The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is gearing up to launch a comprehensive database, the Solar Mirror Materials Database (SMMD). This exceptional resource entails the findings of exposure trials conducted on solar reflector samples from various manufacturers carried out over more than 40 years. The wealth of data, gathered from extensive outdoor tests and lab-controlled conditions, offers insights into the long-term integrity of different materials used in the manufacturing of solar mirrors.
Solar Mirrors Used for Concentrating Solar-Thermal Power
The primary application of these mirrors is in concentrating solar-thermal power. Over the decades, the mirrors have been installed and thoroughly tested in Phoenix, Miami, and NREL’s Colorado facilities. The earliest data recorded in the SMMD trace back to 1980, providing critical historical data into the degradation process of the mirrors’ materials.
Insights from the Composite of Solar Mirror Materials Database
The exhaustive details pertaining to the SMMD have been highlighted in a thoroughly compiled article titled “Compilation of a Solar Mirror Materials Database and an Analysis of Natural and Accelerated Mirror Exposure and Degradation” published in the reputed Journal of Solar Energy Engineering. This vital publication provides an extensive statistical analysis alongside decades worth of data.
Making The Right Choice
The comprehensive database is a valuable guide, facilitating the design, development, and manufacture of solar reflectors in accordance with adjusted tests. According to Tucker Farrell, a research engineer at NREL leading the article, varied kinds of solar-thermal power have common underlying principles inclusive of reflection and capturing of solar energy. The ability to concentrate it at a single point is a necessary feature they all share.
Key Features of the Solar Mirror Materials Database
The robust SMMD will be equipped with more than 2,000 samples and over 100,000 measurements. The in-depth experiments typically include assorted samples tested under uniform conditions with the same exposure duration. The findings indicated a significant tie between accelerated lab testing of four months and nine months of outdoor exposure. Conclusively, longer exposures using lab equipment are essential for accurate modelling, with raw data from long-term outdoor experiments being one of the SMMD’s main advantages.
Finding The Optimal Conditions
The data, collected from Phoenix, Miami, and Golden, presents three vastly different environmental conditions. By understanding the reactions of the mirrors, constructed from various materials including glass, aluminum, polymer, and silver, to these conditions, researchers can create accurate models based on the reflector itself and its intended climate. In effect, this results in optimal mirror selection for specific environmental conditions such as a coarse, dry climate or a high-humidity, coastal environment.
Support and Collaborations
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office financed the research. NREL has been the cornerstone of the U.S. Department of Energy’s research and development activities in renewable energy and energy efficiency. The Alliance for Sustainable Energy LLC operates NREL for the DOE.
