Technology Transfer Department

Application sectors

Problem to solve

The development of new materials and technical solutions to increase efficiency and reduce costs in CST plants requires a versatile, large-scale experimental ecosystem where a wide range of innovations can be tested at a real scale. The unique PCS experimental infrastructure combines the scale and operating conditions of an industrial plant with the operational flexibility of a laboratory, providing an ideal environment for advanced experimentation, hardly reproducible in other research settings.

Description

The PCS (Solar Collector Test) plant is a leading research and development infrastructure in the field of concentrated solar thermal technology. Using parabolic trough collectors and a mixture of molten salts (sodium nitrate and potassium nitrate) as a heat transfer fluid, the plant converts solar radiation into thermal energy, storing it at temperatures up to 550°C. The PCS plant features all the main components of a full-scale CST plant production cycle: a 100-meter linear parabolic solar collector with a mirror surface of approximately 600 m² and a 5.8 m³ molten salt storage tank, operating at temperatures between 290 and 550 °C. The PCS plant is capable of simulating the real operating conditions of collectors in a solar thermal power plant by using an electric boiler to vary the inlet temperature of the heat transfer fluid to the solar field. By measuring direct solar radiation and the inlet and outlet temperatures of the molten salts, it is possible to evaluate the thermal efficiency of the receiver tubes and the heat losses of the flexible interconnections between the collectors. Objectives and Applications Currently, the PCS plant is focused on the development and optimization of key technologies for solar thermal power, including: Components: Parabolic mirrors, receiver tubes, circulation pump, flexible pipes, and valves. Systems: Cogenerative and hybrid applications for the combined production of electricity and heat, or for the integration of various renewable energy sources. Staff Training:The PCS plant plays a crucial role in training specialized technicians and operators in the management of solar thermal power plants. The training courses cover the start-up, solar tracking, thermal energy production, and plant shutdown procedures, ensuring a high level of expertise in the field.

Research group involved