section 3.2.3, and the specic heat of water set to
4.186j/g°C [36]. The other variables required for the equations are taken from the exper-
imental testing data and the theoretical energy calculations performed previously in this
chapter.
j
EnergyCollected(j) = M ass(g)×Specif icHeat( )×T emperatureChange(o C) (4.2)
goC
Energy Collected (j)

P ower Captured (W ) = (4.3)
T ime (seconds)
Table 4.2: Experimental power collected - 10am - 12pm tests
Table 4.3: Experimental power collected - 12pm - 2pm tests
From these calculations, it can be seen that all three sizes of the lenses collect more power
than that of the parabolic dish reector in both the 10 am 12 pm tests and the 12 pm
2 pm tests. When looking at the theoretical power potential for each size of lens, the
parabolic dish looks as if it will outperform both the 75 mm and 50 mm diameter lenses
however the experimental results show the parabolic dish reector collected the lowest
amount of power.
4.3.3 Overall Experimental System Eciency

The eciencies displayed in table 4.4 and 4.5 below have been calculated using the the-
oretical power potential of each lens or reector aperture and the experimental power
gures collected. To calculate the eciencies of each of the lens/reector systems the use
of equations 4.1 - 4.4 was required.
P ower Collected (W )
Overall Ef f iciency (%) = × 100% (4.4)
T heoretical P ower P otential (W )
Table 4.4: Overall eciencies - 10am - 12pm tests
Table 4.5: Overall eciencies - 12pm - 2pm tests
These tables show the overall eciencies of the combined lens/reector system, with the
all sizes of lenses exceeding the eciency of the parabolic dish reector. The general trend
of the eciencies for both the 10 am 12 pm and the 12 pm 2 pm tests are similar, with
the 50 mm lens system providing the highest overall eciency and the 100 mm lens system
generating the lowest eciency of the lenses tested. This negative trend of eciency with
an increase in lens diameter suggests that if the lens diameters were increased, as would
be necessary for large scale power generation, then the eciency would be reduced to
below useful levels.
Figure 4.3: Graph of overall eciencies for both 10am - 12pm and 12pm - 2pm tests
Initially this negative trend, which can be seen above in gure 4.3, looked to halt the
development of the novel system as there would be no benet in producing a system with
extremely low eciency. Theoretically, the eciency of the lens should not decrease with
an increase in size so the cause of the negative trend was investigated. Upon investigation
of the cause of this decreasing eciency it was determined that the overall eciency
calculated was limited by the maximum achievable temperature of the collector being ap-
proached. This meant that as the energy concentrated onto the collector was increased,
the amount of heat that could be transferred to the water was reduced due to ineciencies
in the collector itself.
This eciency reduction can also be seen in gure 4.3 where for all lens/reectors there
are lower eciencies in the 12 pm 2 pm tests where temperatures and solar irradiation
levels are higher. The overall eciency gure has been included in this report to show
the limitations of the current testing method and to highlight the need for a redesigned
collector system for future testing. The use of a owing uid through the collector in
combination with multiple thermocouples mounted at the inlet and outlet of the pipe
could provide more accurate results and could almost eliminate the issue of the maximum
collector temperature being reached in small-scale testing. A variable uid ow heat ex-
changer apparatus was available at Macquarie University and was intended to be used for
experimental testing instead of the copper tube collector. Unfortunately, the setup of the
apparatus did not have a suitable area to focus the solar rays and the apparatus was not
able to be altered in any way due to warranty issues, resulting in the apparatus not able
to be used.
4.3.4 Power Potential for Larger Lenses

