Title :
Efficient autonomous heliostat system
Author :
Ali, Nazar T. ; Mezher, Kahtan A. ; Qayed, A.A. ; McEwan, Neil ; AlTimimi, Abdul Muhsin M
Author_Institution :
Khalifa Univ., Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Abstract :
In this work, an efficient autonomous solar energy system has been implemented for domestic use. It concentrates the solar heat to turn water into steam which in turn is channelled to drive an electricity turbine-generator. The prototype utilizes two heliostat reflector units, each of which has been designed to accurately and independently track the sun throughout the day and reflect its light constantly on a water tank through a Fresnel lens. The algorithm is flexible enough to accept up to 100 units and can accommodate the four seasons of the year. The performance of the system including the instantaneous generated power can be monitored wirelessly using a specially designed Computer User Interface. The final system produced a concentration efficiency of 86%-92%.
Keywords :
lenses; solar energy concentrators; solar heating; solar power stations; turbogenerators; Fresnel lens; autonomous heliostat system; computer user interface; efficiency 86 percent to 92 percent; efficient autonomous solar energy system; electricity turbine-generator; heliostat reflector units; instantaneous generated power; solar heat; water tank; Lenses; Monitoring; Real time systems; Solar energy; Sun; Temperature measurement; Temperature sensors;
Conference_Titel :
Electrotechnical Conference (MELECON), 2012 16th IEEE Mediterranean
Conference_Location :
Yasmine Hammamet
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4673-0782-6
DOI :
10.1109/MELCON.2012.6196498