PS10--- the first solar power tower

Construction of the PS10 project, an 11 MW Solar Thermal Power Plant in Southern Spain has been completed. The main project goals for design, construction and commercial operation have been achieved. The plant is a first-of-its-kind Solar Central Receiver System (CRS) producing electricity in grid-connected mode.The PS10 solar power plant, which is located in Sanlúcar la Mayor, 15 km west of the city of Seville...

The PS10 solar power tower is the first commercial plant in the world to use tower technology. This 11 MW tower is located at the Solúcar Complex in Sanlúcar la Mayor (Seville). PS10 went online in mid-2007 and the plant has been operating successfully since then, supplying clean energy to the power grid.

 The PS10 power tower/heliostat field technology has a solar field composed of 624 120 m2 heliostats with a mobile curved reflective surface that concentrate solar radiation on a receiver at the top of a 100 m tower. The receiver, which produces 40 bar 250ºC saturated steam from thermal energy supplied by the concentrated solar radiation flux, has a cavity design to reduce radiation and convection losses.

 The solar field occupies 148 acres and is composed of 624 heliostats, each being 1,291 sq. ft. Designed by Abengoa Solar, these heliostats concentrate the solar radiation they capture onto a receiver located at the top of a 377-foot tower. PS10 also features a 30-minute storage capability, which enables the plant to continue running under conditions of low solar radiation and no insolation.

 The PS10 tower produces enough electricity to meet the demand of approximately 5,500 households, the equivalent to the population of Sanlúcar la Mayor. It prevents the release of 6,000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere annually, while at the same time reducing natural resource consumption and waste generation.

PS10, the World’s First Commercial Power Tower
Description:
Location: Solucar Complex, Seville, Spain
Output: 11 MW
Technology: power tower
Solar field: 148 acres
Household supplied with clean energy: 5,500
CO2 emissions eliminated each year: 6,000
Status: in operation