This demonstration is the culmination of a $100 million research effort to develop next-generation concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP) plants and showcase storage technology that could provide one gigawatt of storage for one hour at a single plant.

“Next-generation CSP has the potential to be a game-changer,” said Alejandro Moreno, acting assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy. “This pilot facility will demonstrate how CSP systems can meet the challenges of providing long-duration energy storage while reducing costs and complexity for solar thermal technology. At the same time, it also provides a pathway to commercialization for industrial process heat.”

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DOE launched its Generation 3 (Gen3) CSP research effort in 2017, challenging the industry to develop and test new technologies to achieve high-temperature plants.

The best commercially available technologies, which use mirrors to concentrate sunlight and heat molten salt on top of a tower, can only reach 565°C. DOE’s Gen3 CSP research initiative evaluated all viable pathways to operate a plant that could reach 720°C. Based on research findings, DOE then selected Sandia to develop its technology, which uses sand-like ceramic particles instead of molten salt and can withstand temperatures greater than 800°C. These particles can be used to transfer and store heat or power a supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO₂) turbine. If successful, this type of solar power plant could provide 100MW of power continuously, around the clock, at low cost.

Sandia received $25 million to build, test, and operate this facility at the National Solar Thermal Test Facility in Albuquerque, NM. To accelerate deployment and commercialisation, Sandia is working with international researchers in Saudi Arabia and Australia to test variants of key system components. The pilot is expected to be completed in 2024 and will prove that a particle-based plant could achieve DOE’s goal of making electricity-plus-storage from CSP even more affordable at 5 cents per kilowatt-hour.

Originally published on renewableenergyworld.com

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According to Prysmian, extreme climate events like heavy rains and floods may cause deterioration to solar cables and failure with negative consequences on power generation capacity, reliability of power supplies and return on investment.

Prysmian performed extensive R&D to develop Prysolar with the aim of minimising cable failure due to unpredictable challenges from increasing solar applications.

Prysolar offers significant climate strength and a longer lifetime thanks to what Prysmian hails as a first-in-the-industry test protocol that certifies long term resistance in water for DC cables.

Also, operational efficiency is enhanced by the use of tailored solar string monitoring systems based on proprietary PRY-CAM technology.

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“Solar photovoltaic generation is set to cover more than 50% of the global electricity demand by 2050. Return on investment, asset efficiency, OPEX and Levelized Cost of Energy are the main and most critical priorities for our customers in the solar industry. Prysmian Prysolar, is the new generation of cables designed to provide our solar customers with peace of mind in these areas”, says Vanessa Alvarez, SVP industrial specialties, Prysmian Group

Prysmian will officially launch Prysolar at the Genera 2023 International Energy and Environment Fair taking place in Madrid from February 21 to 23, 2023.

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The joint project is headed by Sandia National Laboratories, CEMEX and Synhelion and was known formally as Solar-Thermal Mixed-Media Enhancement and Decarbonization of Clinker Formation, which would use concentrated solar thermal energy in clinker production, a key component in cement.

CEMEX and Synhelion have worked to introduce Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) technology in the cement production process, achieving a successful laboratory-scale pilot in 2022. Sandia Laboratories will contribute research facilities as part of the National Solar Thermal Test Facility, along with subject matter expertise to help accelerate the technology’s adaptation to cement manufacturing.

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Cement clinker is a solid material produced in the manufacture of Portland cement. It is produced by sintering limestone and aluminosilicate materials such as clay during the cement kiln stage. Fossil fuels are typically used to heat the kiln and are responsible for around 40% of direct CO2 emissions from the process.

Synhelion’s technology delivers process heat beyond 1,500 degrees Celsius to produce clinker without using fossil fuels.

Few renewable technologies are capable of generating heat at the temperatures needed to process raw cement feedstock, said Nathan Schroeder, Sandia researcher and principal investigator for the Solar MEAD project. The project is expected to advance understanding of how to use CST to gather and deliver heat to existing cement production facilities. Techniques could be used in other ore processing industries such as refractory, ceramics, and battery production.

The project is designed to investigate methods to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, lower process temperatures, and increase the efficiency of clinker formation using solar energy. The team will assess the conditions to maximise heat transfer to the raw cement mix.

Successful adoption of this technology in cement manufacturing could allow for the replacement of fossil fuels.

Synhelion evolved from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in 2016 in a bid to decarbonise the transportation sector. Synhelion is currently building its first industrial solar fuel plant in Germany. The first commercial production facility is planned for commissioning in Spain by 2025. 

Mexico-based CEMEX offers cement, ready-mix concrete, and aggregates in global markets.

Originally published on renewableenergyworld.com

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The long-duration energy storage systems will support TID’s Project Nexus, a pioneering installation of solar panels over irrigation canals, aimed to generate clean energy while minimising loss of water through evaporation.