As the main goal of the project is to develop a large scale solar thermal magnication
technique, it will require signicant upscaling in the size of the lenses used. To determine
accurately how much more power can be generated from a larger lens, further testing or
software analysis is required however this is outside the available time of this project.
With the current data, an approximate power generation potential can be found for sizes
close to that of the range tested with limited error.
This approximate power generation potential can be seen through the experimental test
results, indicating an increasing trend of power generation as lens apertures increase. The
most appropriate aperture diameters to be approximated with limited error is 150 mm
and 200 mm as they are relatively close to the sizes tested without being overly large.
The results and approximation of the heat transfer rates, also shown as the slope of heat
transfer which can be compared to those in gures 4.1 and 4.2, can be seen in gure 4.4.
From this approximation, we can estimate the rate of heat transfer to the water within
the collector to be linearly increasing as lens diameters are increased. As the diameter of
the lens is doubled, the slope of the heat transfer rate is also doubled, showing that far
greater temperatures can be achieved using larger diameter lenses. It can be seen from
both testing periods, from the linear trendlines in gure 4.4, that a similar increase is
obtained when the lens diameter is increased, with much of the variation between tests
due to experimental error. This data indicates that if a 200 mm lens is used, temperatures
will increase 40°C for every 10 minutes, which is an extremely large change when using
water. The eect of this increase on the energy generation can be seen through equation
4.2 where it is clear that an increase in temperature change is directly proportional to
the increase in energy collected, meaning if the temperature change is doubled, then the
energy collected will be doubled.
Figure 4.4: Projected heat transfer rates for lens sizes outside the tested range
4.3.5 Temperature Potential for Molten Salts

With temperature changes of more than 65°C achieved in only 35 minutes of testing whilst
using water as a heat transfer uid, the high temperature potential of lenses appears high.
The high temperature change ability of lenses is also ideal for a system which aims to use
a thermal energy storage system such as one with molten salts. This is because molten
salts are required to be kept at a high temperature (> 100°C currently) to prevent the
salts from solidifying. Having a concentration system which can produce high tempera-
ture changes is also benecial to the eciency of the TES system as higher temperatures
in the storage uid reduces the thermal losses of the system and the molten salts can stay
above their solidication temperature for longer. The ability for the lens-based system to
address the current limitations of TES is important for the development of a lens-based
concentration system as it means the land area of the system can be reduced whilst still
generating the same amount of power. This also means that the system can generate
power for longer during periods of low solar irradiation than current CSP techniques.
To complete the calculation, both temperature changes and durations were taken from
the experimental data, shown in tables 4.2 and 4.3 in section 4.3.2, and were scaled to give
a temperature change across 25 minutes. This scaling will allow for comparison between
lenses and can then determine what temperature changes would result if molten salts were
used as a working uid. The comparison is based o the lower specic heat of molten
salts, thereby increasing the temperature change of the uid compared to water when the
same energy is collected. The equation used to calculate the temperature changes when
using molten salts is shown in equation 4.5. The molten salts selected for the comparison
is a mix of sodium nitrate and potassium nitrate, mixed 60/40 % by weight as this is the
most common commercially used molten salt [8]. The specic heat capacity of this par-
ticular molten salt is 1.53 J/g °C and when compared to water's specic heat capacity of
4.18 J/g °C, means a considerably smaller amount of energy required to heat the uid [38].
mw (g) × Cpw ( gojC ) × ∆Tw (o C) mms (g) × Cpms ( gojC ) × ∆Tms (o C)

= (4.5)
t (Seconds) t (Seconds)
If the mass of both uids in the collector remains constant, as well as the time interval of
25 minutes, the equations in equation 4.5 can be reduced into equation 4.6 below. Cal-
culations using these equations are shown in table 4.6 4.7.
j j
Cpw ( ) × ∆Tw (o C) = Cpms ( ) × ∆Tms (o C) (4.6)
goC goC
After substituting in the specic heats of both uids into equation z, the ratio of the
temperature increase of molten salts over water is 2.73 and the nal equation used in the
calculations is equation 4.7 below.
4.18
× ∆Tw (o C) = ∆Tms (o C) = 2.73 × ∆Tw (o C) (4.7)
1.53
Table 4.6: Temperature change potential with molten salts - 10am - 12pm tests
Table 4.7: Temperature change potential with molten salts - 12pm - 2pm tests
From these calculations, it can be seen that the use of molten salts as a working uid
in the system can greatly increase the temperatures achievable by the system. These
increases in temperature, whilst appearing relatively small when compared to large scale
power plants (which can achieve temperature changes of up to 500°C), are generated using
a single lens over as short a period of 25 minutes. These results show the potential for
lenses to provide high working temperatures which will help to increase the eciencies of
both the generation and thermal energy storage systems. With the novel system aiming
to operate on a much larger scale, using a larger number of larger diameter lenses, higher
temperatures will be able to be generated for a larger volume of uid. From the projections
of power potential in section 4.3.4, it is suggested that using a 200 mm diameter lens over
a period of 25 minutes, the temperature could increase by 273°C if molten salts were used
as the working uid.
Chapter 5
Conceptual Model
For the initial development of a novel system, both theoretical and experimental testing as
well as several conceptual designs are required to determine if the system will function as
intended. The following chapter details the process of the conceptual design for the novel
technique and the reasons various features were selected. The conceptual models have
been constructed using computer-aided-design (CAD) software and the models intend
to portray the main functionality of the designs without high levels of detail. In the
conceptual design process, the rst model is not usually the nal form of the system, with
minor design changes required to improve the system in subsequent models. Subsequently,
a number of conceptual models have been created and rened based on the experimental
testing and analysis conducted throughout this report.
49
50 Chapter 5. Conceptual Model
5.1 Initial Conceptual Design

