03. Parabolic Trough
l
Good optical efficiency
Storage possible
l
High water & and land use requirement
l
l Long rows of parabolic reflectors concentrate solar irradiance by an order
of 70 to 100 times onto absorber tubes mounted along the reflectors’ focal line.
l Superheated steam runs a turbine, which drives a generator to
produce electricity.
l Around 30% of the plants in operation are equipped with thermal storage,
sometimes supplemented by a back-up fuel.
Tracking aligned
Mobile receivers enable an optimal arrangement between
concentrator and receiver, regardless of the position of the sun.
04. Parabolic Dish
l
l
l
l
l
l
l
No water cooling & very limited land use
Modular concept
High solar-to-electricity efficiency
Demonstration phase
Storage limited to large dishes
Costly
Solar towers - aka central receiver systems - are made of a field of
heliostats (i.e. devices the track the sun from a stationary point),
surrounding a central receiver atop a built structure.
l Heliostats can vary greatly in size.
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