Largest solar thermal power plant built in UAE

Yesterday, the largest solar power station built in the UAE was put into operation. This power plant was called "Sun-1." Arabs had plans to create the station back in 2010, while not many people believed in the possibility of creating a “solar” station with a capacity of 100 MW. However, the facility was built and commissioned. The implementation was carried out by Masdar, Total and the Arab government.

The total area of ​​the station’s solar panels is about 2.5 square kilometers, which is a lot. The station is located in Abu Dhabi. Note, the total number of parabolic reflectors is 258048. This, so to speak, is a thermal power station, because instead of photocells, a system of reflectors and a pipeline through which liquid is driven (some specific oil) is used. The liquid heats up (up to about 393 degrees Celsius), and gives off heat to the heat exchanger (the total temperature here is about 380 degrees Celsius). Here water vapor forms, which is supplied, in turn, to the turbines. Well, the turbines, rotating, generate electricity.



There may be a question about how reliable the reflectors are - because their dusting, sanding will significantly reduce the efficiency of the station. The developers have created a special cleaning system that completely goes through the cleaning cycle of reflectors in 10 days (every night about 10% of the total area of ​​the reflectors is washed).

It is interesting that in Abu Dhabi, such a system may be most useful, since the peak load on the power grid here occurs during the day when all air conditioners are turned on (and there are hundreds of thousands of them). The station's capacity is enough to provide electricity to 170 thousand average private houses. Well, and if and where to build such stations, so definitely in the UAE.

Via treehugger