Bench-scale testing of a heat-pipe receiver for solar thermal electric applications

Conference · Mon Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1990

OSTI ID:6625376

Adkins, D R ^[1]; Dudley, V ^[2]

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1. Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
2. EG and G, Inc., Albuquerque, NM (USA)

Electric power generating systems that couple parabolic-dish solar-concentrators with Stirling engines and generators are currently being developed under the Department of Energy's solar thermal electric program. These systems will use liquid metal heat pipes to transfer energy from the focal point of a solar concentrator to the heater tubes of a Stirling engine. The heat-pipe solar-receivers are required to operate in adverse orientations and accept flux levels on the order of 100 W/cm{sup 2}. To explore the operating limits of heat-pipe solar-receivers, a series of bench-scale heat pipe receivers are being designed and tested. Results from the bench-scale tests and their implications on a full-scale heat-pipe solar receiver are presented in this paper. 14 refs., 12 figs.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE/DP
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-76DP00789
• OSTI ID: 6625376
• Report Number(s): SAND-90-0097C; CONF-901109--2; ON: DE90009834
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
140700* -- Solar Thermal Power Systems
42 ENGINEERING
425003 -- Engineering-- Power Cycles-- Stirling-- (1980-)
ADSORPTION
CALORIMETERS
CONCENTRATING COLLECTORS
CONVERSION
COOLING SYSTEMS
ENERGY CONVERSION
ENERGY SYSTEMS
ENERGY TRANSFER
ENGINES
EQUIPMENT
EVAPORATION
FLUID FLOW
HEAT ENGINES
HEAT PIPES
HEAT TRANSFER
INTERFACES
LOSSES
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
OPERATION
PARABOLIC COLLECTORS
PARABOLIC DISH COLLECTORS
PERMEABILITY
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
POWER GENERATION
PUMPS
SATURATION
SOLAR COLLECTORS
SOLAR CONCENTRATORS
SOLAR ENERGY CONVERSION
SOLAR EQUIPMENT
SOLAR RECEIVERS
SOLAR THERMAL CONVERSION
SORPTION
STIRLING ENGINES
TESTING
TUBES
VAPOR CONDENSATION