Simulation of the Crosbyton receiver

A thermal-fluid model was developed to describe the collector/ receiver for a fixed-mirror distributed-focus (FMDF) spherical arc reflector. The performance of the system is predicted using a mechanistic model solving an enthalpy balance with the appropriate heat-transfer and pressure-drop correlations. The model includes a rigorous package for predicting the thermodynamic and transport properties for the water/steam system.

The steady-state model predicts the exit conditions of the steam, and the radiation and convection losses from the receiver for a given set of Inlet conditions.

A correlation based on dimensionless numbers predicts the overall efficiency of the receiver, the exit enthalpy, and the pressure drop for a given heat-flux profile. These predictions compare favorably with the rigorous model results over the ranges tested.

The model also predicts the transient response of the collector/ receiver system to disturbances in the input variables. The results of the transient analysis provide insight to the type of control system required to handle start-up, shut-down, intermittent cloudy periods, and failure modes.

Thermlnol 55 and molten salt were also used as transport fluids in the case studies. The feasibility of a new type of receiver called the "gun-barrel” design was explored.