skytroughbrochure.pdf

8/11/2019 SkyTroughBrochure.pdf

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Winner of the Prestigious 2009 R&D 100 Award.www.SkyFuel.com

SkyTrough Parabolic Trough Concentrator

Next-Generation SolarParabolic Trough Technology Product Information

Description The SkyTrough is a high performance parabolic trough concentratingsolar collector for use in utility scale solar thermal power plants or indus-trial process heat applications. Its breakthrough design is patterned afterthe best of the previous utility scale parabolic trough designs with impor-tant innovations that improve performance and signicantly reduce cost.SkyTrough makes concentrating solar power the affordable, dispatch-able choice for todays clean power markets.

Each SkyTrough solar collector assembly is 115 meters long with an aper-ture that is 6 meters in width. The collectors are modular and allow solarelds of different sizes to t a wide variety of applications.

How It Works

The SkyTrough concentrates sunlight onto an industryleading evacuated thermal receiver, held with precisionalong the full length of the of the collectors focal line.

A heat transfer uid ows through the receiver to absorbthe Suns energy and then delivers the thermal energyto a heat exchanger, where it generates steam for powergeneration or industrial processes.

SkyTrough Attributes

High Performance

Unbreakable Mirrors

Rapid Field Assembly

Compact Transportat ion

Localized Manufactur ing

Low Maintenance

Low Cost


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AdvantagesSkyTrough collectors deliver the proven reliability of traditional glass mir-ror parabolic trough systems, but with several performance and economicadvantages resulting from signicant design and material innovations.

Use of ReecTech mirror lm allows the fabrication of light monolithic mir-ror panels that are easy and quick to install, requiring no optical adjustment.Each ReecTech mirror panel is one third the weight of its sagged glassmirror equivalent.

The lightweight aluminum space frame uses less material, is easier to trans-port, and requires less time and labor to assemble in the eld than steeltorque tube or torsion box designs.

The rugged OnSun integrated control and drive system provides highlyaccurate positioning using a helical, hydraulic rotary actuator and theSkyTrakker control board for precision tracking.

Construction

The highly reective surface of the SkyTrough is a glass-free, silvered polymer called ReecTech PLUS mirror lm

This proprietary mirror lm is weather resistant, easy tomaintain, lightweight, abrasion resistant, and commerciallyproven. When laminated to aluminum sheet and integratedinto the SkyTrough frame, ReecTech PLUS lm formsthe most optically accurate parabolic mirror in existence.

The space frame is made of extruded aluminum strutsand is self-aligning when joined together with fasteners,requiring no welding. The entire assembly is mounted onpylons and attached to a self-locking rotary hydraulic driveenabling the SkyTrough to pivot and track the Sun.

SkyTrough solar collectors in operation atSEGS II in Daggett, California.

Parabolic Trough ConcentratorSkyTrough

Control and Drive: At the center of the SkyTrough is a rotary hydraulic actuatorfor precise tracking controlled by the SkyTrakker .

Highest Optical Performance: The clear image of the receiver tube in the mirrors illustrates theSkyTrough s optical accuracy the highest in the industry.

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Proven Performance A SkyTrough collector loop, with ReecTech mirror lm andOnSun tracking system, has been operating at SEGS II inDaggett, California since February 2010. Performance datacollected from the operating loop conrm the 73 % thermalefciency predicted by testing at the U.S. National RenewableEnergy Lab (NREL). The ReecTech lm has demonstratedoptical durability of over 30 years in NRELs Ultra AcceleratedWeathering System.

LocalizationOver 50 % of SkyTrough components can be sourced in mostcountries. This includes extruded aluminum members for thespace frames, steel weldments for the pylon supports, andaluminum sheet for the mirror panels.

Availability The SkyTrough is ready today, for global delivery. Please con-tact us to learn more about the SkyTrough and how it canbecome a part of your solar thermal project.

The SkyTrough is robust and versatile, capable of deliver-ing thermal energy to new solar power plant projects, existingpower plants, or industrial process heat applications.

Novel Rib and Panel Structure: The SkyTrough features an innovative space frame design and introduces a riband panel mirror structure a rst for large-scale parabolic trough.

SkyTrough Thermal Efciency Curve (1000 W/m 2 )

The orange line is the thermal efciency of the SkyTrough based oncombined optical efciency and receiver heat loss measurements fromNREL.

At average operating temperature (350 C) of a parabolic trough solarcollector used for utility-scale power generation, efciency ( ) = 0.737.

T h e r m a

l E f c

i e n c y

( )

THeat Transfer Fluid (C)


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SkyTrough Specications

Geometry

Total Solar Collector Assembly(1)

Length 115 m 377 ft Net Aperture Area (2) 656 m 2 7,061 ft 2

Number of Modules (3) 8 per Solar Collector Assembly (1)

Module Aperture Length 13.9 m 45.6 ft

Module Aperture Width 6 m 19.7 ft

Receiver Type Evacuated

Absorber Tube Diameter 80 or 90 mm 3.15 or 3.54 in

(1) The Solar Collector Assembly (SCA) length comprises the modules, pylons, control and drive, and ball joints (one at each end).(2) Used for any metric expressed in [XYZ] / m 2 (3) A module is the parabolic mirror and receiver unit supported by a pair of pylons.

Performance Thermal Efciency (4) 73 %

Design Point Thermal Output (4) 480 kW-th (*)

Operating Temperature Range 200 - 500 C 392 - 932 F

Indicative Annual Energy Generation 1,000 MWh-th (*)

Indicative Design Point Gross Electric Output (5) 180 kW-e (*)

Optical Efciency > 77 %

Typical Land Use 2 ha/MW-e 5 acre/MW-e

Maximum Installed Slope 4 %, gradient

Maximum Wind Speed (Stow) 135 km/h 84 mile/h 3 second gust

Maximum Wind Speed (Operation) 64 km/h 40 mile/h 3 second gust

40 km/h 25 mile/h sustained(4) Dened as (Gross Thermal Power) / (Solar Power) at 1,000 W/m 2 of direct normal incident solar radiation

and 350C heat transfer uid temperature.(5) At 37.5 % steam turbine efciency(*) kW-th = Kilowatt Thermal; MWh-th = Megawatt-Hour Thermal; kW-e = Kilowatt Electric

MirrorsStructural Backing Aluminum Sheet

Reective Surface ReecTech PLUS

Specular Reectance (6) 94 %

(6) At 1.4 acceptance angle measured with a Device & Services Specular Reectometer

SkyTrakker

ControllerController Communications Network RS485 Wired or 2.4 GHz

Wireless Radio Frequency

Parabolic Trough ConcentratorSkyTrough

For more information, please contact:[email protected], Inc.18300 West Highway 72, Arvada, CO 80007, USA 1.303.330.0276

www.SkyFuel.com

2011 SkyFuel, Inc. All Rights ReserveSkyTrough Brochure 2011.

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skytroughbrochure.pdf

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