A review of integrated solar combined cycle system (ISCCS) with a parabolic trough technology
Introduction
The economic boom in developing countries, particularly China and India, and the continuous increase in world population are the major factors that have boosted energy demands and prices [1], [2]. This has resulted in the worsening of the world environmental problems such as climate change and global warming [1], [2], [3], [4]. This has also put stress on the energy resources with hike in prices and risk in shortage and depletion. Recent estimates have indicated that the remaining recoverable resources are about 2670 billion barrels of conventional hydrocarbons including crude oil and natural gas [1]. This will not be enough to meet world energy needs by 2050 and will definitely result in shortage with onerous energy costs for end-users.
To preserve the limited resources and to address raising energy security and environmental concerns R&D activities for the development of efficient and sustainable energy systems have been booming. To this end, three issues have been the object of intense focus [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12]
energy efficiency improvements and low-carbon technologies,
technologies advancements including scaling up, and
renewable energy technologies.
Increasing penetration of low-carbon technologies and enhancements in the thermal efficiency of fossil-fuelled power plants can keep up the energy demand growth while technology advancements mitigate high energy costs. Renewable, in particular solar, energy has the potential of meeting the world energy needs while addressing energy security and environmental concerns. Nevertheless, technological advances in renewable energy electricity production are necessary before renewable electricity becomes competitive with conventional technologies. For instance, poly-generation power plants can produce electricity with thermal efficiency over 60% while solar only power station cannot exceed 30%. This results in higher costs. To solve this issue, hybrid concepts that join the advantages of the three above mentioned issues have been proposed. Among all the renewable technologies available for hybridization, Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) is one with the potential to make major contributions of clean energy with higher efficiency because of its relatively conventional technology and ease of scale-up [13], [14], [15], [16], [17], [18], [19].
At present, the most proven CSP technology for hybridization is the parabolic trough. Hybridization can be done in numerous ways including the use of an auxiliary firing or a fossil back-up in the thermodynamic cycles [20], [21]. Earlier, in the 1980s, a total of nine Solar Electric Generating Systems (SEGSs) have been built in the southern California desert. Each plant has used a solar field with a Parabolic Trough Technology (PTT) to heat up an Oil-HTF. The thermal energy in the oil has been used to generate steam to power a Rankine cycle. Later on, in the 1990s, and in order to enhance solar-to-electricity conversion efficiency, the integration of PTT into a modern combined cycle has been proposed by Luz Solar International. This advanced concept is known as the integrated solar combined cycle system (ISCCS). The ISCCS commonly consists of a conventional Combined Cycle (CC), a solar field, and a Heat Solar Steam Generator (HSSG). In the last decade, R&D activities and implantation of this type of power plants have been supported by grants awarded by the Global Environment Facility to some developing countries. For this reason, various feasibility studies and costs assessments have been carried out along with thermal performance prediction that investigate the ISCCSs in operation, underway or in the planning stage all around the world, particularly, in Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Mexico, the US, Iran, China, and Italy.
The present paper is a chronological review of the ISCCS with a parabolic trough technology, highlighting its current status around the world, identifying its different configurations, and pointing out the key findings of R&D activities that have been published.
Section snippets
Operational ISCCSs
Nowadays several integrated solar combined cycle power plants are operating all around the world. In North Africa, three power plants are already in operation in Algeria (Hassi R’Mel, 150 MW, with 20 MW solar), Morocco (Aïn Beni Mathar, 470 MW, with 20 MW solar), and Egypt (Kuraymat, 140 MW, with 20 MW solar). In Iran, the Yazd ISCCS has been commissioned in August 2010 (Yazd, 467 MW, with 17 MW solar). In Italy, the Archimede solar power station, with smaller solar field, has been operating since July
Parabolic trough technologies applied in the ISCCS
In solar thermal power plants the collectors are usually used to generate steam to power a thermodynamic cycle. The steam can be generated directly into the absorber tube. This technique is called Direct Steam Generation (DSG). Another technique is the use of a Heat Transfer Fluid (HTF) to transport solar thermal energy from the collectors to a heat exchanger where steam is generated. This section provides the basic of these two concepts and a short comparison between them.
A review of studies and recent R&D activities
Recent studies have already pointed out that about a half of the cost reduction potential for CSP technologies can be attributed to R&D activities [4], [12]. In this section, we have reviewed the most important findings of the previous R&D activities on the ISCCS. The presented methodology could be very helpful in identifying future R&D priorities.
Analysis and comparison
This section summarizes the above reviewed studies and provides in-depth analysis. The analysis includes the evolution in the R&D activities since the introduction of the ISCCS concept and discusses the most important finding. The section also reviews the tools, techniques and software that have been used or developed to perform the ISCCS with a parabolic trough technology.
Conclusion
In the present paper, the integrated solar combined cycle system with a parabolic trough technology has been reviewed. The status of operational, under construction and planned power plants has been highlighted, the major results of R&D activities and published studies summarized and a detailed analysis provided. We have observed an exponential increase in the R&D activities and in the implantation of the ISCCSs. Various configurations have been proposed and their performance investigated.
References (102)
- et al.
A review of central receiver solar thermal power plants
Renew Sustain Energy Rev
(2013) - et al.
Stochastic techniques used for optimization in solar systems: a review
Renew Sustain Energy Rev
(2012) - et al.
A review of solar collectors and thermal energy storage in solar thermal applications
Appl Energy
(2013) - et al.
A review on solar energy use in industries
Renew Sustain Energy Rev
(2011) - et al.
