Dual Tower Solar Thermal Plant

Current Context : China has unveiled the world’s first dual-tower solar thermal powerplant (TPP), which boosts energy efficiency by 24%.

FEATURES OF THE SOLAR TPP

• The plant features two 650-foot-tall (200-m) towers have risen in China’s Gansu Province.
• Each surrounded by 30,000 mirrors arranged in concentric circles which automatically track the sun’s movement and achieve 94% reflection efficiency.
• Electricity Generation : expected to generate over 8 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity every year.
• The plant utilises molten salt storage as a thermal battery, allowing it to store excess heat collected during the day for continuous power generation at night.

ABOUT SOLAR THERMAL POWER

• Also, known as concentrated solar power (CSP),
• These systems rely on mirrors known as heliostats to bounce sunlight to a central gathering point.
• There, the concentrated beams heat a transfer fluid that in turn heats a working fluid.
• This fluid then evaporates, turns a turbine, and generates electricity.