Solar Thermal Technology

Solar thermal technologies use the sun’s heat. They include non-grid solar thermal technologies; water heating systems, solar cookers, solar drying applications and solar thermal building designs. These technologies help to conserve energy in heating and cooling applications. Solar thermal devices use direct heat from the sun, concentrating it to produce heat at useful temperatures. As with many other advances in the energy sector, the modern solar thermal industry began with the oil embargo of 1973-1974 and was strengthened with the second embargo in 1979.

In the early 1980’s, a 354 MW solar power plant was built in the Mojave Desert, in California. The heat contained in solar rays, concentrated by reflecting troughs and raised to 400^oC, produces steam that runs a conventional power generator. When the sun is not shining, the plant switches to natural gas. The latest generation of this type of plant incorporates new engineering solutions and new scientific principles such as non-imaging optics, which makes it possible to build much more efficient concentrators at lower costs. Solar thermal technology has many applications both for grid-connected power generation, in isolated locations where grid connected electricity is not viable, and in domestic and commercial situations.