A method of operating a thermal energy storage system comprises operating a pump to circulate a heat transfer fluid from cold storage through a heating system to hot storage, supplying electric power from an electric power grid external to the thermal energy storage system to power an electric heater in the heating system that heats the heat transfer fluid as it circulates through the heating system to hot storage, regulating a flow rate of the heat transfer fluid through the heating system so that the heat transfer fluid enters hot storage at a specified temperature, and regulating the supplying of electric power from the electric power grid to the electric heater to balance supply of and demand for power on the electric power grid and maintain a frequency, a voltage, or a frequency and a voltage of electric power on the electric power grid at specified values.

A system for generating electricity, heat, and desalinated water having a gas turbine system connected to a first electric generator, a waste heat recovery boiler (WHRB) system, a combined heat and power (CHP) generation system connected to a second electric generator, one or more solar powered energy systems, and a desalination system. The desalination system is connected to the CHP generation system and the WHRB system. The gas turbine system generates electricity and heat, the WHRB system is connected to and uses the exhaust of the gas turbine system to provide heat and steam power to the CHP generation system. The CHP generation system produces and provides electricity and heat to the desalination system, which produces product water, and at least one solar powered energy system provides thermal energy to one or more of the gas turbine system, the WHRB system, the CHP generation system, and the desalination system.

Disclosed is a thermal storage solution which can operate without any internal tubing or mechanical pumping in the heat reservoir, and features a heat transfer technology based on evaporation and condensation of heat transfer fluids that will prevent hot and cold zones in the thermal storage reservoir. The main advantage is that the reservoir will have a much lower cost, have more degrees of freedom regarding the interplay between storage capacity, input and output power, and can operate without any mechanical or pressurized parts.

A control method for optimizing a solar-to-power efficiency of a solar-aided coal-fired power system under off-design working conditions is provided. Through reading the relevant information of the solar collecting system, the coal-fired power generation system, the environmental conditions, and the working conditions of the solar-aided coal-fired power system, the water flow rate range able to be heated by the solar collecting unit and the solar-coal feedwater flow distribution ratio range are determined; through establishing the relationship between the solar-to-power efficiency and the solar-coal feedwater flow distribution ratio, the solar-coal feedwater flow distribution ratio is regulated, so that a flow rate of water entering the solar collecting system to be heated is controlled, thereby maximizing the solar-to-power efficiency and improving the economy of the solar-aided coal-fired power system. The present invention provides clear guidance to improve the utilization rate of solar energy and facilitate the consumption of the renewable energy.

A control method for optimizing generated power of a solar-aided coal-fired power system under off-design working conditions sets maximizing generated power without changing main steam flow rate as a control goal. A solar-coal feedwater flow distribution ratio is adjusted to adjust water flow rate heated by a solar heat collection system, so as to achieve the control goal. Control steps include reading relevant information; calculating the water flow rate range heated by the solar heat collection system, and an applicable solar-coal feedwater flow distribution ratio range; establishing a correspondence between the generated power and the solar-coal feedwater flow distribution ratio within this range; selecting a solar-coal feedwater flow distribution ratio corresponding to the maximum generated power; and adjusting the water flow rate entering the solar heat collection system to an optimized value. The present invention can flexibly control the solar-coal coupling and improve the economy.

A solar thermochemical processing system is disclosed. The system includes a first unit operation for receiving concentrated solar energy. Heat from the solar energy is used to drive the first unit operation. The first unit operation also receives a first set of reactants and produces a first set of products. A second unit operation receives the first set of products from the first unit operation and produces a second set of products. A third unit operation receives heat from the second unit operation to produce a portion of the first set of reactants.

A dispatchable storage combined cycle power plant comprises a topping cycle that combusts fuel to generate electricity and produce hot exhaust gases, a steam power system, a heat source other than the topping cycle, and a thermal energy storage system. Heat from the heat source, from the thermal energy storage system, or from the heat source and the thermal energy storage system is used to generate steam in the steam power system. Heat from the topping cycle may be used in series with or in parallel with the thermal energy storage system and/or the heat source to generate the steam, and additionally to super heat the steam.

Solar/Rankine steam cycle hybrid concentrating solar power (CSP) systems and methods for designing or retrofitting existent natural circulation boilers using saturated or superheated steam produced by direct steam generation (DSG) or Heat Transfer Fluid (HTF) steam generators and CSP solar field technology systems are described. Additionally, methods and processes of retrofitting the existent Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSG) or biomass, gas, oil or coal fired boilers to operate integrated to a molten salt/water-steam heat exchangers are disclosed. The hybrid CSP systems are highly efficient due to the increase of steam generated by a heating section comprising either the DSG receiver or the molten salt-water-steam sequential heat exchangers, heaters, boiler/saturated steam generators, super-heaters and re-heaters. The additional saturated, superheated and reheated steam produced is directed to a Rankine cycle according to its pressure, temperature and steam quality significantly reducing the fuel consumption within a cogeneration or Combine Cycle Power Plant.

The invention provides circular processes using siloxanes as high-temperature heat transfer fluid (HTF), wherein the siloxanes go over from the state of the supercooled liquid into the state of the high-density supercritical fluid by means of heat uptake without a phase transition and energy is then transferred as energy without a phase transition.

An improved efficiency method and device for converting thermal energy into mechanical energy, and then, preferably, into electricity and/or refrigerating energy. A partially liquid stream f.sup.c0 of fluid FC is implemented; thermal energy is transferred to the stream f.sup.c0; the heated stream f.sup.c0 is sprayed to generate a fragmented stream f.sup.c1 of fluid FC. Simultaneously a partially liquid stream f.sub.t0 of fluid FT is implemented; thermal energy is transferred to the stream f.sup.t0 to generate a stream f.sup.t that may be in liquid form or a saturated liquid/vapor mixture; stream f.sup.1 is expanded in a chamber which also receives fragmented stream f.sup.c1 to form a two-phase mixed stream f.sup.c1/t whose kinetic energy is converted into mechanical energy which is optionally transformed into electrical energy or into refrigerating energy.