Solar thermal power generation demonstration area

What is solar thermal energy?

In the last 30 years, solar thermal energy has developed to a technology that can supply heat as well as power and has a variety of different applications.

How are power cycles used in CSP thermal energy plants?

Power cycles are used in CSP thermal energy plants to convert heat into electricity using sunlight to generate the heat to power a turbine. Collectors reflect and concentrate sunlight and redirect it to a receiver, where it is converted to heat and then used to generate electricity.

Are concentrating solar power plants relevant to climate-neutral transformation?

Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) plants technology that is not yet widespread, and their relevance for the climate-neutral transformation of the global energy system is often under-estimated.

What is a solar thermal power plant?

Since steam turbines can only be operated economically above a certain minimum size, today’s solar thermal power plants have rated outputs in the range of 50 to 200 megawatts. The main difference to a conventional steam power plant is the solar field, which supplies the heat for the steam generator.

How can a solar thermal power plant withstand a high temperature?

Together with industrial partners, we transfer innovations from the laboratory to large-scale applications. New heat transfer and storage media can withstand temperatures of 600 °C, higher than has previously been possible in solar thermal power plants. This increases the efi-ciency of converting solar radiation into heat and then into electricity.

How do solar thermal power plants work?

Solar thermal power plants therefore rely on the storage of the intermediate product heat and not the end product electricity. Electricity is generated by means of a steam turbine cycle, which is oper-ated according to demand and is supplied from the thermal storage system.