Inflatable heliostatic solar power collector
First Claim
1. An inflatable heliostatic solar power collector, comprising:
- an elongated solar power receiver;
a reflection and concentrating surface for reflecting and concentrating sunrays;
a substantially enclosed elongated upper inflatable volume above said reflection and concentrating surface, with a transparent surface above said upper inflatable volume;
a substantially enclosed elongated lower inflatable volume below said reflection and concentrating surface, with a bottom surface below said lower inflated volume;
support structure for supporting said solar power collector on a supporting surface;
and heliostatic control means for aiming said solar power collector as a function of at least one of time and other parameters, such that incoming sunrays from a sunward direction will be reflected and concentrated by said reflection and concentration surface, onto said elongated solar power receiver at a concentration ratio of at least 2 suns.
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Increased utilization of solar power is highly desirable as solar power is a readily available renewable resource with power potential far exceeding total global needs; and as solar power does not contribute to pollutants associated with fossil fuel power, such as unburned hydrocarbons, NOx and carbon dioxide. The present invention provides low-cost inflatable heliostatic solar power collectors, which can be stand-alone units suitable for flexible utilization in small, medium, or utility scale applications. The inflatable heliostatic power collectors use a reflective surface or membrane “sandwiched” between two inflated chambers, and attached solar power receivers which may be of photovoltaic and/or solar thermal types. Modest concentration ratios enable benefits in both reduced cost and increased conversion efficiency, relative to simple prior-art flat plate solar collectors.
93 Citations
36 Claims
-
1. An inflatable heliostatic solar power collector, comprising:
-
an elongated solar power receiver; a reflection and concentrating surface for reflecting and concentrating sunrays; a substantially enclosed elongated upper inflatable volume above said reflection and concentrating surface, with a transparent surface above said upper inflatable volume; a substantially enclosed elongated lower inflatable volume below said reflection and concentrating surface, with a bottom surface below said lower inflated volume; support structure for supporting said solar power collector on a supporting surface; and heliostatic control means for aiming said solar power collector as a function of at least one of time and other parameters, such that incoming sunrays from a sunward direction will be reflected and concentrated by said reflection and concentration surface, onto said elongated solar power receiver at a concentration ratio of at least 2 suns. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 32, 33, 35)
-
-
2. An inflatable heliostatic solar power collector, comprising:
-
an inflatable volume with a substantially constant cross-section; a solar power receiver at the top of said cross-section when the Sun is directly overhead; a reflection and concentrating surface traversing said cross-section and dividing said inflatable volume into an upper part and a lower part; a transparent surface above said upper part; a bottom surface below said lower part; end cap means for closing the two ends of said inflatable volume outward from the end planes bounding the constant cross-section portion of the inflatable heliostatic solar power collector; and heliostatic control means for aiming said solar power collector as a function of at least one of time and other parameters, such that incoming sunrays from a sunward direction will be reflected and concentrated by said reflection and concentration surface, onto said solar power receiver at a concentration ratio of at least 2 suns. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30)
-
-
3. An inflatable heliostatic solar power collector, comprising:
-
a reflection and concentrating surface for reflecting and concentrating sunrays; a substantially enclosed upper inflatable volume above said reflection and concentrating surface, with a transparent surface above said upper inflatable volume; a substantially enclosed lower inflatable volume below said reflection and concentrating surface, with a bottom surface below said lower inflated volume; support structure for supporting said solar power collector on a supporting surface; and heliostatic control means for aiming said solar power collector as a function of at least one of time and other parameters, such that incoming sunrays from a sunward direction will be reflected and concentrated by said reflection and concentration surface, onto a structurally connected solar power receiver proximate to said transparent surface, at a concentration ratio of at least 2 suns. - View Dependent Claims (34, 36)
-
Specification