Nowcasting System Based on Sky Camera Images to Predict the Solar Flux on the Receiver of a Concentrated Solar Plant

As part of the research for techniques to control the final energy reaching the receivers of central solar power plants, this work combines two contrasting methods in a novel way as a first step towards integrating such systems in solar plants. To determine the effective power reaching the receiver,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inRemote sensing (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 14; no. 7; p. 1602
Main Authors Alonso-Montesinos, Joaquín, Monterreal, Rafael, Fernandez-Reche, Jesus, Ballestrín, Jesús, López, Gabriel, Polo, Jesús, Barbero, Francisco Javier, Marzo, Aitor, Portillo, Carlos, Batlles, Francisco Javier
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Basel MDPI AG 01.04.2022
Subjects
Alternative energy sources
Atmospheric attenuation
Cameras
central solar power plant
flux simulation
Ground level
Heliostats
Irradiance
Power plants
Radiation
Remote sensing
sky cam images
Solar energy
Solar flux
solar plant control
Solar power plants
Sun
System effectiveness
Values
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Summary:As part of the research for techniques to control the final energy reaching the receivers of central solar power plants, this work combines two contrasting methods in a novel way as a first step towards integrating such systems in solar plants. To determine the effective power reaching the receiver, the direct normal irradiance was predicted at ground level using a total sky camera, TSI-880 model. Subsequently, these DNI values were used as the inputs for a heliostat model (Fiat-Lux) to trace the sunlight’s path according to the mirror features. The predicted valuex of flux, obtained from these simulations, differ of less than 20% from the real values. This represents a significant advance in integrating different technologies to quantify the losses produced in the path from the heliostats to the central receiver, which are normally caused by the presence of atmospheric attenuation factors.
ISSN:2072-4292
2072-4292
DOI:10.3390/rs14071602