The initial conceptual design aimed to incorporate a collector design which would be
more suitable for a functioning power plant than a small-scale test rig. Several issues
which were discovered during the experimental testing phase have also been addressed to
improve the function of the initial design. This initial concept utilises similar components
to the experimental testing phase because of the strong performance of the tests and their
simplicity in construction. The major components of the initial concept include:
Four bi-convex lenses Each with the same focal length and diameter
Two metal retaining plates - shown as the blue and grey rings in the model
Supporting framework and fasteners
Insulated copper collector tube
Associated pumping and uid storage equipment
Figure 5.1: Initial conceptual model of the novel system

5.1 Initial Conceptual Design 51
The initial concept, shown in gure 5.1 uses two metal retaining plates which are used to
house the lenses and held together with several fasteners. These retaining plates can be
opened and closed repeatedly to allow for lenses to be replaced or adjusted when required.
A groove is cut into the retaining plates which allows the lenses to slide in, holding them
securely whilst blocking minimal amounts of sunlight. With all the lenses held in one
frame on the same axis, the focusing of the system is simplied, requiring only one fo-
cusing adjustment instead of the four if the lenses were mounted seperately. To further
reduce the focusing requirements, the lenses and frame are mounted to rotate directly
with the collector tube. This allows for a constant focal length and thus accurate focus
is achieved by aligning the lenses with the incoming rays.
The lens and collector assembly is mounted to the supporting framework by two arms
which can rotate, allowing for focusing to take place. These arms are connected using
suitable fasteners for ease of use and fast adjustment. The copper collector tube shown
in gure 5.1 is required to be insulated along its entire length however it is not shown in
the gure for simplicity. A uid reservoir would be attached to either end, combined with
pumps to create a ow through the collector tube.
The initial design of the system allows for accurate focusing of the lenses and can track
the horizontal movement of the sun by rotating the base to the desired angle. This design
is somewhat limited in its vertical tracking due to the main support being mounted on
one side of the lens and collector frame, meaning one direction the tracking can reach
through 90° to vertical and in the other direction only able to reach close to 30°. Thus,
a dual-axis tracking system is required, however with the collector tube mounted on a
moving section of the frame, long exible hoses are required to transfer the uid to and
from each reservoir.
5.2 Second Conceptual Design
Figure 5.2: Second conceptual model of the novel system
The second conceptual model can be seen in gure 5.2 and whilst it is similar to the ini-
tial concept, there are several modications which improve the functionality of the overall
system. The rst renement is the repositioning of the lenses to be aligned with the axis
of rotation, meaning the system can rotate through the full 180°, allowing for focus to
be attained at any solar position. The rotation achievable by the system can be seen in
gure 5.3 below. The positioning of the lens assembly also reduces the size of the system,
meaning that more collectors can be placed in the same unit area as the initial design,
increasing the generational capacity of a site.
Figure 5.3: Second conceptual model showing the range of motion of the system
The collector tube is also mounted horizontally along the central axis of the frame, as
well as along the axis of rotation. The lens assembly is designed to rotate around the
collector tube and is mounted to rotate on the supporting frame, not attached to the
collector tube. This means the collector tube can remain stationary while the lenses are
rotating, allowing for easier connections to the uid reservoirs. This design is also more
suited to a dual-axis tracking system than the initial design as the collector tube is not
required to be moved as far, less stresses are placed on the exible connector hoses and
smaller motors or actuators can be used, reducing costs and energy consumption.
5.3 Issues brought up through Conceptual Design 53
5.3 Issues brought up through Conceptual Design

