Investigating the Performance of Solar updraft Tower for power Generation

Abstract

A Solar Updraft Tower Power Plant Is A Solar Thermal Power Plant Utilizing A Combination Of Solar Air Collector And Central Updraft Tube To Generate A Solar Induced Convective Flow Which Drives Pressure Staged Turbines To Generate Electricity. Several Technologies Exist To Convert Solar Energy Into Electrical Energy. The Solar Updraft Is Part Of The Solar Thermal Groups Of Solar Conversion Technologies. Solar Tower Power Plants Use The Buoyancy-Nature Of Heated Air To Harness The Solar Energy. The Flow Is Driven By A Pressure Difference In The Tower System, So Traditional Towers Are Extremely Tall To Increase The Pressure Differential And The Air?�?S Velocity. Computational Fluid Dynamics (Cfd) Was Used To Model The Airflow Through A Solar Updraft Tower. Different Boundary Conditions Were Studied To Find The Best Model That Simulate The Operation Of A Solar Updraft Tower Assumed To Be Used In Ethiopia. Solar Updraft Is Very Suitable For Use In Remote Communities Where There Is High Solar Energy Capacity As A Power Source For Both Residential And Industrial Use. It Can Provide A Suitable Energy Source In Many Areas Of Ethiopia, Including Areas That Are Not Currently Supplied By Conventional Means. At Night, The Air Is Heated By The Energy That Was Stored In The Ground During The Day Diffusing Into The Cooler Air. It Is Necessary To Model A Solar Tower With A Layer Of Thermal Storage As A Porous Material For Fluent To Correctly Calculate The Heat Transfer Between The Ground And The Air. Porous Material Is Permeable (Packed-Bed) Material Used To Have Conductive, Radiative And Convective Boundary Conditions To Intensify The Night-Time Heat Transfer. To Correctly Calculate The Heat Transfer In The System, It Is Necessary To Employ The Standard ???? ??? Turbulence Model And Discrete Ordinates Radiation Model. The Air Flow Through The Solar Updraft Tower Is Studied Using Ansys - Fluent And Contour, Streamline And Xy Plots For Flowing Air Is Discussed. Finally, The Relation Between Some Properties Are Displayed And The Power Generated Dependence On Structural And Geographical Factor Is Studied.