The first pilot demonstration: solar updraft tower power plant in Jordan

Abstract

The high cost of importing heavy fuel oil from neighbouring countries of Jordan stimulated the need to consider renewable energy as an alternative to imported power. The paper describes a systematic experimental study on the pilot solar updraft tower power plant model system. Particular attention is given to measurements of air velocity, temperature, solar radiation and voltage difference. This is the first pilot solar updraft power plant that has been built in Jordan to evaluate such technology in Mutah Area. In this paper, all the experimental data were taken from a very small pilot project (compared with other prototypes that we constructed which were placed in the backyard of our faculty). For the experimental part, the solar updraft power plant was a pilot project with an updraft power plant height H=4(m), updraft power plant radius R c=0.29(m), plastic solar collector area A coll=36(m2), collector roof height=1(m), wind turbine that was a compensation of the suction fan with a diameter D fan=0.5(m), and a small generator (6 V) The experimental results in this paper show that the maximum height (H max) gradually increases with the solar irradiation (G). Also, in the same way, with the pressure difference (Δ p) increases with solar irradiation.