Summary and Activities

Summary and Activities

Lesson 2 covers fundamental principles of light concentration that are important for a number of solar energy conversion technologies - both thermal and photovoltaic conversion. The general scheme of the solar energy concentration is this:

Input solar energy flux ⇒ Optical concentration device ⇒ Output concentrated solar energy flux

We touched upon each of these stages. First, we looked at the available solar radiation at the earth surface - the input we start with. Then, we considered a few techniques that concentrate the available flux, confining it to a smaller area. Finally, we looked at the output and its characteristics. Theoretical and empirical laws presented in the readings provide you with the background for estimating such parameters as concentration ratio and output energy density. Most of the theoretical considerations presented here are made for ideal systems. In reality, you can expect that imperfect optics will require additional corrections for non-ideality and losses. Limitations and advantages of specific concentrating technologies will be considered in further lessons, separately for CSP and photovoltaic systems.

After you have covered the assigned materials for this lesson, please complete the following assignments:

References for Lesson 2