Concentrating solar power plants can achieve low cost and efficient renewable electricity production if equipped with adequate thermal energy storage systems. Metal hydride based thermal energy ...storage systems are appealing candidates due to their demonstrated potential for very high volumetric energy densities, high exergetic efficiencies, and low costs. The feasibility and performance of a thermal energy storage system based on NaMgH2F hydride paired with TiCr1.6Mn0.2 is examined, discussing its integration with a solar-driven ultra-supercritical steam power plant. The simulated storage system is based on a laboratory-scale experimental apparatus. It is analyzed using a detailed transport model accounting for the thermochemical hydrogen absorption and desorption reactions, including kinetics expressions adequate for the current metal hydride system. The results show that the proposed metal hydride pair can suitably be integrated with a high temperature steam power plant. The thermal energy storage system achieves output energy densities of 226 kWh/m3, 9 times the DOE SunShot target, with moderate temperature and pressure swings. In addition, simulations indicate that there is significant scope for performance improvement via heat-transfer enhancement strategies.
•A metal hydride storage system identified for supercritical steam power plant.•A laboratory scale thermal energy storage system modeled.•Technical feasibility of the system demonstrated, with recovery of waste heat.•Achieved temperatures of 600–650 °C, energy densities 9 times the DOE target.•Heat transfer system enhancements identified.
To easily control distributed photovoltaic power stations and provide fast responses for their regulation, this paper proposes an optimal cluster partitioning method based on a graph-based genetic ...algorithm (GA). In this approach, a novel structure utilizing a graph model is designed for chromosomes, and enhancements are made to the selection, crossover, and mutation models of the evolutionary to generate a search population for dividing distributed photovoltaic (PV) power grids into clusters. Moreover, the modularity and active power balance degree of the classic Girvan–Newman algorithm are employed as optimal objectives to establish a basis and evaluation system for cluster partitioning. Additionally, a Simulink simulation platform is established for the IEEE 33-bus time-varying scenario to validate its performance. A comparative analysis with some classic PV cluster partitioning algorithms demonstrates that the proposed method can achieve a more accurate and stable division of distributed PV units.
PV power plants utilizing solar energy to generate electricity on a large scale has become a trend and a new option that has been adopted by many countries; however, in actuality, it is difficult to ...anticipate how much electricity PV plants will generate. This analysis of existing photovoltaic (PV) power plants provides guidelines for more precise designs and performance forecasting of other upcoming PV technologies. In the literature, some authors have put their efforts into reviewing studies on PV power systems; however, those reviews are too focused on specific aspects of the topic. This study will review, from a broader perspective, recent investigations on PV power systems in the literature that were published between 1990 and 2022. The present study is divided into three main parts. Firstly, a performance assessment review of PV power plants is presented by taking different performance parameters into consideration, which were developed by the “International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC 61724-1)”. These parameters include reference yield, final yield, performance ratio, capacity utilization factor, and system efficiency. Secondly, different identifying factors that were investigated in previous studies, and which affect PV performance, were considered. These factors include solar irradiance, PV technology type, ambient temperature, cell temperature, tilt angle, dust accumulation, and shading effect. Thirdly, different methods were adopted and suggested to counter the effects of these influencing factors to enhance the performance efficiency of the PV power system. A hybrid cooling and cleaning system can use active techniques to boost efficiency during high solar irradiances and ambient temperatures while depending on passive techniques for everyday operations. This comprehensive and critical review identifies the challenges and proposed solutions when using photovoltaic technologies and it will be helpful for researchers, designers, and investors dealing with PV power systems.
Today, solar energy is taking an increasing share of the total energy mix. Unfortunately, many operational photovoltaic plants suffer from a plenitude of defects resulting in non-negligible power ...loss. The latter highly impacts the overall performance of the PV site; therefore, operators need to regularly inspect their solar parks for anomalies in order to prevent severe performance drops. As this operation is naturally labor-intensive and costly, we present in this paper a novel system for improved PV diagnostics using drone-based imagery. Our solution consists of three main steps. The first step locates the solar panels within the image. The second step detects the anomalies within the solar panels. The final step identifies the root cause of the anomaly. In this paper, we mainly focus on the second step comprising the detection of anomalies within solar panels, which is done using a region-based convolutional neural network (CNN). Experiments on six different PV sites with different specifications and a variety of defects demonstrate that our anomaly detector achieves a true positive rate or recall of more than 90% for a false positive rate of around 2% to 3% tested on a dataset containing nearly 9000 solar panels. Compared to the best state-of-the-art methods, the experiments revealed that we achieve a slightly higher true positive rate for a substantially lower false positive rate, while tested on a more realistic dataset.
