Page 8 - Design of Solar Thermal Power Plants

CHAPTER
1

Introduction

Since the beginning of the 21st century, energy and environmental
problems have become increasingly more noticeable. Due to limited
nonrenewable fossil energy resources and the severe influences of
excessive use of these resources on the environment, excessive green-
house gas emissions, global warming, and severe deterioration of regional
climates and ecological environments appeared and have greatly en-
dangered the living space of humans. The prominent advantages and
development potential of concentrating solar power (CSP)dalso known
as solar thermal power (STP) or concentrated solar powerdgeneration
technology have aroused widespread concern. The main challenge it faces
right now is to reduce its power generation costs so that it can compete
with fossil fuels. In the next two decades, it is estimated that stable and
economic CSP generation technology will gradually mature and become
strongly competitive commercially. CSP generation technology features
stable and constant power output, low costs, and outstanding technical
and economic advantages; the development strategy of this technology is
of great significance.
The basic process of CSP generation involves concentrators, receivers,
thermal storage, thermal power conversion, etc. Thermodynamics, heat
transfer, optics, mechanics, materials science, information science, and
many other disciplines and interdisciplinary studies serve as the theoretical
foundation of CSP generation technologies. Only by mastering these key
technologies can we greatly improve the efficiency of the system and
further reduce power generation costs so that we may further push for-
ward its large-scale commercialization and development, and realize the
effective utilization of solar energy.
For power plant design and operational targets, the following two
questions are key points to be solved in terms of CSP research and en-
gineering; they are also the main contents of this book:

1. Optical efficiency and cost of the concentrator. High-density
concentration of solar irradiation acts as the basic process of CSP
generation. Concentrator costs in solar tower and parabolic trough

Copyright © 2019 Chemical Industry Press.
Design of Solar Thermal Power Plants
https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-815613-1.00001-8 1 Published by Elsevier, Inc. under an exclusive license
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