It’s a proof-of-concept pilot to study solar over canal design, deployment, and co-benefits on behalf of the State of California using TID infrastructure and electrical grid access.

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TID will use ESS technology to demonstrate the key role of long-duration energy storage in delivering reliable, dispatchable clean energy 24/7.

Funding for the project is provided by the State of California and administered by the Department of Water Resources.

“Long-duration energy storage is the key that will enable Project Nexus to not only conserve water and generate renewable energy, but provide on-demand, clean power 24/7,” said Hugh McDermott, ESS senior vice president, business development and sales.

“This project addresses multiple climate challenges at once and is the kind of innovative approach that will build a climate-resilient future. We look forward to delivering a solution that can be replicated across California and other drought-prone areas,” added McDermott.

ESS iron flow technology provides long-duration energy storage and is ideal for applications that require up to 12 hours of flexible energy capacity.

Project Nexus is expected to be complete in 2024.

The water-energy nexus

TID suggests that utilities are increasingly becoming aware of the overlap between water and energy management and are prioritising strategies to protect both resources as far as possible.

With Project Nexus, the water in the conveyance infrastructure has the potential to cool the solar panels, increasing their efficiency.

The solar panels also provide shade and wind protection over the water, reducing evaporation and leading to a reduction in aquatic growth improving water quality.

Research at the University of California has shown that up to 13GW of solar capacity could be installed over California’s canals, which would require approximately 3GW of energy storage and contribute significantly to the state’s clean energy and water conservation goals.

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The 288MWh VS1 project is claimed to be Australia’s first commercial CSP plant and will begin operations in the latter part of 2025.

The plant will make use of Vast Solar’s modular CSP technology. The solar company aims to demonstrate the performance of its technology at utility scale to unlock further investment opportunities.

According to Vast Solar, their modular design, use of sodium as the heat transfer fluid, and patented control systems, allow the generation of higher temperature heat and greater reliability.

The $203 million project will also demonstrate the value of CSP in delivering reliable and dispatchable renewable energy to Australia.

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Darren Miller, chief executive of the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) said the expansion of Vast Solar’s technology into a commercial scale project shows that CSP technology could play an important role in generating and storing renewables at scale.

“With the increasing need for dispatchable renewable generation and longer duration energy storage, CSP has potential to assist Australia’s energy transition alongside pumped hydro and large scale batteries,” said Miller.

“Vast Solar’s global recognition as a leader in CSP technology innovation, combined with its significant technical and commercial expertise, mean that it is well placed to deliver Australia’s first large scale CSP plant which should deliver power at a cost competitive with other forms of renewable generation.”

ARENA’s funding for VS1 is conditional upon the project reaching financial close, which is expected in late 2023.

Craig Wood, chief executive of Vast Solar, said: “We are grateful for ARENA’s long-term support. Their understanding of the potential of our CSP technology is a testament to the Australian Government’s ambition to deliver cost-competitive dispatchable renewable energy to help uphold emissions reductions goals while supporting local jobs and industry.”

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Based in Mecklenburg, Western Pomerania, Tützpatz will combine bifacial modules on different mounting systems, as well as an elevated tracker system.

The farm will be situated on 95 hectares of agricultural land intended for organic free-range eggs.

According to current plans, construction at Tützpatz is scheduled to start in mid-2023.

Claus Wattendrup, head of the solar division at Vattenfall, said in a statement: “The German government’s goal is to expand electricity generation from photovoltaics to 215 gigawatts by 2030, half of which will be installed on open spaces.

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“Agrivoltaics can help to achieve these goals in addition to traditional open-space PV. With the Tützpatz project, we are developing this young technology further on a commercial scale. Agrivoltaics helps the climate, it can increase biodiversity, and it serves as an additional source of income for agriculture.”

It’s the first time Vattenfall will implement a commercial project of this type, allowing the company to gain experience for future commercial agrivoltaic projects.

Vattenfall is currently testing the 0.7MWp pilot project in Almere, the Netherlands. The Symbizon agrivoltaic project will soon be operational and will also be used as a proof-of-concept.

Germany’s promising agrivoltaics landscape

Agrivoltaics is becoming a popular solution as a way to protect agricultural land for food production in the face of growing solar demand.

The potential for standard agrivoltaic farming in Germany is estimated at around 1.7TW (peak), more than 30 times the current total solar capacity in the country.

The use of vertical modules with the cultivation of feed on pasture continuing in between could add a further potential of 1.2TW (peak).

To incentivise investment in agrivoltaics, the Government has now made agrivoltaics eligible for guaranteed grid access and feed-in tariffs provided by the Renewable Energies Act (EEG).

