Technical feasibility analysis of a linear particle solar receiver

Abstract

This work proposes a new particle receiver for Concentrating Solar Technology (CST) that employs air and particles as heat transfer fluid (HTF). The novel Linear Particle Solar Receiver (LPSR) is located at the ground level receiving the concentrated solar energy linearly from the top. This receiver is formed by several fluidized beds connected consecutively allowing the horizontal movement of solids and the linear absorption of solar energy. A new solar field is proposed and analyzed to redirect the concentrated solar energy towards the receiver linearly.The optic analysis of a linear beam-down system is carried out using a ray-tracing software. Then, the performance of a linear particle solar receiver is analyzed considering target temperatures of 200 °C, 400 °C, 600 °C and 800 °C to reproduce CST integration with medium and high temperature process heat, Rankine power generation and supercritical CO2 (sCO2) cycles, respectively. The temperature of the hot streams of air and sand are calculated considering the heat losses from the receiver and the compressor parasitic consumption. The procedure to determine the optimum design is shown studying one line as a function of the target temperature. For instance, a sand mass flow of 1.75 kg/s in a receiver of 0.5 m width and a secondary reflector eccentricity of 0.8, can be heated up to 600 °C in a length of 280 m, showing a solar field efficiency of 40.25% and a receiver thermal efficiency of 80%.