Simulation of The Effect of Libyan Sand on The Reflectance Surface of CSP

Abstract

The reflector characteristics are negatively affected by the harsh desert weather conditions and hence the performance of the system decreases. This paper investigates the effect of two different types of moving sands “A” and “B” from Libya on the performance and safety of the solar reflectors. Samples are collected from areas that are suitable for installing CSP plants. They are in different particle sizes and chemical compositions: sand “A” with size ranges between 0.025-0.355 mm, and “B” is within 0.124-0.479 mm. The experiment outcome using sand blasting indicated that sand “A” has more influence than sand “B” as thesmall particles of “A” spread over a large area of the reflector. It is also noticed in the range studied that the speed variation effect has more impact than the mass quantity changing. For clean surfaces, the reflectivity is dropped by 2.2%, and the damaged surfaces increased about 1 mm in case of 0.5 g mass at 27 m/s storm speed. For 2g mass at 21 m/s storm speed, the roughness is found 3 mm.