Optimal Heliostat Layout for Concentrating Solar Tower Systems

Abstract

A methodology to give an optimal layout of a group of heliostats has been developed for concentrating solar tower systems. Given the maximum solar power together with optical parameters, the method determines an optimal configuration of a heliostat field around a tower where reflected beams are focused and a resultant annual solar energy collected. Various optical losses such as cosine factor, and an optical interference such as shadowing and blocking are taken into account in the calculation. Furthermore, spillage is considered due to dilution of light at a receiver collector that is derived from effects of a finite solar disk and various errors inherent in optical hardware and control. It is found the spillage becomes significant at heliostats located in a distance from the tower farther than four times of tower height and dominates the configuration of the optimal heliostat layout.