Optimal design and integration of solar systems and fossil fuels for process cogeneration

摘要

Because of the fluctuations in incident solar power, outlet power also changes overtime (e.g., on an hourly basis or seasonally). If there is a need for a stable power outlet,there are options towards a steady state output of the system. This work is aimed at thedevelopment of systematic design procedures for two solar-based power generationstrategies.The first is integration of fossil-fuel with the solar system to provide a compensationeffect (power backup to supplement the power main source from solar energy).The second is the use of thermal energy storage (TES) systems to save solar energyin a thermal form and use it when solar input decreases. A common TES configuration isthe two-tank system which allows the use of the collector heat transfer fluid (HTF) as astoring medium. For the two tanks, one tank has the hot medium (e.g., a molten salt) andthe second has the cold storage media.Specifically, the following design challenges are addressed:1. What is the optimal mix of energy forms to be supplied to the process? 2. What are the optimal scenario and integration mode to deliver the selected energyforms? How should they be integrated among themselves and with the process?3. What is the optimal design of the energy systems?4. What is the optimal dynamic strategy for operating the various energy systems?5. What is the feasibility of using thermal energy storage to this optimum fossil fuelsystem?The developed procedure includes gathering and generation of relevant solar andclimatic data, modeling of the various components of the solar, fossil, and powergeneration systems, and optimization of several aspects of the hybrid system. A casestudy is solved to demonstrate the effectiveness and applicability of the devisedprocedure.