Abstract
Liquid metals have excellent properties to be used as heat transport fluids due to their high thermal conductivity and their wide applicable temperature range. The latter issue can be used to go beyond limitations of existing thermal solar energy systems. Furthermore, the direct energy converter Alkali Metal Thermo Electric Converter (AMTEC) can be used to make intangible areas of energy conversion suitable for a wide range of applications. One objective is to investigate AMTEC as a complementary cycle for the next generation of concentrating solar power (CSP) systems. The experimental research taking place in the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) is focused on the construction of a flexible AMTEC test facility, development, test and improvement of liquid-anode and vapor-anode AMTEC devices as well as the coupling of the AMTEC cold side to the heat storage tank proposed for the CSP system. Within this project, the investigations foreseen will focus on the analyses of BASE-metal interface, electrode materials and deposition techniques, corrosion and erosion of materials brought in contact with high temperature sodium. This prototype demonstrator is planned to be integrated in the KArlsruhe SOdium LAboratory (KASOLA), a flexible closed mid-size sodium loop, completely in-house designed, presently under construction at the Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Technology (INR) within KIT.
Highlights
In the frame of the changes in the German energy policy, new technologies are under investigation that can provide clean, efficient, and economically viable renewable energies
The experimental research taking place in the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) is focused on the construction of a flexible Alkali Metal Thermo Electric Converter (AMTEC) test facility, development, test and improvement of liquid-anode and vapor-anode AMTEC devices as well as the coupling of the AMTEC cold side to the heat storage tank proposed for the concentrating solar power (CSP) system
Since AMTEC cells can be coupled to any heat source that can provide a temperature in the range of 600–1000 ◦C, AMTEC can be considered as a very promising technology with a large spectrum of different possible applications, e.g. in the field of renewable energies
Summary
In the frame of the changes in the German energy policy, new technologies are under investigation that can provide clean, efficient, and economically viable renewable energies. In this context, AMTEC devices offer promising performances since they are able to convert heat directly into electrical energy without generating any toxic or greenhouse by-products and can achieve theoretically high conversion efficiency. The estimated investing costs are higher and further research and development investigations are needed Another combination of a CSP and AMTEC was studied in [2], where it is reported that the total efficiency of the combined system could reach 20%
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