Concentrating

Collectors

Introduction

For applications such as air conditioning, central

power generation, and numerous industrial heat
requirements, flat plate collectors generally cannot
provide carrier fluids at temperatures sufficiently
elevated to be effective.
They may be used as first-stage heat input devices;
the temperature of the carrier fluid is then boosted
by other conventional heating means.
Alternatively, more complex and expensive
concentrating collectors can be used.
These are devices that optically reflect and focus
incident solar energy onto a small receiving area.
As a result of this concentration, the intensity of
the solar energy is magnified, and the
temperatures that can be achieved at the receiver
(called the "target") can approach several
hundred or even several thousand degrees

Concentrating
collectors

Concentrating, or focusing, collectors intercept

direct radiation over a large area and focus it
onto a small absorber area.

These collectors can provide high temperatures

more efficiently than flat-plate collectors, since the
absorption surface area is much smaller.
However, diffused sky radiation cannot be focused
onto the absorber.

Most
concentrating
collectors
require
mechanical equipment that constantly orients
the collectors toward the sun and keeps the
absorber at the point of focus. Therefore, there

Types of concentrating
collectors
There are basic two categories of
concentrating collectors:

Line Focusing

(The line is a collector pipe)

(The
pointFocusing
is small
Point
volume through
which the heat
transport fluid flow)

Parabolic trough system

Parabolic dish
Power tower
Lens
Concentrator

LENS CONCENTRATORS

PARABOLIC TROUGH

SOLAR FURNACE
PARABOLIC DISH

CENTRAL RECEIVER

Concentrating collectors

Parabolic Trough System

Parabolic troughs are devices that are shaped like the
letter U. The troughs concentrate sunlight onto a
receiver tube that is positioned along the focal line of
the trough. Sometimes a transparent glass tube
envelops the receiver tube to reduce heat loss.
Temperatures at the receiver can reach upto 400C
and produce steam for generating electricity.

Parabolic Trough System

Schematic of a parabolic trough

collector system
Sun rays
Receiver detail

Parabola

Glass
cover

Tracking
mechanism

Receiver
tube

Receiver

Fresnel type parabolic trough

collector

Sun rays

Parabolic troughs often use single-axis or

dual-axis tracking.

One Axis Tracking Parabolic Trough with Axis

Oriented E-W

Two Axis Tracking Concentrator

Parabolic dish systems

A parabolic dish collector is similar in appearance to
a large satellite dish, but has mirror-like reflectors
and an absorber at the focal point. It uses a dual axis
sun tracker.

Crossection of parabolic dish

Parabolic dish collector with a mirror-like reflectors

and an absorber at the focal point

Schematic of a parabolic
dish collector
Sun rays

Receiver

Parabola
Two-axes
tracking
mechanism

A parabolic dish system uses a computer to

track the sun and concentrate the sun's rays
onto a receiver located at the focal point in
front of the dish.Parabolic dish systems can
reach 1000 C at the receiver, and achieve the
highest efficiencies for converting solar energy
to electricity in the small-power capacity range.

Solar dish stirling engine

Power Tower System

A heliostat uses a field of dual axis sun trackers that
direct solar energy to a large absorber located on a
tower. The heliostat collector in a system called the
power tower.

Power tower system

Heliostats

[A heliostat (from helios, the Greek word for sun, and stat, as in
stationary) is a device that includes a mirror, usually a plane mirror,
which turns so as to keep reflecting sunlight toward a

Schematic of central
receiver system

Linear Fresnel Reflector (LFR)

Receiver

Sun rays

Tower

Mirrors

A power tower has a field of large mirrors that

follow the sun's path across the sky. The mirrors
concentrate sunlight onto a receiver on top of a high
tower. A computer keeps the mirrors aligned so the
reflected rays of the sun are always aimed at the
receiver, where temperatures well above 1000C can
be reached. [High-pressure steam is generated to
produce electricity].

Power tower systems with heliostats

Lens Concentrator
The Fresnel lens reduces the amount of material
required compared to a conventional lens by dividing
the lens into a set of concentric annular sections
known as "Fresnel zones."

Lens concentrator collector

Lens Concentrator

Fresnel lens collector

How a spherical Fresnel lens focuses li

Lens Concentrator

Stationary concentrating solar

collectors

Stationary concentrating collectors

use compound parabolic reflectors
and flat reflectors for directing solar
energy to an accompanying absorber
or
aperture
through
a
wide
acceptance angle.

The wide acceptance angle for these

reflectors eliminates the need for a
suntracker.

This class of collector includes

parabolic trough flat plate collectors,
flat plate collectors with parabolic

Flat plate collector with flat

reflectors
Sun rays

Flat plate collector

Flat reflector

Solar Furnaces

A field of heliostats tracks the sun and focuses energy on to a stationary parabolic
concentrator which refocuses energy to the receiver.

