A unique and novel steam power station has been built using a concentrated solar dish, to generate
electricity. The system was built based on recommendations by previous researchers about the
possibility of obtaining high temperatures using a solar dish. The steam generated will be used to
operate a mini steam station, after making some simple changes to fit the new working mechanism,
while retaining the main working principles of large steam power stations. This was achieved by using
the main elements found in a Rankine cycle system for steam power plant stations (turbine, generator,
condenser and pump) and by adding auxiliary secondary components to facilitate its protection
and operation all year round. A small station consisting of a solar dish (solar heater), works as a
boiler connected to a turbine, this linked to an electric generator. Outlet working fluid travels to the
condenser and is then recycled back to the solar heater by a pump. A prototype of the solar dish
was built of diameter 3 m, an aperture area reaching 7.1 m2, and focal length 1.41 m, covered with
2 mm glass/ silver mirrors. Data was gathered in situ in summer and winter, to test its performance
under different weather conditions and changes in the amount of solar radiation, temperature and
wind speed. The results show that the station was able to generate good quantities of energy, ranging
from between 900–2000 W, working at 31%–34% overall efficiency. A statistical analysis of the system
was also carried out using a SPSS software the results of high accuracy, the maximum value of the
coefficient of determination (R2), 85%–91.3%. |
