What is parabolic dish collector?
A parabolic dish collector is a concentrating solar collector that is similar in appearance to a large satellite dish, but has mirror-like reflectors and an absorber at the focal point.
How does a parabolic dish collector work?
A parabolic dish does have reflectors like mirrors and has an absorber at its focal point. That is a concentrating solar collector that works by reflecting and focusing the solar energy. It uses the mirror-like reflectors or lenses. The receiver is often mounted at the focal point in the dish’s front area.
What is the efficiency of parabolic dish collector?
Within CSP technologies, parabolic dish concentrators are the most efficient of all solar collector types due to a combination of dual axis tracking and high concentration ratios [2]. The optical efficiencies noted for different dish concentrators range from 78% to 89% [3].
What are the different types of concentrating collectors?
The principal types of concentrating collectors include: compound parabolic, parabolic trough, fixed reflector moving receiver, fixed receiver moving reflector, Fresnel lens, and central receiver. A PV concentrating module uses optical elements (Fresnel lens) to increase the amount of sunlight incident onto a PV cell.
What is the purpose of parabolic dish?
A parabolic dish is a reflective instrument with a circular, parabolic shape that can collect or project different types of energy. Using the geometric principles of the parabola, the dish can efficiently both receive and reflect energy from distant sources.
Who invented the parabolic dish?
astronomer Grote Reber
The first large parabolic antenna, a 9 m dish, was built in 1937 by pioneering radio astronomer Grote Reber in his backyard, and the sky survey he did with it was one of the events that founded the field of radio astronomy.
How parabolas are applied in parabolic dishes?
A parabolic dish (or parabolic reflector) is a curved surface with a cross-sectional shape of a parabola used to direct light or sound waves. Any sound waves entering a parabolic dish parallel to the axis of symmetry and hitting the inner surface of the dish are reflected back to the focus.
Which type of engine is normally used in parabolic dish system to generate electricity?
Stirling engine
The concentrated solar energy is absorbed by the receiver to heat a fluid to ∼ 750°C. This heated fluid is then used to produce electricity through a Stirling engine or a microturbine. These are stand-alone type of systems and are normally used to generate electricity in the kilowatts range.
Which collector has highest concentration ratio?
Heliostats offer the highest concentration ratios of all ST collectors. Flat, double axis tracked reflectors (heliostats) focus beam irradiance onto a stationary, central receiver tower with flat or cylindrical absorber.
What are solar concentrating collectors?
A concentrating solar collector is a solar collector that uses reflective surfaces to concentrate sunlight onto a small area, where it is absorbed and converted to heat or, in the case of solar photovoltaic (PV) devices, into electricity. Concentrators can increase the power flux of sunlight hundreds of times.
What is the main advantage of the parabolic or dish antenna?
high directivity
The main advantage of a parabolic antenna is that it has high directivity. It functions similarly to a searchlight or flashlight reflector to direct the radio waves in a narrow beam, or receive radio waves from one particular direction only.
How does a parabolic dish collector ( PDC ) work?
Parabolic dish collectors (PDC) are composed of a concave mirror which concentrates the direct solar radiation in a single point receiver and use a two axis solar tracking system which constantly tracks the sun. From: Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2018
What makes a parabolic dish a point focus system?
Point-focus systems have reflectors that concentrate solar radiation onto a central receiver that is effectively a point compared to the reflector. The two dominant technologies are parabolic dishes and central receiver systems, known as solar towers.
How big is the Raytheon parabolic dish collector?
Figure 9 illustrates the Raytheon Parabolic dish collector. This collector is being tested at Sandia Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The collector consists of a 6.7-m diameter, fully (2-axis) tracking parabolic dish, which focuses sunlight into a cavity-type absorber.
How does a parabolic trough power plant work?
Parabolic trough power plants use parabolic trough collectors to concentrate the direct solar radiation onto a tubular receiver. Large collector fields supply the thermal energy, which is used to drive a steam turbine, which, on its part, drives the electric generator.