Solar Furnaces - Operation

Receivers vary in design depending on process:

Batch or continuous process

Controlled temperature and pressure
Higher Temperatures (up to 3800oC)
Higher temperatures are possible in solar furnace than in conventional
combustion furnace or electric arc furnace.
Cleaner Processes
e.g. Electric arc furnaces use carbon electrodes
contaminate product.
Energy Sustainability
Use of renewable energy for industrial processes.

which often

Electricity through Solar Chemistry

Example: Water splitting: 2H2O 2H2 + O2

Centre National de Recherche Scientifique

(CNRS) Solar Furnace at Odeillo, France

Mirror is 10 stories high and forms one side of the

laboratory
Maximum temperature is 3800oC

27

Working principles of
concentrating collectors

Unlike solar (photovoltaic) cells, which use light to

produce electricity, concentrating solar power
systems
generate
electricity
with
heat.
Concentrating solar collectors use mirrors and
lenses to concentrate and focus sunlight onto a
thermal receiver, similar to a boiler tube.
The receiver absorbs and converts sunlight
into heat.
The heat is then transported to a steam
generator or engine where it is converted into
electricity.

There are three main types of concentrating solar power systems:

parabolic troughs, dish systems, and central receiver systems.
These technologies can be used to generate electricity for a
variety of applications, ranging from remote power systems as

Major Components of Solar Collector

Systems

Concentrating mirror(s)
May use primary & secondary concentrators.

Receiver
Absorbs energy from concentrator and
transfers to process being driven (engine,
chemical reactor, etc.)

Heliostats
Flat mirrors that track the sun and focus on
receiver or concentrator.

Trough Systems
These solar collectors use mirrored parabolic troughs to focus
the sun's energy to a fluid-carrying receiver tube located at the
focal point of a parabolically curved trough reflector.

Parabolic trough with mirrored parabolic troughs

Characteristics of Trough
System
The length of the reflector unit may be 3 to 5 m and width

about 1.5 to 2.4 m.

Ten or more units are connected end to end in a row and
several rows may be connected in parallel
Many troughs placed in parallel rows are called a "collector
field."
The troughs in the field are all aligned along a north-south
axis so they can track the sun from east to west during the
day, ensuring that the sun is continuously focused on the
receiver pipes.
Reflectors made of highly polished aluminium or silvered
glass or a thin film of aluminized plastic on a firm base
The energy from the sun sent to the tube heats fluid (e.g.
oil) flowing through the tube, and the heat energy is then
used to generate electricity in a conventional steam
generator.
Individual trough systems currently can generate about 80
MW of electricity.

Concentrating collectors
Reflectivity for mirror surfaces
Material
Silver
Back silvered low iron glass
Back aluminiumised glass

0.93-0.95
0.88
0.76-0.80

Plated silver

0.96

Aluminium sheet

0.82

Aluminiumised PTFE (poly tetra fluoroethylene)

0.77

Silvered PTFE

0.86

Dish Systems
Dish systems use dish-shaped parabolic mirrors as reflectors
to concentrate and focus the sun's rays onto a receiver, which
is mounted above the dish at the dish cent er.
A dish/engine system is a stand alone unit composed primarily
of a collector, a receiver, and an engine. It is about 6.6 m in
diameter and made from about 200 curved mirror
segments forming a paraboloidal surface.
It works by collecting and concentrating the sun's energy with
a dish shaped surface onto a receiver that absorbs the energy
and transfers it to the engine. The engine then converts that
energy to heat.
The absorber, located at the focus , is a cavity made of a
zirconium-copper alloy with a black chrome selective
coating.
The heat is then converted to mechanical power, in a manner
similar to conventional engines, by compressing the
working fluid when it is cold, heating the compressed
working fluid, and then expanding it through a turbine

Each dish produces 5 to 50 kW of electricity and

can be used independently or linked together to
increase generating capacity. A 250-kW plant
composed of ten 25-kW dish/engine systems
requires less than an acre of land. Dish/engine
systems are not commercially available yet,
although ongoing demonstrations indicate good
potential. Individual dish/engine systems currently
can generate about 25 kW of electricity.

Combination of parabolic dish system

Central Receiver Systems

Central receivers (or power towers) use thousands of
individual sun-tracking mirrors called "heliostats" to reflect
solar energy onto a receiver located on top of tall tower.

The receiver collects the sun's heat in a heat-transfer fluid

(molten salt) that flows through the receiver. The salt's heat
energy is then used to make steam to generate electricity in
a conventional steam generator, located at the foot of the
tower.

