Solar Thermal on verge of a BOOM ?

[LMagic007]

Solar Thermal on verge of a BOOM ? - New York Times article.

Turning Glare Into Watts

the world appears to be on the verge of a boom in a little-known but promising type of solar power. It is not the kind that features shiny panels bolted to the roofs of houses. This type involves covering acres of desert with mirrors that focus intense sunlight on a fluid, heating it enough to make steam. The steam turns a turbine and generates electricity.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/06/business/06solar.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

On sunny afternoons, those 10 plants would produce as much electricity as three nuclear reactors, but they can be built in as little as two years

Some of the new plants will feature systems that allow them to store heat and generate electricity for hours after sunset.

The power they produce is still relatively expensive. Industry experts say the plant here produces power at a cost per kilowatt- hour of 15 to 20 cents. With a little more experience and some economies of scale, that could fall to about 10 cents, according to a recent report by Emerging Energy Research, a consulting firm in Cambridge, Mass. Newly built coal-fired plants are expected to produce power at about 7 cents per kilowatt-hour or more if carbon is taxed.

Companies that build the plants have been working on improving the technology, raising efficiency and lowering costs. A battle among competing approaches is expected over the next few years.

Suppliers of thermal systems are gearing up for a boom. In Las Vegas, a company called Ausra is building a factory to make mirrors for one type of solar plant; it will double the world’s manufacturing capacity. A German company, Schott, is building a factory in Albuquerque that will make heat-collecting tubes.

Despite the difficulties, solar thermal plants have an other-worldly beauty as they run.

Yes of course there will be many problems and limitations as we all appreciate, but it's still great news and what technology does not have it's share of problems, Huh ? Invariably there are often compromises and work arounds to problems that can be found. I mean "Problems" ? that's why we are trying to move away from fossil fuels in the first place isn't it !

[LMagic007]

Solar thermal company Ausra will cut the ribbon on a large factory in anticipation of a construction boom in solar power plants in the Southwest United States.

"It will more than double the worldwide solar thermal system output,"

Ausra said that its product design has lower manufacturing costs and thus, a lower cost per kilowatt for utilities. It uses less steel than mirrored troughs and standard components like architectural glass, so it doesn't need to rely on specialized suppliers, O'Donnell said.

Solar thermal company Ausra christens huge plant | Green Tech - CNET News.com

[LMagic007]

Wall Street Journal

The low-frills, low-cost technology isn't suitable for heating rooms or houses but is fueling a boom in solar power in China's poor countryside as well as its modernizing urban centers.

Heat for the Tubs of China - WSJ.com

[LMagic007]

Booming industry and high CO2 abatement potential: Solar power will be cheaper than conventional energy in 10 years’ time / Sarasin launches the new index 'Sarasin European Solar Power'

Solar energy’s CO2 abatement costs will sink to almost zero by 2018, making it cheaper than conventional forms of electricity or heat. As Bank Sarasin & Co. Ltd calculates in its latest annual update on the solar industry

– the fifth report in the series – solar energy could save approximately three gigatons of carbon dioxide by 2030. At the same time, photovoltaic (PV) cell production continues to boom, up 44% on last year, when performance was already very strong. Bank Sarasin forecasts annual growth rates of 50% for PV for the rest of the decade. To provide investores with access to this attractive growth market, Bank Sarasin launches the new index "Sarasin European Solar Power ".

News

[LMagic007]

Study: solar thermal power could fuel 90% of US grid, plus autos

Facilities Management News [2008-03-26]: Study: solar thermal power could fuel 90% of US grid, plus autos

Ausra – Technology – Utility-scale solar power. Market Prices. Now.

[forfismum]

Originally Posted by LMagic007

Facilities Management News [2008-03-26]: Study: solar thermal power could fuel 90% of US grid, plus autos

Ausra – Technology – Utility-scale solar power. Market Prices. Now.

I ,for one ,am so happy at this.I am delighted to see that you have escaped from all that windpower nonsense and are coming to terms with what is practical and workable.Well done.

[LMagic007]

The U.S. solar energy industry continued its double-digit annual growth rate in 2006

EIA Renewable Energy-Solar Thermal and Photovoltaic Collector Manufacturing Activities 2006

[LMagic007]

The technology that will save humanity

Among others of course.

The solar energy you haven't heard of is the one best suited to generate clean electricity for generations to come.

I believe it will be the most important form of carbon-free power in the 21st century

A technology that has the beauty of simplicity, it has proved effective for generations. As the Web site of CSP company Ausra illustrates, solar thermal has a long and fascinating history.

Concentrated solar power | Salon News

[LMagic007]

Mega Solar: the World’s 13 Biggest Solar Thermal Energy Projects

Mega Solar: the World’s 13 Biggest Solar Thermal Energy Projects : EcoWorldly

[LMagic007]

Solar Thermal Electricity: Can it Replace Coal, Gas, and Oil?

Solar Thermal Electricity: Can it Replace Coal, Gas, and Oil? : CleanTechnica

Parabolic Trough Thermal Energy Storage Technology
http://www.nrel.gov/csp/troughnet/th...y_storage.html