A 500 MW solar plant in California is in the news for switching from solar thermal to PV. PV technology offers some advantages that solar thermal doesn’t have in terms of project size and land use choices, which in turn affect a project’s development cost. Solar panel prices also have fallen by more than half in the past two years, making them a more attractive choice for developers besides private financing that is readily available for PV projects.
The advantages of CSP as a grid-stabilizing renewable energy source with storage capabilities are obvious and highly valued by utilities elsewhere in the world. In the U.S., CSP has dominated utility-scale operations – both those in operation and under construction. More than 60 percent of the total utility-scale capacity is currently produced at CSP plants. About 70 percent of the developments under construction use CSP technology.
However, PV has drawn more interest for projects down the road, accounting for 65 percent of the 25 gigawatts currently in the development pipeline.
In the final run, both solar thermal and PV have their advantages and will have to be used according to need.
Showing posts with label solar thermal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label solar thermal. Show all posts
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
Big time solar
The US administration provided a loan guarantee of $737 million to SolarReserve on Thursday to construct the first large-scale solar power plant that stores energy and provides electricity 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The plant utilizes what is called thermal energy storage to store heat collected from the sun, which is then utilized by the power plant to boil water and produce steam. The steam then turns a steam turbine which generates electricity. Various versions of solar thermal plants exist.
Some collect heat and stores it in molten salt which is then circulated to the boiler. The boiler turns water into steam which then rushes through a steam turbine.
This type collects heat and stores it in molten salt which is then circulated to the boiler where water is converted to steam to drive a turbine!
17,500 heliostats focus or concentrate sunlight onto the collector at the top of a 640-foot tall tower until it reaches a temperature of 1,050 degrees Fahrenheit.
The power plant’s electricity generation capacity is 110-MW, which makes it one of the larger-scale solar power plants.
For those who oppose solar on the grounds of storage and intermittency, here then is the answer. Still, it does require land! But wastelands and deserts would be ideal, right?
The plant utilizes what is called thermal energy storage to store heat collected from the sun, which is then utilized by the power plant to boil water and produce steam. The steam then turns a steam turbine which generates electricity. Various versions of solar thermal plants exist.
Some collect heat and stores it in molten salt which is then circulated to the boiler. The boiler turns water into steam which then rushes through a steam turbine.
This type collects heat and stores it in molten salt which is then circulated to the boiler where water is converted to steam to drive a turbine!
17,500 heliostats focus or concentrate sunlight onto the collector at the top of a 640-foot tall tower until it reaches a temperature of 1,050 degrees Fahrenheit.
The power plant’s electricity generation capacity is 110-MW, which makes it one of the larger-scale solar power plants.
For those who oppose solar on the grounds of storage and intermittency, here then is the answer. Still, it does require land! But wastelands and deserts would be ideal, right?
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