Solar Thermal Power Systems

Because the fossil fuels used to run our generators are being rapidly depleted, we must find new methods of producing electricity. While water and wind power are already in use, the most promising source of electricity may be something Earth has more than enough of— sunlight.

At Sandia National Laboratories, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, engineers are working to harness the sun's energy to generate electricity. One of their projects involves the Stirling engine, a machine that was invented by Robert Stirling in 1816. A large, dish-shaped mirror is used to reflect sunlight onto an absorber, which collects the energy and uses it to increase the internal energy of helium inside the engine. At that point, the engine works much like an automobile engine. The heated helium gas is used to move a piston, but instead of spinning a set of wheels, this piston turns an electric generator.

The Stirling engine operates very efficiently; it holds a world record for converting solar energy into electricity. It is ideal for remote locations, where normal power lines cannot be run, or for power-specific devices, such as water pumps for agricultural purposes.

Sandia is also developing a solar power plant that uses the sun's energy to melt large quantities of salt. The energy transferred as heat from the salt is then used to generate steam, which can turn a turbine to make electricity.

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Also, the hot salt can be kept in insulated tanks, which enables the salt's high internal energy to be stored. Previous solar power systems simply heated water to the boiling point, but the water boiled only while the sun was shining. Sandia's salt-heated device stores energy more efficiently than water and maintains the higher temperature long enough to produce electricity even at night.

Greg Kolb, an engineer at Sandia, envisions such a power source replacing the central power stations we have today. "Imagine a tower about the size of the Washington Monument surrounded by a field of mirrors on the ground approximately one square mile in area," Kolb says. "The mirrors are reflecting the sunlight to the top of the tower, where all the light is focused and the energy is absorbed in a large heat exchanger." The engineer estimates that about 10.000 such setups spread throughout the nation could provide as much energy as the United States consumes annually.