Glasshouse-Enclosed Solar Concentrators for Lower Structural Loads
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Solution Overview
Problem
Concentrated solar power systems face high costs due to the need for robust and expensive mirror systems, support structures, and tracking mechanisms to withstand environmental factors, which complicates the design and increases costs, especially for point-focus systems like parabolic dishes.
Innovation Solution
Enclosing the solar concentrators and receivers within a protective glasshouse or greenhouse structure, which separates the collection and protection functions, allowing for the use of lighter and less expensive materials, reducing structural demands and wind forces, and leveraging off-the-shelf greenhouse technology to minimize complexity and costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If robust mirror systems and support structures are used to withstand environmental factors, then reliability is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates the protective function (glasshouse structure) from the solar energy collection function (mirrors and receivers). This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently - the glasshouse handles environmental protection while the mirrors focus on light collection, reducing overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The glasshouse acts as an intermediary protective layer between the external environment and the solar concentrators. It shields the mirrors and receivers from wind, weather, and other environmental factors without requiring the mirrors themselves to be structurally robust.
2Reliability
If robust mirror systems and support structures are used to withstand environmental factors, then reliability is improved, but cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
By separating protection functions from collection functions, the system allows use of simpler, less expensive materials for the mirrors and support structures since they don't need to withstand environmental forces directly.
Solution Approach 2:
The glasshouse structure serves as a sacrificial protective element that can be simpler and less expensive than building environmentally-resistant mirrors and support structures. It absorbs the environmental stress rather than requiring the expensive solar components to be robust.
3Device complexity
If lighter and less expensive materials are used, then device complexity is reduced, but protection against environmental factors deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The glasshouse serves as an intermediary protective barrier that shields the lightweight mirrors and support structures from environmental factors. This allows the use of lighter materials while maintaining protection through the separate protective enclosure.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective function is extracted from the mirror and support structure systems and placed into a separate glasshouse structure. This allows the mirrors and supports to be lightweight while the glasshouse assumes the environmental protection role.
4Reliability
If robust support structures and tracking mechanisms are used, then reliability is improved, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The glasshouse structure provides the primary structural support and stability, allowing the tracking mechanisms and support structures for the mirrors to be lighter since they don't need to bear the full environmental loads alone.
Solution Approach 2:
The glasshouse acts as an intermediary structural element that bears environmental forces, reducing the weight requirements for the mirror support structures and tracking mechanisms while maintaining overall system stability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach reduces the overall weight and cost of the solar energy system, maintains high efficiency, and simplifies the construction and maintenance of concentrated solar power systems, while minimizing sunlight losses and enhancing resilience to environmental damage.
Implementation Method 1
transparent enough to allow sufficient sunlight to pass through
Implementation Method 2
concentrators to gather solar energy over a large space and aim and focus the energy at receivers
Implementation Method 3
receivers that convert incoming solar energy to another form, such as heat or electricity
Data Source
AI summary
A protective transparent enclosure (such as a glasshouse or a greenhouse) encloses a concentrated solar power system (e.g. a thermal and/or a photovoltaic system). The concentrated solar power system includes one or more solar concentrators and one or more solar receivers. Thermal power is provided to an industrial process, electrical power is provided to an electrical distribution grid, or both. In some embodiments, the solar concentrators are dish-shaped mirrors that are mechanically coupled to a joint that enables rotation at a fixed distance about respective solar collectors that are fixed in position with respect to the protective transparent enclosure. In some embodiments, the solar collectors are suspended from structure of the protective transparent enclosure and the solar concentrators are suspended from the solar collectors. In some embodiments, the greenhouse is a Dutch Venlo style greenhouse.