the cresent dunes solar energy project will utilize concentrating solar power (csp) technology, with a central receiver tower and the advanced molten salt system technology from united technologies corp.  if all permits are received by december 2010 as planned, the plant would be available for operation in 2013. the project will help meet the increasing demand for clean, renewable electrical energy in the us and help reduce reliance on fossil fuels and associated greenhouse gas emissions.

the key project benefits include that the the proposed solar facility will generate approximately 480,000 mwh of renewable energy per year and can avoid or displace greenhouse gas emissions produced by fossil-fueled power plants.  it will be able to help meet growing demand for clean, renewable energy sources.  the project will significantly reduce the use of water for cooling by using a more costly hybrid cooling system.  the energy storage inherent in the technology provides a stable yet flexible electricity product to better meet nevada’s peak demand profile and improve grid reliability.  and lastly, the project will promote economic development by creating up to 400-500 construction jobs during the peak of construction and up to 50 permanent jobs.

the plant is called the crescent dunes solar energy plant and will be “the largest power plant of its kind in the world,” also use molten salt for energy storage.

within the receiver, fluid flows through the piping that forms the external walls; this fluid absorbs the heat from the concentrated sunlight. in solarreserve’s technology, the fluid utilized is molten salt, which is heated from 500 to over 1,000 degrees fahrenheit. molten salt is an ideal heat capture medium, as it maintains its liquid state even above 1,000 degrees fahrenheit, allowing the system to operate at low pressure for convenient energy capture and storage.

after passing through the receiver, the molten salt then flows down the piping inside the tower and into a thermal storage tank, where the energy is stored as high-temperature molten salt until electricity is needed.

solarreserve’s technology leverages liquid molten salt as both the energy collection and the storage mechanism, which allows it to separate energy collection from electricity generation.

when electricity is required by the utility, day or night, the high-temperature molten salt flows into the steam generator, as water is piped in from the water storage tank, to generate steam.

once the hot salt is used to create steam, the cooled molten salt is then piped back into the cold salt storage tank where it will then flow back up the receiver to be reheated as the process continues.

after the steam is used to drive the steam turbine, it is condensed back to water and returned to the water holding tank, where it will flow back into the steam generator when needed.

the hot molten salt generates high-quality super heated steam to drive a standard steam turbine at maximum efficiency to generate reliable, non-intermittent electricity during peak demand hours.

the steam generation process is identical to the process used in conventional gas, coal or nuclear power plants, except that it is 100 percent renewable with zero harmful emissions or waste.

solarreserve plants provide on-demand, reliable electricity from a renewable source – the sun – even after dark.