Whilst this second design improves on the issues found in the initial design, there are still
several issues to be addressed. This section details several improvements which, although
were unable to be tested during this project, appear as though they would be benecial
in the capturing of solar rays as well as improving the overall eciency of the system.
The rst issue which is to be addressed comes from the shape of biconvex lenses be-
ing circular, meaning that even with two lenses mounted closely together, there is a large
section of incoming solar rays around the lenses that is not able to be concentrated, and
thus the land required for the system is required to be increased. This issue can be seen
clearly on the left in gure 5.4, where a top view of the array of lenses is shown with
the mentioned gaps in concentration. The left of gure 5.4 shows the lenses in a similar
way to their actual layout in the conceptual design, however with no gaps between the
lenses. The green area indicates the area of solar rays concentrated by the lenses and the
red area indicates the area of unusable solar rays. The usable area when using circular
lenses in this arrangement is only 78.5% of the total rectangular area [38]. Whilst this
does not look like a large issue in a small-scale model, on a commercial scale, this wasted
area could amount to hundreds of acres more land required than initial results indicated
from the single lens tests. Further experimental testing and comparison between multiple
lenses arranged as on the left in gure 5.4, as well as small scale models of current CSP
systems is required to determine if this reduction in usable area will oset the generation
gains that lenses have shown to have over the parabolic dish reector tested.
Figure 5.4: The green circles depict the biconvex lenses of the system with the red
sections showing the area of solar rays which cannot be concentrated around them. The
left arrangement shows a square arrangement, with the right arrangement showing a
close-packed grid.
To make use of this wasted space, additional rows of the same diameter lens could be
arranged in a close-packed grid, as shown on the right in gure 5.4, which can increase
the usable area of the total rectangular area to around 90% [39]. This method would
allow for a large amount of the useable solar rays to be concentrated, however it would
require an increase in frame strength to support the lens array across the larger width.
Another variation of lens arrangement would be to include smaller lenses mounted in the
red areas between the main lenses. This alternative would however increase the complex-
ity in mounting the lenses as well as during the focusing of the system as the lenses are
not all aligned along a central axis.
The second issue which arose through the experimental testing phase and subsequently
in the conceptual design phases of the project is the ineciencies of the copper tube col-
lector. To ensure the maximum amount of thermal energy is both initially captured and
then retained, the insulation of the collector tube is vital. A prominent form of insulation
in receiver tubes is the use of evacuated tube collectors which have been further detailed
in section 2.5. As the tubes are dicult to produce on a small scale and are more expen-
sive than simple copper tubes, they were unable to be experimentally testing using the
single lens setup available during this project. The glass outer tubes provide exceptional
thermal insulation whilst allowing for solar rays to pass through and heat up the metal
collector tube inside, which is ideal for use in the large-scale novel system.
5.4 Conceptual Design using a Fresnel Lens 55
5.4 Conceptual Design using a Fresnel Lens

