Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “distributed energy management system”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 757 records · Page 42
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Commercially-viable Hydrogen Aircraft for Reduction of Greenhouse Emissions

NASA assembled a cross-organizational multidisciplinary “radical” project team combining a diverse set of skills including aircraft architecture modelling and optimization, advanced material science, and engineering of high performance cryogenic, thermal management and fuel cell systems components and subsystems to tackle the challenging problem of development of commercially viable mid-size aircraft that would radically transform air transportation. Our team is developing an integrated conceptual and experimental methodology to realize a medium-range hydrogen aircraft design based on fuel cells, hydrogen burning engines, advanced power management and distribution, cryogenic hydrogen storage systems, and novel thermal management systems combined with an integrated aircraft concept of operations both during the flight and at the airports. The resulting analyses suggested the aircraft architecture options, sizes and layouts for the propulsion subsystem and cryogenic liquid hydrogen (LH2) tankage to verify the weight-scaling relationships for a medium-range aircraft carrying 100-200 passengers flying 1000 - 5000 km. Hydrogen - based distributed electric propulsion and cryogenic systems were further analysed, and more detailed study identified systems goals for a viable overall system weight for missions of various lengths. The developed aircraft architecture is being optimized by total specific energy density, specific power, size and mission profiles.

aircraft architecture↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Commercially-viable Hydrogen Aircraft for Reduction of Greenhouse Emissions

NASA assembled a cross-organizational multidisciplinary “radical” project team combining a diverse set of skills including aircraft architecture modelling and optimization, advanced material science, and engineering of high performance cryogenic, thermal management and fuel cell systems components and subsystems to tackle the challenging problem of development of commercially viable mid-size aircraft that would radically transform air transportation. Our team is developing an integrated conceptual and experimental methodology to realize a medium-range hydrogen aircraft design based on fuel cells, hydrogen burning engines, advanced power management and distribution, cryogenic hydrogen storage systems, and novel thermal management systems combined with an integrated aircraft concept of operations both during the flight and at the airports. The resulting analyses suggested the aircraft architecture options, sizes and layouts for the propulsion subsystem and cryogenic liquid hydrogen (LH2) tankage to verify the weight-scaling relationships for a medium-range aircraft carrying 100-200 passengers flying 1000 - 5000 km. Hydrogen - based distributed electric propulsion and cryogenic systems were further analysed, and more detailed study identified systems goals for a viable overall system weight for missions of various lengths. The developed aircraft architecture is being optimized by total specific energy density, specific power, size and mission profiles.

aircraft architecture↗
DOE OSTI2020

Nuclear Physics Network Requirements Review Report

The Energy Sciences Network (ESnet) is the Office of Science’s high-performance network user facility, delivering highly reliable data transport capabilities optimized for the requirements of data-intensive science. In essence, ESnet is the circulatory system that enables the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) science mission by connecting each and every DOE lab and its user facilities. ESnet is funded and stewarded by the Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) Program and managed and operated by the Scientific Networking Division at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). ESnet is widely regarded as a global leader in the research and education networking community. ESnet connects DOE national laboratories, user facilities, and major experiments so scientists can use remote instruments and computing resources as well as share data with collaborators, transfer large data sets, and access distributed data repositories. While ESnet provides network connectivity, it cannot be characterized as an internet service provider as it is specifically built to provide a range of network services that are tailored to meet the unique requirements of DOE’s data-intensive science.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2025

Advanced Load Forecasting

This presentation presents information about electric utility load forecasting in the U.S. It provides an overview of load forecasting and describes the current state of the industry. Current load forecasting challenges, opportunities, and interests are presented, including feedback from a 2024 workshop on Integrated Distribution System Planning. The presentation also describes a variety of NREL tools and capabilities that support utility load forecasting efforts. This was presented as part of NREL's Utility Planning Resources for Energy Transition Webinar Series.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2022

How Can Probabilistic Solar Power Forecasts Be Used to Lower Costs and Improve Reliability in Power Spot Markets? A Review and Application to Flexiramp Requirements

