Increasing the output power of steam plants with solar-based preheaters

Steam power plants are a major component of almost any energy matrices of the world in all of which the share of renewable energy is to higher in the near future. Today, solar energy technologies have become mature and well-popular in many countries, especially well-developed countries, to be an active part of the energy systems. In this study, solar parabolic trough collectors are proposed to provide a bed for increasing the efficiency of a steam power plant. In this system, the solar unit offers a variable heating duty at the highest demand time for the system in order for increasing the power output of the Rankine cycle. The steam power plant is designed for a case study in Denmark. The results of simulations on the performance of the solar-enhanced steam plant are presented and discussed.