1
Company Overview
March 2014
Pilot plant in Ait-Baha, Morocco Operated by Ciments du Maroc
(Italcementi Group)
Under construction
2
Company overview
Airlight Energy is a Swiss private
company that supplies proprietary
solar technologies
for large-scale production of
electricity and thermal energy, and for
energy storage
First CSP Pilot plant in Ait-Baha (Morocco)
3
A new paradigm in concentrating solar technologies
Our 5 major innovations
Air-based receiver
Fiber-reinforced concrete structure
Film mirrors
ETFE pneumatic enclosure
Packed-bed thermal energy storage
Operate up to 650C
Non-polluting fluid
Durable, cheap, locally
available material
Simple manufacturing,
Low cost per aperture area
No dust and low humidity
inside the enclosure
Total water recovery
Cheap, locally available
material
Low thermal losses
Competitors
X Potentially polluting and expensive thermal fluids
X Expensive construction material
X Expensive construction material
X Wasting of water
X Potentially polluting materials
Oil / molten salts receiver
Aluminium structure
Glass mirrors
No cover
Oil/molten salts storage
7
We are substituting steel with concrete
Durable: 60 years lifetime
Cheap construction material
Locally available
Increased stiffness, better focusing, greater concentration
Extensive use of local workforce and resources due to in situ manufacturing
Anti-seismic mechanism able to withstand extreme seismic events
Few big pieces allow a simple modular construction Pre-cast fiber-reinforced concrete structure:
optimized beam with accurate shape design
8
Better cleaning and protection thanks to pneumatic enclosure The mirrors and receiver are protected inside a pneumatic enclosure with a controlled atmosphere, the external film is made of highly transparent ETFE
ETFE is a widely available industrial product, no production bottlenecks
Greater resistance than glass against scratching
No dust and low humidity inside the enclosure
Easy to wash and total recovery of washing water
Film assembled by ALE in Biasca and shipped in reels
Did you know that
ETFE (Ethylene tetrafluoroethylene) is a flourine based plastic.
After their useful life as pneumatic enclosure for CSP plants
the ETFE foils can be recycled in the agricultural industry
as greenhouse coverings
R&D test facility, Biasca, Switzerland
9
Pneumatic polyester foil mirror instead of glass or aluminum
Mirror foils are kept in shape by differential pressures, linear parabolic configuration
Large aperture (9.7 m with 2 mirrors)
High optical efficiency
High concentration (60 suns average)
Simple manufacturing
Low cost per aperture area
No production bottlenecks
Did you know that
the mirror foils are made from
stretched polyethylene terephthalate
(PET) a material commonly used in the
packaging industry P2
R4=6.78m
R3=7.80m
R1=12,20m R2=9,52m
10
With air as thermal vector we can reach up to 600C operating temperature
Air as heat transfer fluid is used in a specifically developed receiver, with high performance low emissivity
shields insulation, inlet and outlet on the same side which minimize piping, secondary trumpet mirror for
spillage minimization and optical reconcentration
High operating temperatures, up to 600 C
Use of conventional materials and no need for high-tech coatings or vacuum insulation
Easy to manufacture
Inexpensive and non-polluting thermal fluid, easy to integrate in existing processes
11
Cost effective solution for thermal energy storage using concrete and gravels
Air as a heat transfer fluid makes it possible to create a simple storage that uses a closed concrete container
filled with stone gravel
Continuous production, compensating intermittency of sun availability
Low thermal losses in the range of 1% every 24h
Highly competitive production costs
Robust, fail-safe technology
Locally available construction materials
Non-polluting, non-corrosive requirements
Simple manufacturing
No maintenance required
Did you know that
this is a simple, proven and effective technology
first patented in 1929
Detail of Ait-Baha pilot plant, Morocco
12
CSP Booster plant layout and integration with existing process
Schematic example for CSP plant, Ait-Baha, Morocco
14
#
Click to edit Master text styles Second level Third level Fourth level Fifth level
AIRLIGHT ENERGY Holding - Biasca - Switzerland
www.airlightenergy.com
Top Related