Welcome to the new Energy Central — same great community, now with a smoother experience. To login, use your Energy Central email and reset your password.

John Benson
John Benson
Expert Member
Top Contributor
Grid Builder

Gen 3 Concentrating Solar Power

gen_3_concentrating_solar_power.pdf
547.99KB

Many years ago, I felt the technology war for generating power had been won by photovoltaics (PVs). I was right, but I might have missed a few words in this conclusion: “…the technology war for generating electric power… photovoltaics (PVs) plus battery energy storage (BESS).”

Although electrification is a major pillar in reducing the amount of GHG major industries emit, many still needs large amount of thermal energy (heat). Yes, you can generate heat with electricity, but this is generally inefficient, especially for high-temperature heat.

The current U.S. Department of Energy understands this. Thus, they have continued to plug away, reinventing concentrating solar power (CSP) and associated technologies. This paper will review their efforts, including a major CSP test facility that they just broke ground on in New Mexico.