Solar thermal technology, in which Spain is an international leader, has recently entered the world of renewable energies with strength and currently has great growth potential due to its manageability and storage capacity, due to its high employment creation local and for its potential to reduce costs.
During the 13th and 14th of November, the main international thermosolar event CSP Madrid 2018 was held in Madrid, with the technical assistance of bcb.
Companies and energy managers from more than 27 countries with abundant solar resources gathered to analyze the situation and perspectives of the solar thermal sector.
The CEO of bcb, Javier Bezares, gave a conference presenting a new system for measures of solar attenuation (extinction) in solar power plants based on towers, with visible cameras and a Lambertian target.
In solar tower plants, atmospheric extinction is very important since radiation losses can be significant due to the increasing distances in the plants. The great uncertainty of some available instruments and / or the monochromaticity of others makes it possible to affirm that, before this development, there has not been any experimental device that allows a credible measure of solar extinction. It has been developed by CIEMAT-PSA for almost 7 years and bcb has improved and marketed it. We use FLIR Systems cameras to measure the temperature of the receiver, as in the Khi plant in South Africa, or detect HTF (oil) or leakage of molten salts in parabolic plants.
bcb has worked in solar power plants with Abengoa, Sener or Cobra (PS-10 and 20, Eureka, CRS-1 and 2, Gemasolar, Tonopah or Khi) designing, developing and commissioning systems such as automatic calibration of heliostats using artificial vision, or non-contact receiver temperature measurements using thermography, leak detection of molten salts or solar field inspection using cameras located in the tower. We have also worked in parabolic cylinder plants to detect HTF leaks and molten salts, broken tubes or vacuum losses.
