Numerical Evaluation on the Thermal Performance of the Solar External Cylinder Receiver using Monte Carlo Ray-Tracing Algorithm

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  • State Key Laboratory of Clean Energy Utilization, Institute for Thermal Power Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China

网络出版日期: 2023-11-26

基金资助

The Project is supported by the Innovative Research Groups of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51621005).

版权

Science Press, Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, CAS and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2023

Numerical Evaluation on the Thermal Performance of the Solar External Cylinder Receiver using Monte Carlo Ray-Tracing Algorithm

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  • State Key Laboratory of Clean Energy Utilization, Institute for Thermal Power Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China

Online published: 2023-11-26

Supported by

The Project is supported by the Innovative Research Groups of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51621005).

Copyright

Science Press, Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, CAS and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2023

摘要

吸热器是聚光太阳能发电厂的重要组成部分,直接影响其运行和安全。本文引入蒙特卡罗射线跟踪算法来评估50MWe外圆柱吸热器的热性能,其中利用蒙特卡罗射线追踪算法计算了定日镜场辐射热流分布和管网格之间的角系数。此外,本文还开发了计算程序,该程序包括角系数计算、热性能计算和热应力计算三个模块。该程序还被用于研究一个50MWe吸热器,详细分析了该吸热器温度和热应力的三维分布。经研究发现,吸热器内的熔盐从298°C加热到565°C,在吸热器出口处的管壁温度很高,但是在吸热器入口处却产生了较高的热应力。最后,本文还讨论了吸热器的超温问题,并提出了一种优化算法。经过优化后过热区的管壁温度和膜温符合安全标准,而且优化后出口熔盐温度仍达到563°C,和优化前相比仅下降了2°C。

本文引用格式

LI Yawei, ZHOU Hao, ZUO Yuhang . Numerical Evaluation on the Thermal Performance of the Solar External Cylinder Receiver using Monte Carlo Ray-Tracing Algorithm[J]. 热科学学报, 2023 , 32(6) : 2065 -2080 . DOI: 10.1007/s11630-023-1845-4

Abstract

The heat receiver is an essential part of the Concentrating Solar Power plant, directly affecting its operation and safety. In this paper, the Monte Carlo ray-tracing algorithm was introduced to evaluate a 50 MW (e) external cylindrical receiver’s thermal performance. The radiation heat flux concentrated from the heliostats field and the view factors between grids divided from the tubes were both calculated using Monte Carlo ray-tracing algorithm. Besides, an in-house code was developed and verified, including three modules of the view-factor calculation, thermal performance calculation, and thermal stress calculation. It was also employed to investigate the 50 MW (e) receiver, and the detailed 3D profiles of temperature and thermal stress in the receiver were analyzed. It was found that the molten salt was heated from 298°C to 565°C and the tube at the 50 MW (e) receiver’s outlet had a high temperature, while the high thermal stress came out at the receiver’s entrance. Finally, the over-temperature of the receiver was discussed, and an optimization algorithm was introduced. The tube wall temperature and film temperature at the overheated area matched the safety criteria, and the outlet molten salt temperature still reached 563°C after the optimization process, with only 2°C dropped.

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