IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/rensus/v34y2014icp565-577.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Water consumption in solar parabolic trough plants: review and analysis of the southern Spain case

Author

Listed:
  • Colmenar-Santos, Antonio
  • Borge-Diez, David
  • Molina, Clara Pérez
  • Castro-Gil, Manuel

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to highlight water consumption as a key design parameter in determining the most convenient cooling system and selecting the most appropriate location for Solar Parabolic Trough (SPT) plants. Considering the importance of water in guaranteeing environmental sustainability, a review of water consumption parameters is presented, and water consumption in the SPT plants that are in the planning stages for southern Spain are analyzed as examples. The selected region for the present study, is exposed to high horizontal solar irradiance, undergoes large seasonal weather fluctuations (prolonged droughts) and is located far from the coast (determining the site׳s topography and soil availability). These characteristics demonstrate that water consumption is one of the decisive factors for the construction of new solar plants in similar locations worldwide, in addition to other considerations such as capital cost or plant efficiency. Currently, most SPT plants are based on the Rankine cycle via a conventional steam turbine generator, which implies the requirement of a cooling system using water. In this paper, all current cooling technologies are reviewed and the required water consumption is analyzed. The impact of plant consumption on the area of SPT plant location is analyzed as well. This paper also discusses the socio-economics and environmental effects of an implemented cooling system. In addition, this paper presents different technical alternatives for minimizing water consumption for cooling and the effects thereof on the rest of the key parameters in the development and construction of a new SPT plant.

