Browsing by Author "Jean-Louis, Nick"

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    System-scale Analysis of a Parabolic Trough Concentrated Solar Power Plant with Hybrid Thermal Storage
    (2022-07-27) Jean-Louis, Nick; Schaefer, Laura A
    The performance of concentrated solar power plants is dependent on the solar intermittency and seasonal changes to solar irradiation. Commercial application of concentrated solar power plants currently incorporates sensible and latent heat storage, both of which lack long term storage viability. Thermochemical energy storage (TCES) is proposed as a solution for long-term storage, dehydrating/storing during summer months and hydrating/releasing during the winter. TCES is considered as a parallel component to a two-tank indirect molten salt storage covering solar intermittency. The TCES is also in series with a secondary two-tank indirect molten salt storage which operates at a lower temperature, reducing the heat transfer fluid (HTF) exit temperature to the solar field inlet temperature during charging, or to increase the HTF exit temperature to the steam train entrance temperature during discharging. The SEGS VI solar field and power generation parameters are used to model a 5 MWe capacity plant. The TCES is also modeled with and without a porous channel decreasing dehydration time by 54%. Results present three storage sizes of 8, 12, and 16 hours, covering the distribution of energy during operation. Outputs are analyzed based on their monthly averages favoring 16 hour storage to minimize reactor hydration during the summer. Configurations which further benefit the CSPP + TCES combination are also discussed.