A review of solar thermal technologies
Renew Sustain Energy Rev
(2010) - et al.
Innovation in concentrated solar power
Sol Energy Mater Sol Cells
(2011) Scaling up concentrating solar thermal technology in China
Renew Sustain Energy Rev
(2009)- et al.
Financing concentrating solar power in the Middle East and North Africa – subsidy or investment?
(2011)Energy Policy
(2011) - et al.
Performance model to assist solar thermal power plant sitting in northern Chile based on backup fuel consumption
Renew Energy
(2010) - et al.
Comparison of different solar plants based on parabolic trough technology
Sol Energy
(2012)
Approche de conception et d׳optimisation de centrale solaire intégré à cycle combine inspiré de la méthode du pincement (partie i: paliers de récupération)
Int J Therm Sci
Approche de conception et d׳optirnisation de centrale solaire intégré cycle combine inspire de la méthode du pincement (partie i1: r seau d׳ changeurs de chaleur)
Int J Therm Sci
Exergy analysis of an integrated solar combined cycle system
Renew Energy
Exergoeconomic analysis and optimization of an integrated solar combined cycle system (ISCCS) using genetic algorithm
Energy Convers Manag
Thermoeconomic analysis method for optimization of combined heat and power systems. Part I
Prog Energy Combust Sci
Instantaneous performance of the first integrated solar combined cycle system in Algeria
Energy Procedia
Technoeconomic assessment of an integrated solar combined cycle power plant in Greece using line-focus parabolic trough collectors
Renew Energy
A comparative study between parabolic trough and solar tower technologies in Solar Rankine Cycle and Integrated Solar Combined Cycle plants
Sol Energy
State-of-the-art of solar thermal power plants – a review
Renew Sustain Energy Rev
Co-located gas turbine/solar thermal hybrid designs for power production
Renew Energy
Exergetic analysis of solar concentrator aided natural gas fired combined cycle power plant
Renew Energy
Trough integration into power plants – a study on the performance and economy of integrated solar combined cycle system
Energy
Solar – thermal hybridization of advanced zero emissions power cycle
Energy
Performance and cost assessment of integrated solar combined cycle systems (ISCCSs) using CO2 as heat transfer fluid
Sol Energy
Performance analysis of an integrated solar combined cycle using direct steam generation in parabolic trough collectors
Applied Energy
Thermodynamic analysis of a novel integrated solar combined cycle
Appl Energy
Solar hybrid steam injection gas turbine (STIG) cycle
Sol Energy
Conceptual design and techno-economic assessment of integrated solar combined cycle system with DSG technology
Sol Energy
Exergoeconomic analysis and optimization of an Integrated Solar Combined Cycle System (ISCCS) using genetic algorithm
Energy Conversion and Management
Comparison of heat transfer fluid and direct steam generation technologies for integrated solar combined cycles
Appl Therm Eng
Economic analysis of integrated solar combined cycle power plants a sample case: the economic feasibility of an ISCCS power plant in Egypt
Energy
Innovative solar augmentation of gas turbine combined cycle plants
Appl Therm Eng
An efficient way to use medium-or-low temperature solar heat for power generation e integration into conventional power plant
Appl Therm Eng
4-E (energy, exergy, environment, and economic) analysis of solar thermal aided coal-fired power plants
Energy Sustain Dev
Novel integration options of concentrating solar thermal technology with fossil-fuelled and CO2 capture processes
Energy Procedia
Flexible CCS plants – a key to near-zero emission electricity systems
Energy Procedia
Design optimization of a poly-generation plant fuelled by natural gas and renewable energy sources
Appl Energy
Low CO2-emissions hybrid solar combined-cycle power system with methane membrane reforming
Energy
Parabolic troughs to increase the geothermal wells flow enthalpy
Sol Energy
Codes for solar flux calculation dedicated to central receiver system applications: a comparative review
Sol Energy
Volumetric receivers in solar thermal power plants with central receiver system technology: a review
Sol Energy
Solar electricity imports from the Middle East and North Africa to Europe
Energy Policy
Cited by (119)
Energy analysis of novel hybrid solar and natural gas combined cycle plants
2023, Applied Thermal EngineeringTheoretical technical–economic comparison of hybrid energy for gas and solar concentration plants in the Region of Antofagasta Chile
2023, Sustainable Energy Technologies and AssessmentsOptimization of solar-coal hybridization for low solar augmentation
2022, Applied EnergyCitation Excerpt :Studies into flexible heat generation have shown the benefits of alternating the integration of solar thermal energy from CSP collection into a fossil fuel power plant based on the amount of instantaneous solar resource available between steam generation, steam superheating [18], and feedwater heater (FWH) bypass [19]. Both Behar et al. [20] and Libby et al. [21] suggest that, among other options, solar can be integrated at a FWH where steam, extracted from a turbine, is typically used to preheat some other working fluid. Downstream effects can be mitigated by selecting the augment fraction such that the heat transfer limits of the FWH are not surpassed.
A comparative study between two different techniques of solar integrated systems
2022, Applied Thermal EngineeringCitation Excerpt :ISCC system consists of Brayton and Rankine power blocks, and a solar system. Firstly, the ISCC-PTC is with Hassi R’mel’s ISCC concept that integrates a PTC field with a CC which is proposed and designed by Abener and Abengoa Solar [5]. In such a plant, one part of feed water is withdrawn from HRSG single pressure and converted into saturated steam by SSG working in parallel to HRSG and then returned to the latter where it is mixed and superheated as seen in Fig. 1a. Consequently, the solar thermal energy is integrated as latent heat in the present layout.