Linear solar heat generating system

• US 8,418,464 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2011
• Issued: 04/16/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Soo-Joh Chae
• Original Assignee: Soo-Joh Chae
• Inventors: Chae, Soo-Joh
• Primary Examiner(s): Bomberg, Kenneth
• Assistant Examiner(s): JETTON, CHRISTOPHER M
• Application Number:
  US13/036,381
• Publication Number:
  US 20110209476A1
• Time in Patent Office: 778 Days
• Field of Search: 60516-526, 606418-64115, 126683-703
• US Class Current: 60/641.15
• CPC Class Codes: F24S 20/20 Solar heat collectors for receiving concentrated solar energy, e.g. receivers for solar power plants
• CPC Class Codes: F24S 2030/134 in the form of gearings or rack-and-pinion transmissions
• CPC Class Codes: F24S 23/71 with parabolic reflective surfaces with cylindro-parabolic reflective surfaces F24S23/74
• CPC Class Codes: F24S 23/79 with spaced and opposed interacting reflective surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: F24S 30/42 with only one rotation axis
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/40 Solar thermal energy, e.g. solar towers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/46 Conversion of thermal power into mechanical power, e.g. Rankine, Stirling or solar thermal engines
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/47 Mountings or tracking

Abstract

An eco-friendly linear solar heat generating system may employ a linear engine with a simple structure using solar heat is employed in place of a conventional Stirling engine with a complicated structure. Magnets and a coil are arranged in a piston and a cylinder, respectively, to thereby generate power in a highly efficient matter, improve installation stability, and enable easy maintenance and repair.

Claims

1. A linear solar heat generating system, comprising:

a frame;

a solar concentrator installed in the frame and configured to concentrate the sunlight, the solar concentrator comprising a primary mirror installed on the frame and a secondary minor configured to re-reflect the sunlight reflected by the primary mirror and concentrate the sunlight to one point;

a heat engine constituted with a cylinder, a piston, and a high-pressure gas, the cylinder divided into a front space and a rear space by the piston, the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder, the piston being linearly reciprocated by thermally expanding or contracting the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder by alternately transferring the concentrated sunlight from the solar concentrator to the high-pressure gas;

a power-generating unit constituted with a plurality of magnets and a coil, the plurality of magnets installed lengthwise along an outer circumference of the piston, the coil wound lengthwise along an outer circumference of the cylinder, the magnets oscillating according to a linear reciprocating motion of the piston to generate electricity from the coil; and

a tilting unit configured to tilt the secondary mirror so that the re-reflected and concentrated sunlight by the secondary mirror of the solar concentrator is alternately irradiated toward the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder of the heat engine.

2. The linear solar heat generating system of claim 1,

wherein the primary mirror and the secondary minor are a Cassegrain type in which a confocal point is a virtual focal point.

3. The linear solar heat generating system of claim 1,

wherein the primary mirror and the secondary minor are a Gregorian type in which a confocal point is a real focal point.

4. The linear solar heat generating system of claim 1, further comprising a tracking unit installed on the frame and configured to rotate the solar concentrator so that the quantity of incident sunlight is maximized by tracking the motion of the sun that moves from the east to the west from the sunrise to the sunset.

5. The linear solar heat generating system of claim 1, wherein the tilting unit comprises:

a tilting axle configured to rotatably support the secondary minor; and

a tilting motor configured to rotate the tilting axle forward and reverse.

6. A linear solar heat generating system, comprising:

a frame;

a solar concentrator installed in the frame and configured to concentrate the sunlight;

a heat engine constituted with cylinder, a piston, and a high-pressure gas, the cylinder divided into a front space and a rear space by the piston, the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder, the piston being linearly reciprocated by thermally expanding or contracting the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder by alternately transferring the concentrated sunlight from the solar concentrator to the high-pressure gas;

a power-generating unit constituted with a plurality of magnets and a coil, the plurality of magnets installed lengthwise along an outer circumference of the piston, the coil wound lengthwise along an outer circumference of the cylinder, the magnets oscillating according to a linear reciprocating motion of the piston to generate electricity from the coil; and

a light-permeating window installed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder so that the sunlight concentrated by the solar concentrator is irradiated toward the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder.

7. The linear solar heat generating system of claim 6, wherein the heat engine further comprises a black body installed inside the front space and the rear space of the cylinder and configured to absorb the sunlight irradiated through the window and makes a heat transfer toward the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder.

8. The linear solar heat generating system of claim 7, wherein the black body is formed by spraying and coating a corpuscular form of black carbon.

9. A linear solar heat generating system, comprising:

a frame;

a solar concentrator installed in the frame and configured to concentrate the sunlight;

a heat engine constituted with a cylinder, a piston, and a high-pressure gas, the cylinder divided into a front space and a rear space by the piston, the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder, the piston being linearly reciprocated by thermally expanding or contracting the high-pressure gas housed in the front space and the rear space of the cylinder by alternately transferring the concentrated sunlight from the solar concentrator to the high-pressure gas;

a power-generating unit constituted with a plurality of magnets and a coil, the plurality of magnets installed lengthwise along an outer circumference of the piston, the coil wound lengthwise along an outer circumference of the cylinder, the magnets oscillating according to a linear reciprocating motion of the piston to generate electricity from the coil; and

a cooling unit installed on each outer circumference of the front space and the rear space of the cylinder.

10. The linear solar heat generating system of claim 9, wherein the cooling unit comprises:

a plurality of cooling fins formed on each outer circumference of the front space and the rear space of the cylinder; and

a cooling fan configured to cool by supplying air to the cooling fins.

11. The linear solar heat generating system of claim 9, wherein the cooling unit comprises:

a cooling tube on an each outer circumference of the front space and the rear space of the cylinder; and

a cooling pump configured to supply coolant to the cooling tube.