Although the fresnel lens was unable to be tested, its theoretically superior properties,
described in section 2.4.2, including low thickness and low weight, a higher collection area
than the biconvex lens concept shown in gure 5.2 as well as the ability to concentrate
solar rays in a linear focus shape make it a potentially optimal choice as a lens for the
novel system. The low weight and thickness of the fresnel lens reduces the amount of
strength the support structure requires, reducing the cost of materials in construction.
These properties would also reduce the cost of transportation to the site (when on a large
scale) with more lenses able to be packed, as they are not curved like a biconvex lens and
as such have less weight per lens. The weight savings of the fresnel lens also reduces the
energy required for the tracking system, increasing the eciency of the entire system.
Figure 5.5: Conceptual model using fresnel lenses. Left: Fresnel lens is the same width
as the Biconvex lens diameter. Right: Fresnel lens showing the potentially wider collection
area possible when using fresnel lenses
As can be seen from gure 5.5, the fresnel lens can be mounted in a similar way to
the convex lenses shown in gure 5.2, however all the solar rays that strike the total
rectangular area can be concentrated directly onto the collector tube. With a lower mass
than the biconvex lenses, the fresnel lens can operate in the same way to focus and track
the solar rays yet it is easier than with the biconvex assembly, as a lower force and less
energy is needed to track. If a linear focus Fresnel lens is used, a single-axis tracking
system, similar to that used in parabolic trough systems, is all that is required as the end
losses, due to a shift in focus o the end of the receiver tube as the sun moves, will be
less than the additional energy required to implement another axis of tracking [40]. This
focus shift issue has been seen in parabolic trough concentrators which use only single-
axis tracking for this reason [41], [42]. The increased costs and complexity that dual-axis
tracking requires would outweigh the potential energy savings that the improved focusing
would bring.
Chapter 6
Conclusions
This thesis aimed to develop a novel solar thermal magnication technique, which can
improve on the power generation capabilities and eciencies of current large scale solar
thermal power generation techniques.
A literature review of the background of solar thermal processes and the current state of
both the renewable and solar industry in Australia was conducted and indicated a strong
requirement for more ecient CSP systems if renewable energy is to overtake fossil fuel
generation in Australia. The review also found that there is high generation potential
across Australia and implementation is being hindered due to inecient systems and high
costs. The novel system appears to be able to reduce these issues by generating higher
temperatures, thereby increasing eciencies, and also reducing construction and ongoing
maintenance costs.
As there is little to no data on the concentration of solar rays through lenses, experi-
mental testing was an essential step in determining the feasibility of their use in a solar
thermal system. Initial testing showed great potential for lenses to provide high heat
generation, however a functional and reliable collector design was required to continue
into acceptable testing. Following several redesigns, the collector was constructed using
copper piping and covered in an insulating material to limit heat loss which could alter
the experimental data. Through the main experimental testing of the lenses the initial
potential was conrmed, with temperatures in excess of 100°C (the boiling point of wa-
ter at sea level) generated in some tests. The experimental testing of the lenses, when
compared to the parabolic dish reector, indicates that the novel system can increase
the operating temperature of working uids, and will be able to generate even higher
temperatures when scaled to a larger size.
57
58 Chapter 6. Conclusions
As the project progressed, it became apparent that the development of the novel system
could not progress as far as rst intended due to delays and testing issues. Issues includ-
ing poor weather, collector design aws and product procurement delays all led to the
limited development of the novel system. The development of the system is currently at
the end of the conceptual design phase, and whilst this was not the working prototype,
which was the intended outcome from this thesis, the conceptual model should allow for
future developments to progress quickly into a functional prototype.
The conceptual design of the novel system aimed to move from a single lens testing
setup, with a still mass of water, into a multi-lens setup using a ow of uid as would
need to be the case in a power plant. The conceptual design of the system also allows for
varying the number of lenses, the lens diameter, the focal distance required and the type
of tubular collector. These variables will be set following further testing to determine the
optimal design parameters.
The most promising concept to take forward with the project, although untested, is the
fresnel lens prototype. The use of the fresnel lens looks to be able to increase the collection
area by 10% when compared to a close packed arrangement of lenses or more than 20%
when compared to a single row of lenses. As the fresnel system also requires less framing
and fastening, the cost of materials, installation and maintenance are all reduced, making
the novel system an industry leading CSP system. Another benet of the design using
lenses is that the concentrated solar rays, which in other CSP systems have been known
to be intense enough to injure or kill wildlife, are concentrated only close to the collector
tube, signicantly reducing the risk of environmental damage.
Through both research and experimental testing, a number of potential issues were raised.
As both the fresnel and biconvex lenses are required to be kept clean to ensure optimal
solar ray concentration, their water requirement is a potential economic and environmen-
tal issue. During the literature review, it was found that materials currently used for both
biconvex and fresnel lenses are UV sensitive, meaning they will degrade under UV light.
For the system to be feasible, further development of a suitable material would be required.
Overall, the development of the novel system has progressed to a conceptual design which,
from the experimental testing looks promising to achieve the goals set out initially, provid-
ing higher temperatures and eciencies, as well as a safer, less environmentally harmful
system than current CSP systems.
Chapter 7
Recommendations for Future Work
7.1 Development of a Functional Prototype

