Abstract:The increase of solar energy production has become a solution to meet the demand of electricity and reduce the greenhouse effect worldwide. This paper aims to determine the performance and viability of direct normal irradiation of three solar tower power plants in Algeria, to be installed in the highlands and the Sahara (Béchar, El Oued, and Djelfa regions). The performance of the plants was obtained through a system advisor model simulator. It used real data gathered from appropriate meteorological files. A relationship between the solar multiple (SM), power generation, and thermal energy storage (TES) hours was observed. The results showed that the optimal heliostat field corresponds to 1.8 SM and 2 TES hours in Béchar, 1.2 SM and 2 TES hours for El Oued, and 1.5 SM and 4 TES hours for Djelfa. This study shows that there is an interesting relationship between the solar multiple, power generation, and storage capacity.
SUN FLUX calculates solar irradiance on Earth's surface quickly and accurately. Direct solar radiation is critical for concentrated solar power plants, which determine their opening surface size based on reference radiation values. To reduce investment costs, a statistical analysis was performed using direct radiation, meteorological data from NSDRB, and cloud cover statistics to identify optimum ranges for direct solar radiation. CSP plant performance is evaluated and power tower systems are simulated using the SAM software tool.
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