Net load uncertainty in electricity spot markets is rapidly growing. There are five general approaches by which system operators and market participants can use probabilistic forecasts of wind, solar, and load to help manage this uncertainty. These include operator situation awareness, resource risk hedging, reserves procurement, definition of contingencies, and explicit stochastic optimization. We review these approaches, and then provide a case study in which a method for using probabilistic solar forecasts to define needs for reserves is developed and evaluated. The case study has three parts. First, we describe building blocks for enhancing the Watt-Sun solar forecasting system to produce probabilistic irradiance and power forecasts. Second, relationships between Watt-Sun forecasts for multiple sites in California and the system's need for flexible ramp capability (flexiramp) are defined by machine learning and statistical methods. Third, the performance of present methods to defining flexiramp requirements, which are not conditioned on weather and renewables forecasts, is compared with that of probabilistic solar forecast-based requirements, using a multi-timescale production costing model with an 1820-bus representation of the WECC power system. Significant potential savings in fuel and flexiramp procurement costs from using solar-informed reserve requirements are found.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Extending Rucio with modern cloud storage support

Rucio is a software framework designed to facilitate scientific collaborations in efficiently organising, managing, and accessing extensive volumes of data through customizable policies. The framework enables data distribution across globally distributed locations and heterogeneous data centres, integrating various storage and network technologies into a unified federated entity. Rucio offers advanced features like distributed data recovery and adaptive replication, and it exhibits high scalability, modularity, and extensibility. Originally developed to meet the requirements of the high-energy physics experiment ATLAS, Rucio has been continuously expanded to support LHC experiments and diverse scientific communities. Recent R&D projects within these communities have evaluated the integration of both private and commercially-provided cloud storage systems, leading to the development of additional functionalities for seamless integration within Rucio. Furthermore, the underlying systems, FTS and GFAL/Davix, have been extended to cater to specific use cases. This contribution focuses on the technical aspects of this work, particularly the challenges encountered in building a generic interface for self-hosted cloud storage, such as MinIO or CEPH S3 Gateway, and established providers like Google Cloud Storage and Amazon Simple Storage Service. Additionally, the integration of decentralised clouds like SEAL is explored. Key aspects, including authentication and authorisation, direct and remote access, throughput and cost estimation, are highlighted, along with shared experiences in daily operations.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Net-Zero Carbon Microgrids

The microgrid concept has been effective in creating aggregations of distributed energy resources—generation, storage and loads—for resiliency, in the form of energy security. The success of microgrids in bringing energy security to a wide range of customers—from individual residences to commercial and industrial installations to military bases—has been exemplified during power disruptions and extended outages due to extreme weather events, cybersecurity attacks, and equipment failures. Now microgrids have an opportunity to meet the challenges of climate change and contribute to a carbon-free power delivery system. The transition to net-zero starts within microgrids themselves. In fact, today’s microgrids are largely dominated by generators using fossil fuels, natural gas and diesel, with high greenhouse gas emissions. In short, the transition to net-zero means replacing fossil fueled generators with renewable generation in microgrids. This transition is extended by including new dispatchable generation technologies that are 100% carbon-free and that offer additional advantage of a more-dependable and sustainable source of energy and power. Basically, the decarbonization of microgrids requires three elements: 1) maximizing generation from renewable energy resources, 2) management of storage and flexible loads to balance the variability and intermittency of renewable energy resources, and 3) introducing new clean power sources, including hydrogen-based generation and small modular reactors. This report affirms a need for specific focus by governmental agencies at national, regional, and local levels to establish technology, policy, and investment in this area. The intention of the Net-Zero Microgrid (NZM) Program is to inform these constituencies with cross-cutting research and tools for the reduction of GHG in microgrids – to net-zero in the near term eventually to zero in the longer term. The NZM Program is committed to achieving decarbonization for resiliency and for providing clean energy at the local or distribution level, from remote communities to underserved communities, and large industrial and military facilities. The NZM Planning and Design Platform is a core tool to be developed as an early deliverable of the NZM Program because only a fully integrated microgrid-design approach will ensure maximum carbon reduction in energy production.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Connecting Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure to Commercial Buildings