This thesis details the initial phases of the development of a novel solar thermal mag-
nication technique and as such requires further research and testing to develop into a
functional system. With the testing and initial conceptual designs completed in this the-
sis, a detailed prototype design is required before further testing can be completed. The
design should look to be able to compare a variety of dierent lenses, similar to the initial
experiments conducted as well as Fresnel lenses, and also be able to compare dierent
collector types, such as the evacuated tube collector and a type of tubular liquid receiver.
A system to introduce a ow to the working uid is also necessary to simulate power
generation conditions and to measure the rate of heating in the uid as it passes through
each lens's focus.
7.2 Experimental Testing and Computer Simulations

With a functional prototype designed and constructed, experimental and computer test-
ing can be completed. The experimental testing is vital to determining if the system is
feasible as a CSP system as it will look at the generation capabilities and if any con-
centration is lost through upscaling the design. A computer simulation modelling the
heating of the pipe should also be generated as if it compares similarly to the experi-
mental tests, modications can be made to the computer model and further tests can
be completed through the software, without more prototypes required to be constructed.
Once a functional prototype is set up to be accurately tested, small scale versions of other
CSP techniques should be tested and compared to the novel technique prototype.
59
60 Chapter 7. Recommendations for Future Work
7.3 Fresnel Lenses

As the Fresnel lens appears to be the most promising type of lens for the novel system, it
should be thoroughly tested to determine if it can indeed perform better than the biconvex
lenses. Both spot and linear focusing Fresnel lenses should be tested to determine if a
consistent intensity, linear focal point can achieve higher temperatures than multiple spot
focal points, which is similar to what biconvex lenses will provide.
7.4 Testing Various Working Fluids

In large scale CSP plants, there are a number of working uids which have been imple-
mented, all with dierent benets and drawbacks. These various working uids, such
as high temperature oils, molten salts and phase change materials should be tested to
determine which is the most suitable for use in the novel system. Some of these uids
can reach extremely high temperatures (>500°C) and should be investigated with high
caution.
Appendix A
Arduino Data-Logger Coding
The code on the following pages is used to control the Arduino data logger, which records
the temperatures and solar irradiance levels during experimental testing. It is split into
three sections to t onto the pages, however the code is continuous when input into the
Arduino program
61
62 Chapter A. Arduino Data-Logger Coding
Figure A.1: Arduino code for data logger - part 1

63

64 Chapter A. Arduino Data-Logger Coding

Appendix B
Arduino Circuit Diagrams
The connections required for the Arduino data logger circuitry is shown in this section,
combined with the temperature, temperature/humidity and solar pyranometer sensors.
The section on the right side of gure B.1 is the micro-sd card slot which is where the
micro-sd card is inserted to store the testing data.
65
Chapter B. Arduino Circuit Diagrams
Figure B.1: Circuit diagram of the Arduino data-logger and sensors
66
Appendix C
Consultation Meetings Attendance

Form
67
68 Chapter C. Consultation Meetings Attendance Form
Figure C.1: Consultation meetings attendance form

Appendix D
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spain-renewable-energy-march/?utm_source=newsletterutm_medium=emailutm
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high temperature thermal energy storage technologies," Renewable and Sustainable
energy Reviews, vol. 53, pp. 1411 - 1432, 2015.
[9] S. A. Kalogirou, "Solar thermal collectors and applications," Progress in Energy

