Thermal modeling of a secondary concentrator integrated with an open direct-absorption molten-salt volumetric receiver in a beam-down tower system
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SP2015_Radia.pdf
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Author(s)
Lahlou, Radia
Armstrong, Peter
Grange, Benjamin
Almheiri, Saif
Calvet, Nicolas
Shamim, Tariq
Slocum, Alexander H
Date Issued
May 2016
Journal
AIP Conference Proceedings
Publisher
AIP Publishing
Citation
Lahlou, Radia, Peter Armstrong, Benjamin Grange, Saif Almheiri, Nicolas Calvet, Alexander Slocum, and Tariq Shamim. “Thermal Modeling of a Secondary Concentrator Integrated with an Open Direct-Absorption Molten-Salt Volumetric Receiver in a Beam-down Tower System” AIP Conference Proceedings 1734, AIP Publishing, 2016 . © 2016 Authors
Version
Final published version
Abstract
An upward-facing three-dimensional secondary concentrator, herein termed Final Optical Element (FOE), is designed to be used in a beam-down tower in combination with an open volumetric direct-absorption molten-salt receiver tank acting simultaneously as a thermal energy storage system. It allows reducing thermal losses from the open receiver by decreasing its aperture area while keeping minimal spillage losses. The FOE is exposed to high solar fluxes, a part of which is absorbed by its reflector material, leading to material degradation by overheating. Consequently, the FOE may require active cooling. A thermal model of the FOE under passive cooling mechanism is proposed as a first step to evaluate its sensitivity to some design parameters. Then, it will be used to evaluate the requirements for the active cooling system. The model provides insights on the FOE thermal behavior and highlights the effectiveness of a design modification on passive cooling enhancement. First prototype tests under reduced flux and with no active cooling will be used for model adjustment.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
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Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4949036