Electric vehicles (EVs) are growing in popularity and gaining meaningful market share with record sales year over year in the last decade. EV charging equipment, also known as EV chargers (EVC) or EV supply equipment (EVSE), must proportionally match the growing number of new EVs on the road for a comparable experience to gas-powered vehicles. The majority of EV charging currently happens at residential buildings. However, demand for EV charging at commercial buildings will significantly increase with wider mainstream EV adoption and as businesses return to more normal operation following COVID-19 pandemic disruptions. Charging equipment can include various sub-systems like power conditioning module, control software, safety devices, metering, communication, cooling, connectors, and its wiring. EV charging at commercial buildings could be used for public, workplace, and commercial fleet charging. This document aims to describe how EVC can be connected to commercial buildings, including considerations for facility managers, and the effects that charging will have on the buildings electrical distribution system. More specifically, this resource provides an overview of: understanding EV charging basics: how charging equipment connects to the building and to EVs; required infrastructure updates needed at the building site to connect EVC to existing distribution systems; network strategies for cost-effective operation; metering and utility considerations for billing and incentives; charging equipment ownership options; future trends in EVC connection to buildings.

ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS,ENERGY CONSERVATION, C↗
DOE OSTI2026

California Price Response Potential Study

California's energy landscape is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by the increasing integration of renewable energy sources, the increased adoption of distributed energy resources, the electrification of end-use loads, and the growing need for grid efficiency. To address these challenges, recent revisions to the State’s Load Management Standards (LMS) require all of California’s large utilities and community choice aggregators (CCAs) to offer dynamic electricity pricing options to customers by 2027. Dynamic pricing, which involves varying electricity rates based on real-time supply and demand conditions, offers a promising solution for optimizing grid operations, reducing costs, and incentivizing efficient use of grid capacity. Effective implementation of dynamic pricing requires understanding the potential impacts on customer bills, system load, and the cost-effectiveness of automation technologies. This study aims to evaluate the load response of various end-use devices to hourly dynamic prices. The end-uses studied here are space cooling, space heating, water heating, crop irrigation, pool and spa pumps, and electric vehicle (EV) charging, all for both residential and commercial applications, except for crop irrigation. In 2030, these end uses are forecasted to account for 18% of annual electricity demand in the state, but 40% of demand in the peak net load hour. By modeling possible price-responsive load dispatch algorithms and assessing the resulting impacts on both individual bills and the overall grid, we seek to inform policymakers and utilities about the potential benefits and challenges associated with dynamic pricing, and considerations for the design of dynamic pricing tariffs. Additionally, we will explore the cost effectiveness of adopting automation technologies to enable devices to respond more effectively to real-time price signals. This study considers a range of price profiles, accounting for differences across utilities and customer classes, and presents scenarios for dynamic price design via variation in the percentage of total customer electric costs that are allocated dynamically (versus constituting a fixed portion of the hourly volumetric price). We present results focused primarily on 2030, forecasting electricity prices under both low and high-cost scenarios, to inform longer-term tariff design considerations. We design tariffs by starting with 2019 prices that were calculated according to CalFUSE guidance (CPUC, 2022) and that have been used in recent studies; these prices are all-in volumetric rates that vary by utility and are revenue-neutral to each customer class. They are developed by considering six electricity cost components that are allocated hourly based on system load indicators (gross and net load, and wholesale prices). These prices are forecasted to 2030 for low and high cost scenarios, considering recent trends in total electricity costs with and without years of substantial wildfire mitigation investments. These tariffs, which allocate all costs on an hourly basis, are considered our “Full” dynamic tariff design scenario, while two additional scenarios explore allocating a portion of costs as a flat volumetric charge: the “Medium” scenario allocates 50% of revenue dynamically (and keeps 50% flat), while the “Mild” scenario allocates 20% of revenue dynamically. The 20% dynamic allocation on the Mild scenario aims to represent a case where only the marginal operating costs of the grid are included in the dynamic price.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Privacy-preserving Information Security for the Energy Grid of Things

Smart grid infrastructure relies on information exchange between multiple actors in order to ensure system reliability. These actors include but are not limited to smart loads, grid control, and energy management technologies. Further, as information exchange between these actors is susceptible to cyber-attacks, security and privacy issues are indispensable to ensure a reliable and stable grid. This position paper proposes a privacy-preserving, trust-augmented secure scheme for a smart grid implementation.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2020