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This is according to the latest report from Research and Markerts, which predicts a CAGR of 8.05% during the forecast period 2022-2027.

Space-based solar systems use panels to produce solar power in space. The panels transmit the energy to Earth via satellite systems in the form of microwaves and laser signals.

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According to the report, Global Space-Based Solar Power Market, there are a number of advantages driving the growth of this market, such as the production of clean baseload power without the release of radioactive radiation.

Also, rapid urbanisation and growing public knowledge of the advantages of solar energy use are further factors that will support the market’s expansion.

One of key factors hindering the growth of this market is what the report refers to as the “hefty initial investment required for space-based solar generation”. Also, the costs associated with installation, maintenance and transit will be a noteworthy obstacle.

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Together with cost, market growth will be slowed by the difficulties around the logistics of operating space-based solar systems.

Asia-Pacific currently holds a dominant market share in the space-based solar power industry, due to increased awareness of the benefits of extracting solar power from space rather than earth-based solar power in this region.

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Spanish energy giant Iberdrola is to build its first floating solar PV plant in France.

The 25MWp plant will be in the municipality of Kurtzenhouse in Alsace.

Kurtzenhouse mayor Marc Moser said the solar plant “represents a real opportunity for our region”.

“This green energy project contributes to the region’s energy self-sufficiency while fighting against global warming in a context marked by soaring electricity prices.”

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The 13-hectare plant will be developed, built and operated by Iberdrola on the basin of a pit which is currently used as an extraction site for sand and gravel.

The application for a building permit is expected to be submitted in spring 2024 and commissioning is expected in 2026. The operating period is 30 years.

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The plant’s electricity will be fed into the distribution network and used locally by nearly 10,000 Alsatian households.

At the end of the plant’s operation life, Iberdrola will be responsible for 100% of the dismantling and restoration of the site.

Iberdrola said it will give preference to local companies for the building of the plant, which it expects to create around 80 construction jobs.

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The Hot Springs microgrid consists of a 2MW (AC) solar facility and a 4.4MW/4.4MWh lithium-based battery storage facility.

While the battery only technically has a 1-hour duration, the town’s typical load is typically less than 1MW, potentially extending the battery’s available duration to at least four hours.

In addition to providing clean and reliable energy for the town of Hot Springs, the microgrid will also perform grid services, such as frequency and voltage regulation, as well as ramping support and capacity during peaks on Duke Energy’s system.

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“Duke Energy has numerous smaller microgrids on our system, but this is our first microgrid that can power an entire small town if its main power line experiences an outage,” said Jason Handley, general manager of Duke Energy’s Distributed Energy Group.

Hot Springs has a population of just over 500. The town has limited rerouting options in the event of an outage.

During its testing phase, Duke Energy’s microgrid was able to pick up the town’s entire load from a black start without any help from the energy grid – using only solar and battery storage to restore power. The microgrid served the town’s load while the company gathered data.

Duke Energy worked with the technology company Wärtsilä, which supplied the battery energy storage system for the project. The microgrid utilizes Wärtsilä’s energy management system, the GEMS Digital Energy Platform, for integrated control of both the solar and energy storage facilities.

Duke Energy has over 60MW of microgrid capacity connected throughout its regulated areas.

In Asheville, North Carolina, Duke Energy operates a 9MW lithium-ion battery system at a substation site in the Rock Hill community.

In Haywood County, North Carolina the company has a 3.8- kWh lithium iron phosphate battery and 10 kW solar DC microgrid installation serving a communications tower on Mount Sterling in the Smoky Mountains National Park. 

Originally published by John Engel on power-eng.com

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The solar power plant will be built on the site of Saint-Gobain’s factory in Vidalengo, near Bergamo.

The agreement will ensure a significant portion of the factory’s electricity consumption is renewable. Furthermore, because the project falls under the Italian regulation for self-consumption, known as SEU, Saint-Gobain will be able to lock in favourable electricity prices and save on grid fees.

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The farm will generate more than 7.5GWh of renewable electricity per year, displacing more than 3,900 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, and will be operational in mid-2023.

Gaetano Terrasini, Saint-Gobain’s Italian CEO, said that the Group aims to increase the sustainability of its solutions and production processes for which they have set targets in terms of CO2, waste and water reduction. Said Terrasini, “The closing of this agreement for our Vidalengo plant represents one of the actions that will support Italian operation to achieve the Group’s aspiring goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.”

Yiannis Kalafatas, chief executive director of Mytilineos’ Energy Sector stated: “Italy represents a strategic country for the Company and with this agreement we are demonstrating our capabilities to support local industries in this difficult period of energy volatility and our support to the Italian energy independence policy.”

Mytilineos currently has an Italian portfolio of 157MW in construction, 2GW in development, and is planning to add another 1GW during 2023.

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