Thermodynamic analysis of a hybrid PV-particle based sCO2 concentrating solar power plant

The present work performs a thermodynamic analysis of a hybrid CSP – PV plant characterized by a particle tower CSP running a supercritical CO2 power unit and a PV field. The two plants are hybridized by employing a particle electrical heater that allows to store the electricity produced in excess by the PV field as thermal energy in the CSP storage. The PV production is compensated by the CSP plant to achieve the maximum power that can be injected into the grid (25 MW). The main key performance indicators considered in this analysis are the capacity factor, the share of energy wasted, the annual energy yield, the electric heater utilization factor, and the share of TES charged by the electric heater. The influence of the plant solar multiple, storage size, PV nominal size, electric heater efficiency, and electric heater capacity has been assessed through different sensitivity analyses. The results show that it is worth hybridizing the system, indeed the solar power plant operates during summer continuously day and night, exploiting the advantages of the two technologies, while limiting their drawbacks. Plant configurations leading to a capacity factor higher than 81% with a share of energy wasted limited to 5% can be identified. The electric heater capacity and efficiency are shown to be highly important parameters, highlighting the need for further component development.