Analysis of Heliostat Sun Tracking Error due to the Mirror Installation and Drive Mechanism Induced Errors

Heliostat 반사거울 설치 및 구동기구 유발 오차에 의한 태양추적오차의 해석

  • Park, Young-Chil (Department of Control and Instrumentation Engineering Seoul National University of Technology)
  • 박영칠 (서울산업대학교 제어계측공학과)
  • Published : 2009.06.30

Abstract

Heliostat sun tracking accuracy could be the most important requirement in solar thermal power plant, since it determines the overall efficiency of power plant. This study presents the effect of geometrical errors on the heliostat sun tracking performance. The geometrical errors considered here are the mirror canting error, encoder reference error, heliostat position error. pivot offset and tilt error, gear backlash and mass unbalanced effect error. We first investigate the effect of each individual geometrical error on the sun tracking accuracy. Then, the sun tracking error caused by the combination of individual geometrical error is computed and analyzed. The results obtained using the solar ray tracing technique shows that the sun tracking error due to the geometrical error is varying almost randomly. It also shows that the mirror canting error is the most significant error source, while the encoder reference error and gear backlash are second and the third dominant source of errors.

Keywords

References

  1. PIER : California Energy Commission, 'Renewable Energy : Solar two central receiver', Consultant Report, October 1999
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  3. Park, Y. C. 'Heliostat Control System, J. of the Korean Solar Energy Society, Vol. 29, No.1, 2009, pp. 50-57