The molten salt storage system retains heat efficiently, so it

can be stored for hours or even days before being used to

The process of molten salt storage

Highlights the key features of the three solar technologies

Parabolic
Trough

Dish/Engine

Power Tower

Size

30-320 MW

5-25 kW

10-200 MW

Operating
Temperature
(C/F)

390/734

750/1382

565/1049

Annual Capacity
Factor

23-50 %

25 %

20-77 %

Peak Efficiency

20%

29.4%

23%

Storage Available

Limited

Battery

Yes

Hybrid Designs

Yes

Yes

Yes

Concentrating collectors
Concentration ratio

Aa
C
Ar

C
Aa
Ar

= Concentration ratio
= Aperture area (m2)
= Receiver area (m2)

Collector Performance
Heat from a solar collector may be used to drive a heat engine
operating in a cycle to produce work. A heat engine may be
used for such applications as water pumping and generating
electricity.
The thermal output Qout of a concentrating collector operating
at temperature T is given by
Qout = F'[gamma . Ainqin U . Arec (T - Ta)]
where:
Ain = The area of the incident solar radiation ( m2) Arec
= The area of
rec

the receiver (m2)

Gamma = Optical efficiency

qin = The incident solar irradiation

(W/m2)
Ta = The ambient temperature (C) U = The heat loss coefficient

High concentration ratios are obtained by making

Ain the area of a system of mirrors designed to
concentrate the solar radiation received onto a
small receiver of area Arec.
Heat losses from the receiver are reduced by the
smaller size of the receiver.
Consequently, high concentration ratios give high
collector temperatures.
The stagnation temperature Tmax is given by:
Gamma . Ainqin = U . Arec (Tmax - Ta)

For example,
If the optical efficiency is gamma = 0.8,
the incident solar irradiation is qin = 800W/m2,
the ambient temperature is Ta = 30C,
and the heat loss coefficient is U = 10W/m2K,
then a concentration ratio Ain/Arec = 1 (no
concentration) gives Tmax = 94C,
and a concentration ratio Ain/Arec = 10 gives Tmax
= 670C.

Economic and Environmental

Considerations
The most important factor driving the solar energy
system design process is whether the energy it
produces is economical.
Although there are factors other than economics
that enter into a decision of when to use solar
energy; i.e. no pollution, no greenhouse gas
generation, security of the energy resource
etc., design decisions are almost exclusively
dominated by the levelized energy cost.
The expected cost of the energy produced by the
solar energy system, averaged over the lifetime of
the system.

Advantages of Focussing Collect

Very high temperatures reached. High temperatures are

suitable for electricity generation using conventional methods
like steam turbine or a direct high temperature chemical
reaction such as liquid salt. Good efficiency. By concentrating
sunlight current systems can get better efficiency than simple
solar cells.

A larger area can be covered by using relatively inexpensive

mirrors rather than using expensive solar cells.

Concentrated light can be redirected to a suitable location via

optical fiber cable for such uses as illuminating buildings.

Heat storage for power production during cloudy and

overnight conditions can be accomplished, often by
underground tank storage of heated fluids. Molten salts have
been used to good effect.

Disadvantages of Focussing Colle

Concentrating systems require sun tracking to

maintain Sunlight focus at the collector.

Inability to provide power in diffused light

conditions. Solar Cells are able to provide some
output even if the sky becomes a little bit cloudy,
but power output from concentrating systems drop
drastically in cloudy conditions as diffused light
cannot be concentrated passively.

Solar Thermal Power

Plants
or
Solar Thermal
Collectors

What is STPP/STC ?
An

innovative technology
harnessing solar energy
thermal energy

It

for
for

is different from and much

more efficient than photovoltaics,
which converts solar energy
directly into electricity

Classification of
STPP/STC

Solar
thermal
collectors
are
classified by the United States
Energy Information Administration
as:

a) Low-Temperature

collectors
b) Medium-Temperature collectors
c) High-Temperature collectors

Low-Temperature
collectors
Low-Temperature collectors are flat plates
generally used to heat swimming pools
They
They

can also be used in space heating

use air or water as the medium to

transfer the heat to their destination

Medium-Temperature
collectors
Medium-temperature collectors are
also usually flat plates but are used
for heating water or air for
residential and commercial use.
It consists of
Solar Drying
Cooking
Distillation

High-Temperature
collectors
High-temperature
collectors
concentrate sunlight using mirrors
or lenses and are generally used
for electric power production.
It contains system design:
Parabolic trough designs
Power tower designs
Dish designs

Conversion rates from

Solar Energy to
Electrical Energy

Solar dish/Stirling engine has the highest energy

efficiency

A single solar dish-Stirling engineproduces as

much as 25kW of electricity, with aconversion
efficiencyof 31.25%

Fresnel reflectors system has an efficiency of 19%

Solarparabolic troughplants have been built with

efficiencies of about 20%

Applications

The main use of this technology is in

residential buildings where the demand for
heating has a large impact on energy bills.

Commercial applications include

car
washes, military laundry facilities, eating
establishments,
drying,
distillation
andpasteurization.

The technology can also be used for space

heating if the building is located off-grid.

Advantages of Solar Thermal

Energy

No Fuel Cost

No Pollution and Global Warming

Effects

Disadvantages of Solar
Thermal Energy
High Costs
Water Issue
Limited Locations and Size Limitations
Long Gestation Time Leading to Cost
Overruns
Financing