| Solucar, the Solar Tower |
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On the way from Madrid, the eyes tired thanks to the nights spent in the car, we go to meetValeriano Ruiz, thermodynamics professor at the engineers school of Seville .A real Spanish man. Cheerful, colored, jovial fellow.
A really great person, about sixty years old, speaking very well French. With a strong handshake, he says :« Let's go !». The road is taken again. Direction the north of Seville.
Disproportionate, splendid, unreal, strange. After about thirty kilometers, a white tower appears,. One doesn't know yet what it is doing in the middle of olive-trees fields !
Welcome at Solucar.
An ideal name for a crazy project at the first sight. Its Latin significance is « place of the sun», Andalusia gives it back all its sense today.
It is here that grew PS10, the first solar tower, also called heliostats with central receiver field...A little less understandable !!
It is in fact, 624 huge mirrors (10x12m) which reflect the sun rays on a single spot situated on the top of a 115 meters high concrete tower.
On top of this tower, water is carried into vapor state thanks to the heat contribution of all the rays concentrated in the mirrors. This vapour is brought towards turbines which produce energy and thus electricity thanks to their movement. 11 MW on the whole.
The innovation does not come from the fact that vapour creates energy, (cf. the steam train !) but from the light reflexion of these mirrors on a single point. 30 years have been necessary to Spanish to develop this unique technology in the world, from fundamental research to the prototype.
A second one is under construction, PS20, close to the first one. 165m high, 1248 mirrors this time. You can imagine the the size of the working site. It should run in August this year.
Our friend Valeriano is proud of it. He is one of the precursors.He was a part of it 30 years ago, when there were only drawings about it. He enjoys our sparkling eyes with amazement.
There is a lot of money behind this project.Private investors, Abengoa, Spanish company managing the whole installation, development and management of the 2 power stations, banks and Andalusia, Spain and Europe.
The return on investment is planned at the end of 13 years.A heavy project but which convinced all the politics.
Solucar, the site of the sun, contains these 2 giant towers as well as less visible technologies which are tested (Sterling, photovoltaic with mirrors…). A huge laboratory which will produce around 300MW in 2013.
We then have a 3 hour lunch with Valeriano : he explains us the energy policy of Spain of the next 20 years.The more and more important tecnologies, those which have no future...the energyprofitability of each one...We keep one taking notes, following on our questions, appearing maybe stupid to us, but essential to understand !!
At Solucar, the most important people of the solar energy come to observe this so particular solar station power from a long way off. And us, young French having just graduated, we are visiting it in detail with one of its creators and we invite you on the top of the tower !
The look a little surprised, enjoying each second...
Shake Your Planet
 A tower is drawn up on the horizon
 624 heliostats (mirrors) seen from the top of the tower!!
 all pointing towards a point of the central tower
 120m2 mirrors as far as the eye can see
 Small engines which direct the mirrors regarding the sun in the optimum way
 A huge factory!
 The turbine which produces electricity
 The picture of a picture.. seen from helicopter. PS20 on the left et PS10 on the right
PS20 under construction. Mirrors in waiting position.
Some computers which manage the whole power station and the new spiltzberg...
Valeriano Ruiz the spanish solarman
Mirror, my beautiful mirror..
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| Users' Comments |
Average user rating
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"Une technologie unique au monde |
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voila une demonstration qui donne de l'espoire pour notre avenir a tous . |
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C'est dingue, c'est encore mieux que les cités d'or ce PS10!! On vous suit l'oeil écarquillé |
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By: pkvywzx () on 03-01-2010