Maximizing Solar Potential with CSP

Concentratingsolar power (CSP) is still a relatively new branch of solar technology,but its recent progress has elevated its position in the market forproviding clean renewable energy.In general, CSP uses lenses or mirrors and tracking systems to focus alarge region of sunlight into a narrow beam, where the concentratedlight is utilized as a heat source for [...]

Biggest Solar Panels Still Not Big Enough

Considering that the world’s largest solar project (in Germany) coversabout 210 football fields with approximately 560,000 thin-film FirstSolar panels – projected to top out at 700,000 – and still produces amere 53 megawatts, or enough to power 15,000 households, it’s clearthat solar efficiencies are the underlying problem when it comes tosolar’s thin share of the [...]

Parsons, TSK Sign CSP Agreement

Pasadena, Calif.-headquartered engineering, construction, and technicaland management services firm Parsons has signed a strategic allianceagreement with TSK, a provider of engineering and electrical equipment. Thisstrategic partnership will provide concentrated solar power (CSP)technology applications in North America and the Middle East. TSK iscompleting two CSP projects in Spain that incorporate thermal storageby storing heat in molten [...]

Acciona starts up first Spain CSP plant

Spanish construction and renewable energy giant Acciona has started operations at its first concentrating solar power (CSP) plant in Spain. The Alvarado 1 plant, near Badajoz in the Extremadura region, has a capacity of 50MW and cost €236m to build. It uses parabolic trough technology, with over 184,000 mirrors on a 130 hectare site. Acciona [...]

Solar farms that sip desert water

Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) gets a bad rap from desert dwellers. First, there’s the concern over disturbing wild areas to build sprawling solar farms. Some also object to how the giant sites can ruin their treasured view of the desert. But the biggest concern is over what these lands possess in minute amounts. “Water usage [...]

DOE Funds $52.5m for CSP Research

Energy Secretary Steven Chu says the announcement underscores the commitment by President Barack Obama’s administration to making electricity generated from solar energy competitive with conventional grid power. “Low-cost renewable energy generation that includes energy storage is one key to our efforts to diversify domestic energy sources and create new jobs,” says Chu. “By investing in [...]

Seeing Solar In A Different Light

Is Solar Power Dead in the Water? That’s the reductionist headline for a more nuanced op-ed published recently in the WaPo by Robert Glennon. Glennon is a professor of law and public policy at the University of Arizona and the author of an excellent new book, Unquenchable: America’s Water Crisis and What to Do About [...]

Dow Chemical captures solar power with fluid technology

Dow Chemical says it has developed heat transfer fluids which collect, transport and store solar generated heat, technology that shows great promise worldwide.Concentrating Solar Power systems (CSP) with Dow’s heat transfer fluids use mirrors to reflect and concentrate sunlight onto receivers that collect solar energy and convert it to heat. The fluids collect the heat [...]

Intersolar Presents Pioneering Technology Awards

The Intersolar trade show has awarded six prizes to six companies intwo categories – photovoltaics and solar thermal technology. Inthe photovoltaics category, Aerowest GmbH, based in Dortmund, Germany,received an award for its AeroSolar software, which produceshigh-resolution aerial pictures. National Semiconductor Corp. receivedan award for its SolarMagic power optimizer, which minimizes the energylosses of photovoltaic installations [...]

Tag Archives: csp