Parametric Study of Two-tank TES Systems for CSP Plants☆

The two-tank thermal energy storage (TES) system is the most used technology for storage in concentrating solar power (CSP) plants. This work focuses on a parametric study, which aims to identify the most important parameters on TES system, in order to improve the design and increase the performance of the plant. Three parameters have been considered: meteorological data, insulation thickness of the storage tank, and configuration of the foundation of the storage tank. The effect of each parameter is evaluated using numerical simulations based on a modular object-oriented methodology. The main issues related to the mathematical models and its numerical methodology are also presented in this paper.