Development of a Cost Effective Lineal Fresnel Solar Thermal Collector for High Temperature Processes, Thermal Driven Chillers and Hybrid Electricity Generation
Abstract
According to studies of potential published recently1, the potential of solar thermal energy for process heat and cold in industries at medium and high temperature (T >250 ° C) accounts for more than 20 million square meters of solar thermal collectors. It would represent primary energy savings of about 2 000 000 MW per year. Not only process cold has a big potential but also solar air conditioning is increasing due to the rising of demand, solar air conditioning’s installations realized last recent years have shown that could not yet be considered as cost competitive to conventional technologies. In this framework, a cost effective Lineal Fresnel solar thermal Collector is being developed inside a cofounded research project in Catalonia , focusing on the production of solar heat and cold and considering as mid-term goal renewable electricity generation,.