AN ANALYSIS METHODOLOGY OF THE EFFECT OF USING DIFFERENT TRACKING TIME-STEPS ON THE NET ENERGY GAIN OF A CSP POWER PLANT

In central receiver solar power plant, heliostat tracking accuracy affects the optical efficiency and the amount of energy received at the target. in the present article, an integrated analysis of the effect of using different solar tracking time-steps on the energy consumption and gain of a central receiver system is developed. the drive system energy consumption is calculated by using a solidworks model of the heliostat mechanical drive system. this solidworks model is interfaced to a labview model containing the model of the electrical drive and control systems. the solar energy collected at the receiver is calculated using monte carlo ray tracing software.