Solar Energy Converter with Improved Photovoltaic Efficiency, Frequency Conversion and Thermal Management Permitting Super Highly Concentrated Collection

• US 20090314333A1
• Filed: 06/19/2009
• Published: 12/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: University of Central Florida Research Foundation Inc. (State University System of Florida)
• Original Assignee: University of Central Florida Research Foundation Inc. (State University System of Florida)
• Inventors: Shepard, Scott Roger
• Granted Patent: US 8,710,353 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 136/248
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/04 formed by bundles of fibres G02B6/24 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/3542 Multipass arrangements, i.e. arrangements to make light pass multiple times through the same element, e.g. using an enhancement cavity
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/365 in an optical waveguide structure G02F1/377, G02F1/395 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0521 using a gaseous or a liquid coolant, e.g. air flow ventilation, water circulation
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0543 comprising light concentrating means of the refractive type, e.g. lenses
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0547 comprising light concentrating means of the reflecting type, e.g. parabolic mirrors, concentrators using total internal reflection
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0549 comprising spectrum splitting means, e.g. dichroic mirrors
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0675 Resonators including a grating structure, e.g. distributed Bragg reflectors [DBR] or distributed feedback [DFB] fibre lasers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/06791 Fibre ring lasers fibre laser gyrometers G01C19/72
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0915 by incoherent light
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/094007 Cladding pumping, i.e. pump light propagating in a clad surrounding the active core
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/52 PV systems with concentrators

Abstract

Methods and systems for solar energy converter with increased photovoltaic and thermal conversion efficiencies including a collection optics for receiving and concentrating incident sunlight, or radiation from any other directed electromagnetic energy source, an optical filtering unit for separating and redirecting infrared light and ultraviolet light from incoming solar light, a thermal distribution unit redirecting heat from the optical filtering unit into a thermal-loop, and a photovoltaic for receiving the filtered light from the filtering system and converting the light into energy.

Claims

1. A solar energy system with increased photovoltaic and thermal conversion efficiencies comprising:

a collection optics for receiving and concentrating incident sunlight, or radiation from a directed electromagnetic energy source;

an entrance optics;

an optical filtering unit including one of an optical waveguide and an optical fiber far separating and redirecting infrared light and ultraviolet light from incoming sunlight, the entrance optics interfacing the collection optics with the optical filtering unit;

a solar thermal distribution unit to absorb the redirected infrared and ultraviolet light to redirect heat from the optical filtering unit into a thermal-loop as the visible filtered light is routed;

a photovoltaic for receiving the visible filtered light from the filtering system and converting the visible filtered light into electrical energy, the photovoltaic responsive to a range of wavelengths to exclude the removed infrared and ultraviolet light wavelengths.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the collection optics comprises:

selected from a group consisting of a Fresnel lens, a parabolic dish mirror, a parabolic trough mirror.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the entrance optics is selected from a group consisting of window-filter, rod, tapered rod, multi-lens array, ball lens and lensed fiber.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the filtering by the optical filtering unit is accomplished via at least one of the absorptive properties of the optics and the fiber, the chromatic aberration of the optics and the fiber, waveguiding and angle-tuning of the fiber to optimize the spectral transfer.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the thermal distribution unit redistributes heat by at least one of a conductive coupling of the heat to the thermal loop and a radiative coupling the heat from the optical filtering unit into the thermal loop.

23. The system of claim 1 wherein the collector comprises:

a concentrated light beam source is one of an array of mirrors in a solar farm, a solar pumped lasers from one of a terrestrial, satellite, or platforms in the solar system, the collector receiving the concentrated light beam

24. The system of claim 1 wherein the thermal distribution unit comprises:

a thermal dump.

25. The system of claim 1 wherein the thermal dump is selected from a group consisting of a swimming pool, a lake, a pond and an ocean.

26. The system of claim 1, wherein the thermal loop includes a heat engine driving electric generator, wherein the mechanical energy that would normally be lost as heat is coupled back into the thermal loop.

27. The system of claim 26 wherein the electric generator is one of a paddle wheel type electric generator, a Sterling engine, a thermal electric engine, absorption chiller, a thermal engine and a thermal-quarter-wave transformer.

28. The system of claim 1 wherein the optical filtering unit comprises:

optical fibers and exit optics to provide uniform illumination of the surface of the photovoltaic cell.

29. The system of claim 28 wherein the exit optics is one of plural fibers, a collimating lens, and a multilens array.

30. The system of claim 1, wherein the photovoltaic is an edge-fired photovoltaic with a fiber delivery system.

31. The system of claim 1 wherein the photovoltaic is an edge-fired photovoltaic, the system further comprising:

a fiber delivery system comprising;

a photovoltaic PN junction formed into a flat disk having plural electrodes covering each side of the flat surface to reduce ohmic losses;

a fiber bundle splicing out into groups of multiple fibers, each of which delivers optical energy to points around an edge of the photovoltaic PN junction, approximately perpendicular to a current it generates, the surface area of the flat disk reducing the current density; and

at least one conductor to remove the electricity which are the same area as the electrodes;

also providing heat removal and redirection into the thermal conversion.

2. (canceled)

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the optical waveguide is selected from a group consisting of fiber, bundle of optical fibers, tapered rods, tapered fiber, photonic crystal fiber (PCF), multi-core, multi-clad, slab waveguides and hexagonal rod.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the optical waveguide is one of a dielectric material and a glass material.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the optical waveguide uses one of a total internal reflection (TLR) and a transverse resonance to achieve electromagnetic confinement and guidance.

10. The system of claim 2, wherein the optical fiber comprises at least one of a fiber bundles of input heads that are epoxied together and a fiber bundles of input heads that are fused together and a fiber bundles of input heads having claddings removed and cores fused together and a metallic ferrule for housing the fiber bundle of input heads and a heat sink mesh between fibers in a bundle.

11. The system of claim 2 wherein the thermal distribution unit further comprises:

a coolant, the optical fibers routed through the coolant.

12. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

a heat pipe or heat pipes arrayed in a radial arm to a ring topology to rapidly transfer thermal energy collection optics into a manifold that interfaces the coolant flow to the rest of the thermal loop.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the coolant, heat pipe or heat pipes arrayed in a radial arms to a ring topology are thermally insulated.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein the thermal insulation is provided by an evacuated glass tube.

15. The system of claim 2 further comprising:

a frequency converter to convert a ultraviolet and a infrared radiation to a visible band that the photovoltaic is responsive to.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the optical fibers in the bundle have claddings to form cladding pumped fiber amplifiers.

17. The system of claim 16 further comprising:

one of a mirror and a fiber Bragg grating coupled to both ends of the optical fibers to form cladding pumped fiber lasers.

18. The system of claim 15 wherein the inner conduction tube forms a single fiber amplifier with waveguiding of the amplifier providing a preferred direction for the re-radiation of the solar pumped molecules or atoms undergoing stimulated emission of radiation.

19. The system of claim 18 further comprising:

a mirror at an ends of the inner conduction tube enhancing the direction for a stimulated emission, turning the amplifier into a laser.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein the laser is end pumped by one of a Fresnel lens and a dish mirror.

21. The system of claim 19 wherein the laser is side pumped by a trough mirror and grating at top of tube providing distributed feedback DFB eliminating mirrors at end of tube

22. The system of claim 15 wherein the frequency conversion is resonantly enhanced in an optical resonator selected from a group consisting of one of a fiber ring resonators incorporating couplers, a fiber ring resonators incorporating hybrid fiber/bulk-optics modules, a reflective resonators incorporating optical circulators and a fiber Bragg grating FBG and a mirror, and a fiber based resonator.