Batteries: thermoelectric and photoelectric – Thermoelectric – Radiation pyrometer
Patent
1989-07-11
1990-10-23
Arnold, Bruce Y.
Batteries: thermoelectric and photoelectric
Thermoelectric
Radiation pyrometer
350630, 136246, G02B 1700
Patent
active
049647130
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The invention relates to a concentrator arrangement with a plurality of solar cells and with a plate made of a transparent material with a refractive index of more than 1.45, which presents a flat upper side and an underside which is connected to trough-shaped non-imaging concentrator elements with parabolically curved side walls.
Such concentrator arrangements are known from W. T. Welford, R. Winston "The optics of non-imaging concentrators," Academic Press, New York (1978) and serve as static non-imaging concentrators, in contrast to readjusted concentrators with optically imaging systems, which because of their small acceptance angle have to be aligned relatively accurately upon the sun, but in return carry out a photovoltaic energy transformation without complicated mechanical readjusting arrangements.
Underlying the invention is the problem of creating a concentrator arrangement of the type mentioned at the outset which is distinguished by a higher concentration factor.
This problem is solved according to the invention by the means that the concentrator elements have parabolically curved mirror surfaces facing to the sky.
Advantageous formations and further developments of the invention are the object of subclaims.
In the following, examples of execution of the invention are described in detail with the aid of the drawing.
FIG. 1 shows a concentrator of CPC type (compound parabolic concentrator) of known construction type;
FIG. 2: a concentrator arrangement according to the invention with a two-stage concentration, in perspective;
FIG. 3: a view of the concentrator arrangement in east or west direction;
FIG. 4: a side view of the concentrator arrangement in north or south direction;
FIG. 5: a concentrator element for rectangular solar cells;
FIG. 6: a concentrator arrangement with several concentrator elements according to FIG. 5, which are joined with one another by a plate;
FIG. 7: a concentrator element for rectangular solar cells with two successive media of different refractive index, and
FIG. 8 various contact geometries for the arrangement of the current-collecting contacts outside of the illuminated surface of the solar cells.
In FIG. 1 there is represented a static concentrator 1 of known construction type, which has the form of a trough and permits a one-dimensional concentration. The static concentrator 1 has a parabolically curved left side wall 2 and a likewise parabolically curved right side wall 3. The side walls 2, 3 have at their upper borders a spacing d.sub.1 and approach one another at their lower borders to a spacing d.sub.2. In general, the side walls 2, 3 are mirror-coated. The space between the side walls 2, 3 can be filled with glass or plastic with a refractive index n.sub.2 =1.5, with which it is possible to achieve concentration factors of 2 to 2.2, or the space can also be formed without a refracting medium (N.sub.2 =1) between the side walls 2, in which case there can only be achieved concentration factors of 1.4 to 1.5.
The static concentrator represented in FIG. 1 is aligned in east-west direction, so that the face sides 4, 5 point to the east and west, respectively, and the side walls 2, 3 point north and south, respectively. There the concentrator 1 is turned about its longitudinal axis running parallel to the side walls 2 in order to achieve an alignment of the concentrator to the south with optimal inclination. This inclination corresponds to the degree of latitude of the place of erection.
The bottom of the static concentrator 1 represented in FIG. 1 is occupied with several solar cells 6 which utilize the direct and diffuse solar light captured by the static concentrator 1 through photovoltaic energy transformation. The concentrator 1 forms a static, non-imaging concentrator of type CPC (Compound Parabolic Concentrator). Such a concentrator is limited in the concentration factor C=a.sub.1 /a.sub.2 by the Liouville condition ##EQU1## in which a.sub.1 is the entry aperture surface, a.sub.2 the exit aperture surface, n.sub.1 the refractive index of the medium in fron
REFERENCES:
patent: 3923381 (1975-12-01), Winston
patent: 4029519 (1977-06-01), Schertz et al.
patent: 4045246 (1977-08-01), Mlavsky et al.
patent: 4146408 (1979-03-01), Nelson
patent: 4291191 (1981-09-01), Dahlberg
patent: 4438760 (1984-03-01), Radebold
patent: 4538886 (1985-09-01), Townsend et al.
patent: 4546757 (1985-10-01), Jakahi
W. T. Welford, R. Winston, "The Optics of Non-Imaging Concentrators" p. 163, 1978, Academic Press, New York.
Arnold Bruce Y.
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Forderund der Forschung E. V.
Tran Tho Van
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