scholarly journals Thermal Energy Storage in Solar Power Plants: A Review of the Materials, Associated Limitations, and Proposed Solutions

Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (21) ◽  
pp. 4164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fadi Alnaimat ◽  
Yasir Rashid
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Energy Conversion Efficiency ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Thermal Fluids

Solar energy is the most viable and abundant renewable energy source. Its intermittent nature and mismatch between source availability and energy demand, however, are critical issues in its deployment and market penetrability. This problem can be addressed by storing surplus energy during peak sun hours to be used during nighttime for continuous electricity production in concentrated solar power (CSP) plants. This article reviews the thermal energy storage (TES) for CSPs and focuses on detailing the latest advancement in materials for TES systems and advanced thermal fluids for high energy conversion efficiency. Problems of TES systems, such as high temperature corrosion with their proposed solutions, as well as successful implementations are reported. The article also reviews the economic analysis on CSP plants with TES systems and life-cycle assessment to quantify the environmental impacts of different TES systems.

scholarly journals Thermal Spray Processes in Concentrating Solar Power Technology

Metals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1377
Author(s):  
Felice Rubino ◽  
Pedro Poza ◽  
Germana Pasquino ◽  
Pierpaolo Carlone
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Spray ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Solar Power Plants ◽  
Thermal Spray Processes

Solar power is a sustainable and affordable source of energy, and has gained interest from academies, companies, and government institutions as a potential and efficient alternative for next-generation energy production. To promote the penetration of solar power in the energy market, solar-generated electricity needs to be cost-competitive with fossil fuels and other renewables. Development of new materials for solar absorbers able to collect a higher fraction of solar radiation and work at higher temperatures, together with improved design of thermal energy storage systems and components, have been addressed as strategies for increasing the efficiency of solar power plants, offering dispatchable energy and adapting the electricity production to the curve demand. Manufacturing of concentrating solar power components greatly affects their performance and durability and, thus, the global efficiency of solar power plants. The development of viable, sustainable, and efficient manufacturing procedures and processes became key aspects within the breakthrough strategies of solar power technologies. This paper provides an outlook on the application of thermal spray processes to produce selective solar absorbing coatings in solar tower receivers and high-temperature protective barriers as strategies to mitigate the corrosion of concentrating solar power and thermal energy storage components when exposed to aggressive media during service life.

Numerical Analysis of Latent Thermal Energy Storage System With Embedded Thermosyphons

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karthik Nithyanandam ◽  
Ranga Pitchumani
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Storage System ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power ◽  
Discharge Performance ◽  
Low Thermal Conductivity

Latent thermal energy storage (LTES) system offers high energy storage density and nearly isothermal operation for concentrating solar power generation. However, the low thermal conductivity possessed by the phase change material (PCM) used in LTES system limits the heat transfer rates. Utilizing thermosyphons to charge or discharge a LTES system offers a promising engineering solution to compensate for the low thermal conductivity of the PCM. The present work numerically investigates the enhancement in the thermal performance of charging and discharging process of LTES system by embedding thermosyphons. A transient, computational analysis of the LTES system with embedded thermosyphons is performed for both charging and discharging cycles. The influence of the design configuration of the system and the arrangement of the thermosyphons on the charge and discharge performance of the LTES installed in a concentrating solar power plant (CSP) is analyzed to identify configurations that lead to improved effectiveness.

Analysis of Thermal Energy Storage to a Combined Heat and Power Plant

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 1313-1320
Author(s):  
Shahim Nisar
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Heat Storage ◽  
Packed Bed ◽  
Water Tank ◽  
Latent Heat Storage ◽  
Storage Methods

Abstract: Thermal energy storage (TES) is a technology that stocks thermal energy by heating or cooling a storage medium so that the stored energy can be used at a later time for heating and cooling applications and power generation. TES systems are used particularly in buildings and in industrial processes. This paper is focused on TES technologies that provide a way of valorizing solar heat and reducing the energy demand of buildings. The principles of several energy storage methods and calculation of storage capacities are described. Sensible heat storage technologies, including water tank, underground and packed-bed storage methods, are briefly reviewed. Additionally, latent-heat storage systems associated with phase-change materials for use in solar heating/cooling of buildings, solar water heating, heat-pump systems, and concentrating solar power plants as well as thermo-chemical storage are discussed. Finally, cool thermal energy storage is also briefly reviewed and outstanding information on the performance and costs of TES systems are included.

Design and Analysis of Metal Foam Enhanced Latent Thermal Energy Storage With Embedded Heat Pipes for Concentrating Solar Power Plants

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Nithyanandam ◽  
R. Pitchumani
Keyword(s):  
Thermal Conductivity ◽  
Energy Storage ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Thermal Energy Storage ◽  
Solar Power ◽  
Metal Foam ◽  
Heat Pipes ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Metal Foams ◽  
Concentrating Solar Power

Thermal energy Storage is a critical component of Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) plant, enabling uninterrupted operation of plant during periods of cloudy or intermittent solar weather. Investigations of Latent Thermal Energy Storage (LTES) which utilizes Phase Change Material (PCM) as a heat storage medium is considered due to its high energy storage density and low capital cost. However, the low thermal conductivity of the PCM restricts the solidification rate of the PCM leading to inefficient heat transfer between the PCM and the HTF which carries thermal energy to the power block. To address this, LTES embedded with heat pipes and PCM’s stored within the framework of porous metal foams possessing one to two orders of magnitude higher thermal conductivity than the PCM are considered in the present study. A transient, computational analysis of the metal foam (MF) enhanced LTES system with embedded heat pipes is performed to investigate the enhancement in the thermal performance of the system for different arrangement of heat pipes and design parameter of metal foams, during both charging and discharging operation.

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