Dish/Stirling Concentrated Solar Power Plant for Smart Grid Power Generation: Field Testing, Operational Experience, and Dynamic Performance Modeling

Document Type : Original research papers

Authors

1 Department of Mechanical Power Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Tanta University, Tanta 31521, Egypt

2 Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Low and Medium Grade Energy, Tianjin University, MOE, Tianjin 300350, China

Abstract

The use of solar-powered Stirling engines to convert thermal energy into electricity is a promising and renewable technological solution that can contribute to reducing dependence on fossil fuels for electricity generation. Unfortunately, the lack of experimental performance data and operating parameters for this type of technology limits its detailed characterization, difficult its modeling and design, and consequently its utilization. This paper aims to introduce an experimental analysis and mathematical modeling of a 1.5 MWe dish/Stirling concentrated solar power plant (DSCSPP), installed at Maricopa, Arizona, USA (33.0581° N, 112.0476° W). The daily, monthly, and annual performances of the DSCSPP are analyzed for one complete year to predict the annual electricity production. For daily summer conditions, the DSCSPP generates a peak electric power of 1.27 MWe at a direct solar irradiance (DNI) of 998 W/m2 with an overall plant efficiency of 23.7%. The results show that for DNI values between 472 and 998 W/m2, the experimental tests and the finding of the mathematical modeling do not present considerable differences, obtaining hourly electric power between 1.27 and 0.301 MWe which represents deviations in the range of 0.013%–16%. Moreover, the proposed DSCSPP produces 2550 MWh annually, with a yearly net overall efficiency of 17.8%.

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Delta University Scientific Journal
Volume 6, Issue 1
April 2023
Pages 211-224

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