Suggested Citation

  • Colmenar-Santos, Antonio & Borge-Diez, David & Molina, Clara Pérez & Castro-Gil, Manuel, 2014. "Water consumption in solar parabolic trough plants: review and analysis of the southern Spain case," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 565-577.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:34:y:2014:i:c:p:565-577
    DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2014.03.042
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032114002032
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.rser.2014.03.042?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Akella, A.K. & Saini, R.P. & Sharma, M.P., 2009. "Social, economical and environmental impacts of renewable energy systems," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 390-396.
    2. Behar, Omar & Khellaf, Abdallah & Mohammedi, Kamal, 2013. "A review of studies on central receiver solar thermal power plants," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 23(C), pages 12-39.
    3. Fernández-García, A. & Zarza, E. & Valenzuela, L. & Pérez, M., 2010. "Parabolic-trough solar collectors and their applications," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 14(7), pages 1695-1721, September.
    4. Poullikkas, Andreas, 2009. "Economic analysis of power generation from parabolic trough solar thermal plants for the Mediterranean region--A case study for the island of Cyprus," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(9), pages 2474-2484, December.
    5. Zhang, H.L. & Baeyens, J. & Degrève, J. & Cacères, G., 2013. "Concentrated solar power plants: Review and design methodology," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 22(C), pages 466-481.
    6. Zhang, X.R. & Yamaguchi, H. & Uneno, D. & Fujima, K. & Enomoto, M. & Sawada, N., 2006. "Analysis of a novel solar energy-powered Rankine cycle for combined power and heat generation using supercritical carbon dioxide," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 31(12), pages 1839-1854.
    7. Al-Sulaiman, Fahad A. & Hamdullahpur, Feridun & Dincer, Ibrahim, 2012. "Performance assessment of a novel system using parabolic trough solar collectors for combined cooling, heating, and power production," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 161-172.
    8. Badescu, Viorel & Gueymard, Christian A. & Cheval, Sorin & Oprea, Cristian & Baciu, Madalina & Dumitrescu, Alexandru & Iacobescu, Flavius & Milos, Ioan & Rada, Costel, 2012. "Computing global and diffuse solar hourly irradiation on clear sky. Review and testing of 54 models," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 1636-1656.
    9. Hernandez, R.R. & Easter, S.B. & Murphy-Mariscal, M.L. & Maestre, F.T. & Tavassoli, M. & Allen, E.B. & Barrows, C.W. & Belnap, J. & Ochoa-Hueso, R. & Ravi, S. & Allen, M.F., 2014. "Environmental impacts of utility-scale solar energy," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 766-779.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. D. Frank Duvenhage & Alan C. Brent & William H.L. Stafford & S. Grobbelaar, 2020. "Water and CSP—Linking CSP Water Demand Models and National Hydrology Data to Sustainably Manage CSP Development and Water Resources in Arid Regions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-32, April.
    2. Xu, Xinhai & Vignarooban, K. & Xu, Ben & Hsu, K. & Kannan, A.M., 2016. "Prospects and problems of concentrating solar power technologies for power generation in the desert regions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 1106-1131.
    3. Boukelia, T.E. & Bouraoui, A. & Laouafi, A. & Djimli, S. & Kabar, Y., 2020. "3E (Energy-Exergy-Economic) comparative study of integrating wet and dry cooling systems in solar tower power plants," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    4. Djukic, Malisa & Jovanoski, Iljcho & Ivanovic, Olja Munitlak & Lazic, Milena & Bodroza, Dusko, 2016. "Cost-benefit analysis of an infrastructure project and a cost-reflective tariff: A case study for investment in wastewater treatment plant in Serbia," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 1419-1425.
    5. Sultan, Ali J. & Hughes, Kevin J. & Ingham, Derek B. & Ma, Lin & Pourkashanian, Mohamed, 2020. "Techno-economic competitiveness of 50 MW concentrating solar power plants for electricity generation under Kuwait climatic conditions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    6. Sultan, Ali J. & Ingham, Derek B. & Hughes, Kevin J. & Ma, Lin & Pourkashanian, Mohamed, 2021. "Optimization and performance enhancement of concentrating solar power in a hot and arid desert environment," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    7. Boukelia, T.E. & Ghellab, A. & Laouafi, A. & Bouraoui, A. & Kabar, Y., 2020. "Cooling performances time series of CSP plants: Calculation and analysis using regression and ANN models," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 809-827.
    8. Faisal Asfand & Patricia Palenzuela & Lidia Roca & Adèle Caron & Charles-André Lemarié & Jon Gillard & Peter Turner & Kumar Patchigolla, 2020. "Thermodynamic Performance and Water Consumption of Hybrid Cooling System Configurations for Concentrated Solar Power Plants," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-19, June.
    9. Palenzuela, Patricia & Roca, Lidia & Asfand, Faisal & Patchigolla, Kumar, 2022. "Experimental assessment of a pilot scale hybrid cooling system for water consumption reduction in CSP plants," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 242(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ajbar, Wassila & Parrales, A. & Huicochea, A. & Hernández, J.A., 2022. "Different ways to improve parabolic trough solar collectors’ performance over the last four decades and their applications: A comprehensive review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    2. Islam, Md Tasbirul & Huda, Nazmul & Abdullah, A.B. & Saidur, R., 2018. "A comprehensive review of state-of-the-art concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies: Current status and research trends," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 987-1018.
    3. Sun, Honghang & Gong, Bo & Yao, Qiang, 2014. "A review of wind loads on heliostats and trough collectors," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 206-221.
    4. Praveen R. P. & Mohammad Abdul Baseer & Ahmed Bilal Awan & Muhammad Zubair, 2018. "Performance Analysis and Optimization of a Parabolic Trough Solar Power Plant in the Middle East Region," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-18, March.
    5. Okoroigwe, Edmund & Madhlopa, Amos, 2016. "An integrated combined cycle system driven by a solar tower: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 337-350.
    6. Xu, Xinhai & Vignarooban, K. & Xu, Ben & Hsu, K. & Kannan, A.M., 2016. "Prospects and problems of concentrating solar power technologies for power generation in the desert regions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 1106-1131.
    7. Khan, Jibran & Arsalan, Mudassar H., 2016. "Solar power technologies for sustainable electricity generation – A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 414-425.
    8. Widyolar, Bennett & Jiang, Lun & Ferry, Jonathan & Winston, Roland, 2018. "Experimental performance of a two-stage (50X) parabolic trough collector tested to 650 °C using a suspended particulate (alumina) HTF," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 222(C), pages 228-243.
    9. Balghouthi, Moncef & Trabelsi, Seif Eddine & Amara, Mahmoud Ben & Ali, Abdessalem Bel Hadj & Guizani, Amenallah, 2016. "Potential of concentrating solar power (CSP) technology in Tunisia and the possibility of interconnection with Europe," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 1227-1248.
    10. Benoit, H. & Spreafico, L. & Gauthier, D. & Flamant, G., 2016. "Review of heat transfer fluids in tube-receivers used in concentrating solar thermal systems: Properties and heat transfer coefficients," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 298-315.
    11. Sharaf, Omar Z. & Orhan, Mehmet F., 2015. "Concentrated photovoltaic thermal (CPVT) solar collector systems: Part I – Fundamentals, design considerations and current technologies," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 1500-1565.
    12. Tarun Kumar Aseri & Chandan Sharma & Tara C. Kandpal, 2022. "Condenser cooling technologies for concentrating solar power plants: a review," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(4), pages 4511-4565, April.
    13. Wang, Qiliang & Li, Jing & Yang, Honglun & Su, Katy & Hu, Mingke & Pei, Gang, 2017. "Performance analysis on a high-temperature solar evacuated receiver with an inner radiation shield," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 447-458.
    14. Mohammadi, Kasra & Khanmohammadi, Saber & Khorasanizadeh, Hossein & Powell, Kody, 2020. "A comprehensive review of solar only and hybrid solar driven multigeneration systems: Classifications, benefits, design and prospective," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 268(C).
    15. Widyolar, Bennett & Jiang, Lun & Ferry, Jonathan & Winston, Roland & Cygan, David & Abbasi, Hamid, 2019. "Experimental performance of a two-stage (50×) parabolic trough collector tested to 650 °C using a suspended particulate heat transfer fluid," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 240(C), pages 436-445.
    16. Pietzcker, Robert Carl & Stetter, Daniel & Manger, Susanne & Luderer, Gunnar, 2014. "Using the sun to decarbonize the power sector: The economic potential of photovoltaics and concentrating solar power," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 704-720.
    17. DeLovato, Nicolas & Sundarnath, Kavin & Cvijovic, Lazar & Kota, Krishna & Kuravi, Sarada, 2019. "A review of heat recovery applications for solar and geothermal power plants," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 1-1.
    18. Mostafavi Tehrani, S. Saeed & Taylor, Robert A., 2016. "Off-design simulation and performance of molten salt cavity receivers in solar tower plants under realistic operational modes and control strategies," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 698-715.
    19. Hussain, C.M. Iftekhar & Norton, Brian & Duffy, Aidan, 2017. "Technological assessment of different solar-biomass systems for hybrid power generation in Europe," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 68(P2), pages 1115-1129.
    20. Hernández-Escobedo, Q. & Rodríguez-García, E. & Saldaña-Flores, R. & Fernández-García, A. & Manzano-Agugliaro, F., 2015. "Solar energy resource assessment in Mexican states along the Gulf of Mexico," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 216-238.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:34:y:2014:i:c:p:565-577. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600126/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.