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Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) Update

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 4457

Special Issue Editor

Plataforma Solar de Almería, CIEMAT, Spain
Interests: solar concentrating systems; solar energy; renewable energy; climate change
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Solar energy is an important source of energy that avoids greenhouse gas emissions during power generation. In particular, solar concentrating systems are a promising alternative in the energy context for electricity generation and for industrial processes which require thermal energy at temperatures from about 150 °C up to temperatures above 1000 °C.

In recent years, the commercialization of these systems has led to a great deal of progress in various topics, such as concentrators, receivers, point and line focus technologies, process fluids, materials, control, new experimental capabilities, simulation tools, measurement procedures, etc. 

The objective of this Special Issue is to present the most recent advances in these technologies such that readers can keep up with the rapid developments in this field. In this sense, papers on the following topics or keywords may be submitted:

  • Commercial projects around the world;
  • Central receiver power plants;
  • Parabolic trough collectors; 
  • Linear Fresnel collectors; 
  • Dish/engine systems; 
  • Energy storage; 
  • Emerging concepts; 
  • Solar fuels; 
  • Facilities, controls, and modeling; 
  • Flux and temperature measurements;
  • Solar resource assessment.

Dr. Jesús Ballestrín
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 8072 KiB  
Article
Comparative Analysis of Rankine Cycle Linear Fresnel Reflector and Solar Tower Plant Technologies: Techno-Economic Analysis for Ethiopia
by Salah Kamel, Ephraim Bonah Agyekum, Tomiwa Sunday Adebayo, Ibrahim B. M. Taha, Bright Akwasi Gyamfi and Salam J. Yaqoob
Sustainability 2022, 14(3), 1677; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14031677 - 01 Feb 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1915
Abstract
The need to meet the world’s growing demand for energy in an environmentally sustainable manner has led to the exploration of various renewable energy (RE) resources for power generation. The objective of this study is to examine the techno-economic potential of concentrated solar [...] Read more.
The need to meet the world’s growing demand for energy in an environmentally sustainable manner has led to the exploration of various renewable energy (RE) resources for power generation. The objective of this study is to examine the techno-economic potential of concentrated solar power plants (i.e., linear Fresnel reflector (LFR) and central receiver system (CRS) for electricity generation in Eastern African countries with a case study on Ethiopia. The study was conducted using the System Advisor Model (SAM). In order to estimate the economics of the two power plants, the Levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and the net present value (NPV) metrics were used. According to results obtained from the simulations, the LFR produced annual energy of 528 TWh at a capacity factor (CF) of 60.3%. The CRS also produced a total of 540 TWh at a CF of 61.9%. The LCOE (real) for the CRS is found to be 9.44 cent/kWh against 10.35 cent/kWh for the LFR. The NPV for both technologies is found to be positive for inflation rates of 2% and below. An inflation rate above 2% renders the two power plants financially impracticable. A real discount rate above 9% also renders both projects economically unviable. Based on the obtained results, the CRS system is identified as the best technology for electricity generation under the Jijiga climatic condition in Ethiopia. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) Update)
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18 pages, 6464 KiB  
Article
Field Quality Control of Spectral Solar Irradiance Measurements by Comparison with Broadband Measurements
by Aitor Marzo, Jesús Ballestrín, Joaquín Alonso-Montesinos, Pablo Ferrada, Jesús Polo, Gabriel López and Javier Barbero
Sustainability 2021, 13(19), 10585; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su131910585 - 24 Sep 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1737
Abstract
Measurement of solar spectral irradiance is required in an increasingly wide variety of technical applications, such as atmospheric studies, health, and solar energy, among others. The solar spectral irradiance at ground level has a strong dependence on many atmospheric parameters. In addition, spectroradiometer [...] Read more.
Measurement of solar spectral irradiance is required in an increasingly wide variety of technical applications, such as atmospheric studies, health, and solar energy, among others. The solar spectral irradiance at ground level has a strong dependence on many atmospheric parameters. In addition, spectroradiometer optics and detectors have high sensitivity. Because of this, it is necessary to compare with a reference instrumentation or light source to verify the quality of measurements. A simple and realistic test for validating solar spectral irradiance measurements is presented in this study. This methodology is applicable for a specific spectral range inside the broadband range from 280 to 4000 nm under cloudless sky conditions. The method compares solar spectral irradiance measurements with both predictions of clear-sky solar spectral irradiance and measurements of broadband instruments such as pyrheliometers. For the spectral estimation, a free atmospheric transmittance simulation code with the air mass calculation as the mean parameter was used. The spectral direct normal irradiance (Gbλ) measurements of two different spectroradiometers were tested at Plataforma Solar de Almería, Spain. The results are presented in this article. Although only Gbλ measurements were considered in this study, the same methodology can be applied to the other solar irradiance components. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) Update)
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