Sodium Ion Expansion Power Block for Distributed CSP

The Sodium Ion Expansion Power Block for Distributed CSP was a three-plus-one-year effort under the Concentrating Solar Power: Advanced Projects Offering Low LCOE Opportunities (CSP: APOLLO) funding program within the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office. The primary objective of this project is to develop a dual-stage modular sodium thermal electrochemical converter (Na-TEC) heat engine power block, which can be potentially integrated with either a small-scale dish solar or large-scale heliostats and parabolic trough CSP. Na-TEC is a heat engine that generates electricity through the isothermal expansion of sodium ions. The Na-TEC is a closed system that can theoretically achieve conversion efficiencies above 45% when operating between thermal reservoirs at 1150 K and 550 K. However, thermal designs have confined previous single-stage devices to thermal efficiencies below 20%. To mitigate some of these limitations, we consider dividing the isothermal expansion into two stages; one at the evaporator temperature (1150 K) and another at an intermediate temperature (650 K –1050 K). This dual-stage Na-TEC takes advantage of regeneration and reheating, and could be amenable to better thermal management. In light of this, we first designed and developed a thermo-electrochemical model, and thermodynamically demonstrated how the dual-stage device can improve the efficiency by up to 8% points over the best performing single-stage device. We also established an application regime map for the single- and dual-stage Na-TEC in terms of the power density and the total thermal parasitic loss. Moreover, a thermal design of an axisymmetric dual-stage Na-TEC is developed to guide the scale-up and fabrication of sub-components of prototype module. A reduced-order finite-element model is used in conjunction with a Na-TEC thermodynamic model that was developed to determine the total parasitic heat loss of this dual-stage design. A number of simplifications are applied in the reduced-order model to decrease the computational time while maintaining acceptable accuracy. According to this analysis, a maximum efficiency of 29% and a maximum power output of 125 W can be achieved. Ultimately, we were able to demonstrate thermal efficiency improvements of the Na-TEC heat engine from 19% up to 40.3%, in a dual-stage (non-optimized) prototype module that we designed, fabricated, and tested with high temperature stage at 923 K. Furthermore, a cost-performance analysis for this improved dual-stage design was carried out for distributed-CSP systems. A high-level techno-economic analysis (TEA) explores four scenarios where a Na-TEC is used as the heat engine for a distributed-CSP system. Overnight capital cost and levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) are estimated for a system lifetime of 30 years, revealing that overnight capital costs in a range from $3.57 to $17.71 per We are feasible, which equate to LCOEs from 6.9 to 17.2 cents/kWh e -1 . This analysis makes a significant contribution by concurrently quantifying the efficiency and unit costs for a range of multistage configurations, and demonstrating that a Na-TEC may be a promising alternative to Stirling engines for distributed-CSP systems at residential scale of 1–5 kW e .

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

On-Chip Batteries as Distributed Energy Sources in Heterogeneous 2.5D/3D Integrated Circuits

Energy efficiency in digital systems faces challenges due to the constraints imposed by small-scale transistors. Moreover, the growing demand for portable consumer electronics necessitates the use of compact energy sources. To address these challenges, heterogeneous 3D IC technology has emerged as a promising solution for the former. Regarding the latter, we propose the concept of distributed batteries within a heterogeneous 3D IC. This approach involves utilizing multiple smaller batteries with different specifications among different modules of 3D ICs. This approach optimizes performance and overcomes limitations associated with both 3D ICs and conventional power delivery methods. Distributed batteries play a vital role in effectively managing the heat generated by energy sources and modules within a 3D IC. Furthermore, they contribute to achieving a uniform distribution of heat throughout the entire structure, which ultimately ensures the optimal performance of the batteries and modules. The simulation results indicate a 40 percent enhancement in achieving a more even distribution of generated heat. Additionally, the proposed distributed battery techniques improve power delivery, enhance reliability, and enable optimized voltage regulation while improving efficiency. In addition to the primary benefits, alternative configurations of the proposed approach can offer extra energy storage capacity and act as efficient electromagnetic shields, resulting in an impressive reduction of external electromagnetic noises by 60 dB.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2022