and Combustion Science, vol. 30, pp. 231-295, 2004.
69
70 Chapter D. References
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Available: http://www.powerfromthesun.net/book.html
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in 1st International Conference on Emerging Trends in Energy Conservation, ETEC
Tehran, Tehran, Iran, 2011, p. 5.
[12] N. Bracken, et al., "Concentrating solar power and water issues in the U.S. South-
west," JISEA, Golden, COMarch 2015.
[13] X. Xinhai, et al., "Prospects and problems of concentrating solar power technolo-
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Reviews, vol. 53, pp. 1106-1131, 2015.
[14] REVE. (2012). Environmental impacts of concentrating solar power: Water, Land,
Material, Emissions, Flora and Fauna [Online]. Available: www.evwind.es/2012/02
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sions-ora-and-fauna/16458
[15] T. Bauer and N. Breidenbach. (2012). Overview of molten salt storage systems and
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s.conference-services.net/resources/252/2859/pdf/SOLAR2012_0122_full%20pape
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[16] T. Price. (2009). Molten Salt: The Magic Ingredient [Online]. Available: https://ww
w.bze.org.au/media/newswire/molten-salt-magic-ingredient-091110
[17] E. Pihl, et al., "Material constraints for concentrating solar thermal power," Energy,
vol. 44, pp. 944-954, 2012.
[18] L. Aichmayer, "Solar Receiver Design and Verication for Small Scale Polygener-
ation Unit," MSc MSc, Energy Technology, KTH School of Industrial Engineering
and Management, Stockholm, Sweeden, 2011.
[19] S. Anthony. (2015). The solar sunower: Harnessing the power of 5000 suns
[Online]. Available: http://arstechnica.co.uk/science/2015/08/the-solar-sunower-
harnessing-the-power-of-5000-suns/
[20] C. Lee Ong, et al., "A Novel concept of energy reuse from high concentration pho-
tovoltaic thermal (HCPVT) system for desalination," Desalination, vol. 295, pp.
70-81, 2012.
[21] M. Halper. (2011). Magning solar electricity's future [Online]. Available: http://ww
w.zdnet.com/article/magnifying-solar-electricitys-future/
71
[22] M. Graham Richard. (2013). IBM solar collector magnies sun by 2,000x (without
cooking itself ), costs 3x less than similar systems [Online]. Available: http://www.tre
ehugger.com/renewable-energy/ibm-solar-collector-magnies-sun-2000x-without-coo
king-itself.html
[23] T. P. Classroom. (2016). Refraction by Lenses [Online]. Available: http://www.phy

sicsclassroom.com/class/refrn/Lesson-5/Refraction-by-Lenses
[24] E. Bjornsson. (2013, 04 September). Magnifying power and focal length of a

lens [Online]. Available: http://www.education.com/science-fair/article/determine-
focal-length-magnifying-lens/
[25] V. Kumar, et al., "Fresnel Lens: A promising alternative of reectors in concentrated

solar power," Renewable and Sustainable energy Reviews, vol. 44, pp. 376-390,
2015.
[26] N. Yeh, "Analysis of spectrum distribution and optical losses under Fresnel lenses,"
Renewable and Sustainable energy Reviews, vol. 34, pp. 2926-2935, 2010.
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working uids," presented at the International Conference on Concentrating Solar
Power and Chemical Energy Systems, SolarPACES 2014, 2014.
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for concentrating solar power," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol.
29, pp. 835-846, 2013.
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[Online]. Available: http://www.nacleanenergy.com/articles/17102/aimed-at-the-
sun-solar-tracking-systems-for-csp
[34] Jaycar. (2016, 04 September). K-type Thermocouple [Online]. Available: http://ww

w.greatwalloptical.com.hk/optical.page/fresnellens.html
72 Chapter D. References
[35] A. Instruments. (04 September, 2016). Pyranometer Owner's Manual - Models

SP-110 and SP-230. Available: http://www.apogeeinstruments.com/content/SP-
110-manual.pdf
[36] T. E. Toolbox. (2016, 24th october). Water - Thermal Properties [Online]. Avail-
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[37] R. G. Reddy. (2013, October 31st). Novel Molten Salts Thermal Energy Storage for
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prod/les/2014/01/f7/csp_review_meeting_042413_reddy.pdf
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DEVELOPMENT OF A NOVEL SOLAR THERMAL

PROCESS USING MAGNIFICATION

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Supervisor: Dr Nazmul Huda

perience throughout my thesis project. Your engaging teaching has sparked my

interest in thermodynamics as well as pushed me to exceed my academic goals.