Linear concentrating solar power systems represent the most commonly installed types of concentrating solar power systems. These systems can be categorized into two types: parabolic trough collectors ...and linear Fresnel collectors. Due to their widespread use, they have garnered significant attention in different studies aiming to enhance their efficiency. This study conducts a review of studies conducted over the past decade, focusing on the various types of heat losses, a crucial parameter influencing the efficiency of linear concentrating solar power systems. It encompasses analytical, experimental, numerical, and hybrid studies related to heat losses in three subsystem classifications: simple tubular absorbers, compound parabolic collectors, and cavity receivers.
Heat loss literature can be categorized into four parts: three focused on reducing losses through enhancements in geometrical and structural configurations, the use of different heat transfer fluids, and various coating materials. The fourth category involves calculating or measuring heat loss alongside other important parameters in a proposed system. The assessment reveals that most studies (62.23% for parabolic trough collectors and 71.4% for linear Fresnel collectors) have focused on general studies to calculate heat loss. Approximately 14.89% of studies on heat loss mitigation for parabolic trough collectors concern geometry and coating materials, and 7.98% involve using different heat transfer fluids to reduce heat losses. In the case of linear Fresnel collectors, 27.14% of studies focus on geometry, while only 1.46% deal with heat transfer fluids, and no studies have been found regarding the use of materials to decrease heat losses in linear Fresnel collectors.
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•Heat loss is one of the most important parameters for LCSP systems.•Research on heat losses in LCSP systems is reviewed.•Geometry, HTF, and coating affect the heat losses of LCSP systems.•Geometrical configurations dominate research on LCSP heat loss mitigation.•Coating materials play the smallest role in LCSP heat loss research.
Based on the Sustainable Development Goals outlined in the 2030 agenda of the United Nations, affordable and clean energy is one of the most relevant goals to achieve the decarbonization targets and ...break down the global climate change effects. The use of renewable energy sources, namely, solar energy, is gaining attention and market share due to reductions in investment costs. Nevertheless, it is important to overcome the energy storage problems, mostly in industrial applications. The integration of photovoltaic power plants with hydrogen production and its storage for further conversion to usable electricity are an interesting option from both the technical and economic points of view. The main objective of this study is to analyse the potential for green hydrogen production and storage through PV production, based on technical data and operational considerations. We also present a conceptual model and the configuration of a PV power plant integrated with hydrogen production for industry supply. The proposed power plant configuration identifies different pathways to improve energy use: supply an industrial facility, supply the hydrogen production and storage unit, sell the energy surplus to the electrical grid and provide energy to a backup battery. One of the greatest challenges for the proposed model is the component sizing and water electrolysis process for hydrogen production due to the operational requirements and the technology costs.
Abstract
Due to the fuel security and environmental concerns of traditional energy resources like fossil fuels, grid operators are tending to use renewable energies as the primary energy supply. This ...paper presents the study of designing, simulation and analysis of a 100-kWp on-grid photovoltaic power plant (PV-PP) in north-western Iran. Accurate meteorological data, satellite images and local knowledge from this region have narrowed down the options to three highly irradiated cities of Maragheh, Mahabad and Khalkhal in this region. PVsyst and MATLAB software are used in this paper to obtain the performance results. Environmental effects and carbon-emission savings from the execution of the proposed PV-PP are also available in this paper. The result of this study shows that PV-PP installation in Maragheh will have higher energy output than the two other cities. This study is insightful for the academics and the grid stakeholders in finding optimal spots in north-western Iran to construct a PV-PP. Also, recommendations are available for future studies.
A 100-kWp on-grid photovoltaic power plant is designed in north-western Iran. Accurate meteorological data, satellite images, and local knowledge are used in a simulation to select the best location from among three cities.
Large-scale solar power plants are being developed at a rapid rate, and are setting up to use thousands or millions of acres of land globally. The environmental issues related to the installation and ...operation phases of such facilities have not, so far, been addressed comprehensively in the literature. Here we identify and appraise 32 impacts from these phases, under the themes of land use intensity, human health and well-being, plant and animal life, geohydrological resources, and climate change. Our appraisals assume that electricity generated by new solar power facilities will displace electricity from traditional U.S. generation technologies. Altogether we find 22 of the considered 32 impacts to be beneficial. Of the remaining 10 impacts, 4 are neutral, and 6 require further research before they can be appraised. None of the impacts are negative relative to traditional power generation. We rank the impacts in terms of priority, and find all the high-priority impacts to be beneficial. In quantitative terms, large-scale solar power plants occupy the same or less land per kW
h than coal power plant life cycles. Removal of forests to make space for solar power causes CO
2 emissions as high as 36
g CO
2 kW
h
−1, which is a significant contribution to the life cycle CO
2 emissions of solar power, but is still low compared to CO
2 emissions from coal-based electricity that are about 1100
g CO
2 kW
h
−1.
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