DER Cybersecurity Detection and Response Suite

SAND2024-08475O The Distributed Energy Resource (DER) Cybersecurity Detection and Response Suite is a solution for distributed energy resource (DER) systems. The DER Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR) solution that uses alerts from signature- and behavior-based Intrusion Detection Systems are intended to be deployed as bump-in-the-wire (BITW) devices in front of DER equipment. The fielded application would use multiple intrusion detection systems that report data to SOAR to respond to cyberattacks. The suite consists of two software components: • The proactive intrusion detection and mitigation system (PIDMS) secures grid-edge photovoltaic smart inverters and other equipment in distributed energy resource systems. It is a distributed BITW solution; cyber and physical data are automatically processed using network inspection tools and custom machine learning algorithms to detect abnormal events and correlate cyber-physical events. • The Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response for Distributed Energy Resources (SOAR4DER) application ingests data from several intrusion detection systems to quickly block attacks and revert DER systems to good states. Using a collection of intrusion detection system technologies on a BITW device, it incorporates physical and cyber data to detect abnormal and potential malicious behaviors. Multiple SOAR playbooks then use the intrusion detection system data streams to automatically defend the system. SOAR4DER system testing showed detection and response times under 30 seconds for all adversary reconnaissance, denial-of-service attacks, malicious Modbus commands, brute-force logins, and machine-in-the-middle attacks. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525.

Johnson, Jay↗
DOE OSTI2024

Shunt-Connected FACTS and Synchronous Condensers

In recent years, the electric-transmission system has undergone a significant transformation marked by a greater integration of renewable-energy sources like wind and solar, the phasing out of thermal generation plants, and a concerted effort towards electrifying energy consumption. To keep pace with the integration of renewable-energy sources and the escalating demands of industries and households, it is imperative to expand and modernize the existing power infrastructure. These upgrades are essential to maintain grid stability, enhance power delivery, and boost overall efficiency of the system. However, challenges have emerged with the growing complexity of power grids, particularly in the realms of voltage control, transient stability, and power-quality management.

24 - POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2022

Technical Characterization and Benefit Evaluation of 5G-Enabled Grid Data Transport and Applications

This report summarizes the Year 1 work of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s (PNNL’s) 5G Fabricated Resource and Asset Management Encompassment for energy infrastructure (Energy FRAME) project funded by the Department of Energy Office of Science’s Advanced Scientific Computing Research Program. 5G is a breakthrough technology that enables a fully mobile and connected society, and a 5G-enabled digital continuum will be one of the critical foundations for a clean energy economy and grid modernization. In collaboration with PNNL’s Advanced Wireless Communication team and Center for Advanced Technology Evaluation team, the project team has been evaluating the system performance of 5G testbeds in the PNNL 5G Innovation Studio, and has formulated a co-simulation test case of power system transmission, distribution, and communication (T&D&C) networks considering 5G technology and high penetration of distributed energy resources. The methodology developed in the 5G Energy FRAME project can be customized to fit different future grid scenarios to evaluate multiple (dynamic) configurations (computing, sensing, communication, environment) for different stakeholders. In summary, our main technical highlights in project Year 1 are as follows: 1) Technical characterization of 5G standalone architectures, 2) Formulation of co-simulation test case of T&D&C networks embedded with 5G, 3) Initial benefit evaluation of 5G communication platform for grid use cases, and 4) Additional extended discussions on edge computing, artificial intelligence and machine learning, and high-performance computing and cloud computing adoptions. In addition, a collection of system performance data is shared through the publicly available weblink, https://www.pnnl.gov/projects/5g-energy-frame/publications

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2023

Improving snow albedo modeling in the E3SM land model (version 2.0) and assessing its impacts on snow and surface fluxes over the Tibetan Plateau