Thank you to my family who have supported me throughout my studies with

encouragement and understanding through my demanding schedule. Your love

the award of Bachelor of Engineering in the Department of Mechanical Engineer-

ing, Macquarie University, is entirely my own work unless otherwise referenced

or acknowledged. This document has not been submitted for qualication or

assessment an any academic institution.

Student's Name: Tyler Martin

in the further development of the system into a functional prototype.

2 Background and Related Work 7

2.6.2 Dual-Axis Tracking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

4 Results and Analysis 37

A Arduino Data-Logger Coding 61

1.1 Gantt chart of initial thesis plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

3.4 Experimental Test setup showing how each lens/reector is mounted as

5.1 Initial conceptual model of the novel system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

A.1 Arduino code for data logger - part 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

B.1 Circuit diagram of the Arduino data-logger and sensors . . . . . . . . . . . 66

C.1 Consultation meetings attendance form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

1.1 Project Goals

 The requirement of vast areas of land to capture solar irradiation.

 Low overall eciency of land use in capturing solar irradiation.

 High cost of electricity per unit produced.

 An analysis into the feasibility of using lenses in a solar thermal system.

 A conceptual model of the novel system to show its feasibility in construction

1.2 Motivation for Thesis

1.3 Project Plan

Figure 1.1: Gantt chart of initial thesis plan

Figure 1.2: Gantt chart of actual thesis project

Background and Related Work

2.1 Renewable Energy

2.1.1 Renewable Energy Sources

2.1.2 Solar Energy Systems

Figure 2.2: Schematic diagram of a Photovoltaic power station

 The eciency of PV panels decreases linearly with an increasing temperature, mean-

2.2 Current Solar Thermal Techniques

2.2.1 Currently Implemented CSP Systems

Linear Fresnel Reectors

2.2.2 Solar Sunower Prototype

2.3 Issues with Current CSP Techniques

2.3.1 Water Usage

2.3.2 Environmental Issues

2.3.3 Constant Power Supply

2.4 Optical Magnication Techniques

2.4.1 Convex Lenses

2.4.2 Fresnel Lenses

2.5 Receiver Designs

2.5.1 Tubular Liquid Receivers

2.5.2 Evacuated Glass Tube Receivers

Figure 2.12: Diagram of an evacuated glass tube collector.

2.6 Tracking Systems

2.6.1 Single-Axis Tracking

2.6.2 Dual-Axis Tracking

3.1 Initial Collector Designs

3.1.1 30ml Uninsulated beaker

3.1.2 400ml Insulated Aluminium Container

3.1.3 Insulated Copper Pipe

3.2 Experimental Test Method

or acknowledged. This document has not been submitted for qualication or

3.4 Experimental Test setup showing how each lens/reector is mounted as

The requirement of vast areas of land to capture solar irradiation.

Low overall eciency of land use in capturing solar irradiation.

High cost of electricity per unit produced.

An analysis into the feasibility of using lenses in a solar thermal system.

A conceptual model of the novel system to show its feasibility in construction

The eciency of PV panels decreases linearly with an increasing temperature, mean-

Linear Fresnel Reectors

2.2.2 Solar Sunower Prototype

2.4 Optical Magnication Techniques

Apogee SP-110 Solar pyranometer to measure incident solar irradiation

Various lenses of dierent focal lengths and diameters

Various stands and mounts to hold the lenses and collectors

Safety equipment to be used during testing, including eye protection, insulated

3.4 Lenses and Reectors

4.3.3 Overall Experimental System Eciency

Table 4.4: Overall eciencies - 10am - 12pm tests

Table 4.5: Overall eciencies - 12pm - 2pm tests

Supporting framework and fasteners

Insulated copper collector tube

Associated pumping and uid storage equipment

[11] A. J. Fesharaki, et al., "The Eect of Temperature on Photovoltaic Cell Eciency,"

[25] V. Kumar, et al., "Fresnel Lens: A promising alternative of reectors in concentrated

[42] C. Tzivanidis, et al., "Thermal and Optical eciency investigation of a parabolic