Cold thermal energy storage cTES for optimized cooling of CSP power plant power block – WASCOP project

The WASCOP (Water Saving for Concentrated Solar Power) project is an EU project dedicated to water saving in CSP power plants. Among the different technologies and aspects considered in the project, the concept of cold thermal energy storage (cTES) has been developed. cTES is considered in addition to the cooling system and used when ambient temperature is too high and may lead to turbine efficiency and electricity production reductions. In these conditions, heat from the condenser is partially stored in the cTES and evacuated trough the available cooler when ambient temperature is lower, typically during the night. A prototype of cTES has been built in the CEA site of Cadarache. Preliminary commissioning has been performed. Final commissioning is expected to be done before Spring 2019 and experimental tests will be made during Summer 2019.