Dish-Stirling solar receiver designs are investigated and evaluated for possible use with sensible energy storage in single-phase materials. The designs differ from previous receivers in utilizing axial conduction in the storage material for attenuation of the solar flux transients due to intermittent cloud cover, and in having convective heat removal at the base of the receiver. One-dimensional, time-dependent heat transfer equations are formulated for the storage material temperature field, including losses to the environment, and a general heat exchange effectiveness boundary condition at the base. The solar source flux is represented as the sum of steady and periodic cloud-transient components, with the steady component solved subject to specified receiver thermal efficiency. For the transient cloud-cover component the Fast Fourier Transform algorithm (FFT) is applied, and the complex transfer function of the receiver is obtained as a filter for the input flux spectrum. Inverse transformation results in the amplitudes and mode shapes of the transient temperature component. By adjustment of design parameters, the cloud-cover amplitude variations of the outlet gas temperature can be limited to acceptable magnitudes, thus simplifying control systems.

Issue Section:
Research Papers
Topics:
Energy storage, Heating, Solar energy systems, Transients (Dynamics), Solar energy, Temperature, Heat, Storage, Algorithms, Boundary-value problems, Control systems, Design, Fast Fourier transforms, Filters, Heat conduction, Heat transfer, Mode shapes, Thermal efficiency, Transfer functions
1.
Diver, R. B., et al., 1990, “Trends in Dish-Stirling Solar Receiver Designs”, Proc. 25th IECEC, Reno, NV.
2.
Diver, R. B., 1992, “Reflux Solar Receiver Design Considerations”, Solar Engineering—1992, Proc. ASME/JSES/KSES Int’l. Solar Energy Conf., Maui, HI, pp. 981–989.
3.
Hogan
R. E.
,
Diver
R. B.
, and
Stine
W. B.
,
1990
, “
Comparison of a Cavity Solar Receiver Numerical Model and Experimental Data
,”
ASME JOURNAL OF SOLAR ENERGY ENGINEERING
, Vol.
112
, pp.
183
–
190
.
4.
Incropera, F. P., and DeWitt, D. P., 1990, Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer, 3rd Ed., John Wiley and Sons, New York.
5.
Jacquot, R. G., and Long, M., 1988, Engineering Systems, Allyn & Bacon.
6.
Kolb, G. J., et al., 1989, “Dynamic Simulation of a Molten-Salt Solar Receiver,” Sandia National Labs., Rep. # SAND88-2895.
7.
Laing, D., and Goebel, O., 1991, “Sodium Heat Pipe Solar Receiver for a SPS V-160 Stirling Engine: Development Laboratory and On-Sun Test Results,” Proc. 26th IECEC, Vol. 5, pp. 363–369.
8.
Lund, K. O., 1992, “FFT Analysis of Sensible-Heat Solar-Dynamic Receivers,” Proc. 27th IECEC, San Diego, CA, Vol. 2, pp. 2.359–2.367.
9.
Lund, K. O., 1994, “Attenuation Thermal Energy Storage in Sensible-Heat Solar-Dynamic Receivers,” Solar Engineering—1994, Proc. ASME/JSME/JSES Int’l. Solar Energy Conf., San Francisco, pp. 273–281.
10.
Mancini, T. R., 1991, “Analysis and Design of two Stretched-Membrane Parabolic Dish Concentrators,” Solar Engineering—1991, Proc. ASME/JSME/JSES Int’l. Solar Energy Conf., Reno, NV, pp. 201–208.
11.
Mathcad Software, Version 2.5, 1989, Mathsoft, Inc., Cambridge, MA.
12.
Schiel, W., et al., 1994, “Long Terra Testing of three 9 kW Dish/Stirling Systems,” Solar Engineering—1994, Proc. ASME/JSME/JSES Int’l. Solar Energy Conf., San Francisco, pp. 541–550.
13.
Stine, W. B., and McDonald, C. G., 1988,“Cavity Receiver Heat Loss Measurements,” Solar Engineering—1988, Proc. ASME Solar Energy Conf., Denver, CO, pp. 307–312.
14.
Walker, J. S., 1991, Fast Fourier Transforms, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
This content is only available via PDF.
Copyright © 1996
 by The American Society of Mechanical Engineers
You do not currently have access to this content.