Preprints (www.preprints.org) | NOT PEER-REVIEWED | Posted: 17 November 2017 doi:10.20944/preprints201710.0027.v2 1 Review 2 Concentrating Solar Power Tower: Latest Status 3 Report and Survey of Development Trends 4 Albert Boretti 1,*, Stefania Castelletto 2 and Sarim Al-Zubaidy 3 5 1 Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE), Benjamin M. Statler College of 6 Engineering and Mineral Resources, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, United States, 7
[email protected];
[email protected] 8 2 School of Engineering, RMIT University, Bundoora, VIC 3083, Australia;
[email protected] 9 3 The University of Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago;
[email protected] 10 * Correspondence:
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[email protected] 11 Abstract: The paper examines design and operating data of current concentrated solar power (CSP) 12 solar tower (ST) plants. The study includes CSP with or without boost by combustion of natural gas 13 (NG), and with or without thermal energy storage (TES). The latest, actual specific costs per 14 installed capacity are very high, 6085 $/kW for Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System (ISEGS) 15 with no TES, and 9227 $/kW for Crescent Dunes with TES. The actual production of electricity is 16 very low and much less than the expected. The actual capacity factors are 22% for ISEGS, despite 17 combustion of a significant amount of NG largely exceeding the planned values, and 13% for 18 Crescent Dunes. The design values were 33% and 52%. The study then reviews the proposed 19 technology updates to produce better ratio of solar field power to electric power, better capacity 20 factor, better matching of production and demand, lower plant’s cost, improved reliability and 21 increased life span of plant’s components.