Optical performance investigation for spatially separated non-imaging concentrator with congruent plane concentrating surface

Abstract

The thermal deformation on the concentrating surface of traditional CPC (Compound Parabolic Concentrator, CPC) is effectively addressed by SCSA-CPC (Separation of Concentrating Surface and Absorber CPC, SCSA-CPC). However, the energy flux density distribution on the absorber of SCSA-CPC is uneven and the concentrating surface is still a curved paraboloid structure, which hinders practical engineering applications and lacks significant economic benefits. In the present research, five kinds of SS-CPCs (Spatially Separated CPC, SS-CPC) with different numbers of congruent plane concentrating surfaces, namely SS-CPC2, SS-CPC3, SS-CPC4, SS-CPC5 and SS-CPC6 were constructed based on non-imaging optics principles. The optical performances of the SS-CPCs were investigated and compared to SCSA-CPC with the same specification. It is found that SS-CPC allows for an increased acceptance angle of up to 41° while effectively improving the uniformity of energy flux density distribution on the absorber. The results also showed that the annual beam radiation collection time can be extended by 43.11 % and SS-CPC has a particular advantage in collecting diffuse radiation, indicating its high adaptability to weather changes. Moreover, due to the congruent planar structure of the concentrating surface, SS-CPC holds promising prospects for practical engineering applications.