Description

The growing demand for renewable energy sources has led to an increase in research and development of new technologies. Solar energy has proven to be one of the most promising and efficient sources of renewable energy. However, the efficiency and the availability of solar energy systems needs to be improved to make them a more viable alternative to traditional energy sources. One way to improve efficiency and availability is through the use of a free piston Stirling engine solar concentration system. This system uses a solar concentrator to focus sunlight onto a Stirling engine, which converts the thermal energy into mechanical energy and then electricity.

The aim of this student project is to investigate and design a free piston Stirling engine solar concentration system for the production of electricity.

Key Objectives

Conduct a literature review on Stirling engine solar concentration systems and identify the current state of the art in this field.

Gather information on the working principles of free piston Stirling engines and solar concentration systems.

• Review the performance of existing Stirling engine solar concentration systems.

• Identify potential areas for improvement in the design of these systems.

Design a solar concentrator using CAD software and analyze its performance using CFD simulations.

Design a parabolic dish concentrator to focus sunlight onto the Stirling engine.

• Simulate the performance of the concentrator under varying weather conditions.

• Optimize the design of the concentrator to maximize its efficiency.

Design a free piston Stirling engine and optimize its performance using simulation software.

Design a free piston Stirling engine that can be integrated into the solar concentration system.

• Simulate the performance of the engine under varying operating conditions.

• Optimize the design of the engine to maximize its efficiency.

Integrate the solar concentrator and Stirling engine into a complete system and conduct preliminary tests to evaluate its performance.

Assemble the solar concentration system and connect it to the Stirling engine.

• Conduct preliminary tests to evaluate the system's performance under varying operating conditions.

• Identify potential areas for improvement in the system design.

Evaluate the economic viability of the system and identify potential areas for improvement.

Conduct a cost analysis of the system and compare it to existing solar energy systems.

• Identify potential areas for improvement in the design of the system to reduce costs.
• Evaluate the potential for commercialization of the system.