With the highest albedo of the land surface, snow plays a vital role in Earth's surface energy budget and water cycle. Snow albedo is primarily controlled by snow grain properties (e.g., size and shape) and light-absorbing particles (LAPs) such as black carbon (BC) and dust. The mixing state of LAPs in snow also has impacts on LAP-induced snow albedo reduction and surface radiative forcing (RF). However, most land surface models assume that snow grain shape is spherical and LAPs are externally mixed with the snow grains. This study improves the snow radiative transfer model in the Energy Exascale Earth System Model version 2.0 (E3SM v2.0) Land Model (ELM v2.0) by considering non-spherical snow grain shapes (i.e., spheroid, hexagonal plate, and Koch snowflake) and internal mixing of dust–snow, and it systematically evaluates the impacts on the surface energy budget and water cycle over the Tibetan Plateau (TP). A series of ELM simulations with different treatments of snow grain shape, mixing state of BC–snow and dust–snow, and sub-grid topographic effects (TOP) on solar radiation are performed. Compared with two remote sensing snow products derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, the control ELM simulation (ELM_Control) with the default configurations of spherical snow grain shape, internal mixing of BC–snow, external mixing of dust–snow, and without TOP as well as the ELM simulation with new model features (ELM_New) can both capture the overall snow distribution reasonably. Additionally, ELM_New overall shows smaller biases in snow cover fraction than ELM_Control in spring when snowmelt is important for water management. The estimated LAP-induced RF in ELM_New ranges from 0 to 19.3 W m -2 with the area-weighted average value of 1.5 W m -2 that is comparable to the reported values in existing studies. The Koch snowflake shape, among other non-spherical shapes, shows the largest difference from the spherical shape in spring when snow processes related to the surface energy budget and water cycle have high importance. The impacts of the mixing state of LAP in snow are smaller than the shape effects and depend on snow grain shape. Compared to external mixing, internal mixing of LAP–snow can lead to larger snow albedo reduction and snowmelt, which further affect the surface energy budget and water cycle. The individual contributions of non-spherical snow shape, mixing state of LAP–snow, and local topography impacts on the snow and surface fluxes have different signs and magnitudes, and their combined effects may be negative or positive due to complex and nonlinear interactions among the factors. Overall, the changes in net solar radiation in spring due to individual and combined effects range from -28.6 to 16.9 W m -2 and -29.7 to 12.2 W m -2 , respectively. This study advances understanding of the role of snow grain shape and mixing state of LAP–snow in land surface processes and offers guidance for improving snow simulations and RF estimates in Earth system models under climate change.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

Demonstrating SolarPILOT’s Python API Through Heliostat Optimal Aimpoint Strategy Use Case

SolarPILOT is a software package that generates solar field layouts and characterizes the optical performance of concentrating solar power (CSP) tower systems. SolarPILOT was developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) as a stand-alone desktop application but has also been incorporated into NREL’s1 System Advisor Model (SAM) in a simplified format. Prior means for user interaction with SolarPILOT have included the application’s graphical interface, the SAM routines with limited configurability, and through a built-in scripting language called “LK.” This paper presents a new, full-featured, Python-based application programmable interface (API) for SolarPILOT, which we hereafter refer to as CoPylot. CoPylot provides access to all SolarPILOT’s capabilities to generate and characterize power tower CSP systems seamlessly through Python. Supported capabilities include (i) creating and destroying a model instance with message reporting tools; (ii) accessing and setting any SolarPILOT variable including custom land boundaries for field layouts; (iii) programmatically managing receiver and heliostat objects with varied attributes for systems with multiple receiver or heliostat types; (iv) generating, assigning, and modifying solar field layouts including the ability to set individual heliostat locations, aimpoints, soiling rates, and reflectivity levels; (v) simulating solar field performance; (vi) returning detailed results describing performance of individual heliostats, the aggregate field, and receiver flux distribution; and, (vii) exporting Python-based model instances to multiple file formats. CoPylot enables Python users to perform detailed CSP tower analysis utilizing either the Hermite expansion technique (analytical) or the SolTrace ray-tracing engine. In addition to CoPylot’s functionality, Python users have access to the over 100,000 open-source libraries to develop, analyze, optimize, and visualize power tower CSP research. This enables CSP researchers to perform analysis that was previously not possible through SolarPILOT’s existing interfaces. This paper discusses the capabilities of CoPylot and presents a use case wherein we demonstrate optimal solar field aiming strategies.

41 EE - Solar Energy Technologies Office (EE-4S)↗