{"title":"Optical performance analysis of small-scale heliostats field layout of solar power tower system in Malaysia","authors":"Zeshan Aslam, Syed Ihtsham Ul-Haq Gilani, Taib Iskandar Mohamad, Masdi Muhammad, Kehinde Temitope Alao","doi":"10.1016/j.nexus.2025.100489","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Solar power tower (SPT) systems are one of the promising technologies for concentrated solar energy collection efficiently. This study presents the optical performance study of a small-scale heliostat field layout developed at Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Malaysia. Ray-tracing simulations via Tonatiuh software were conducted to analyze the receiver's solar concentration. MATLAB was employed to quantify the optical losses due to cosine loss, shading, blocking, spillage, and reflectivity. The simulation results showed a very good agreement between Tonatiuh and MATLAB with a maximum deviation of 7 %. The power concentration was maximum between 11 AM and 3 PM, with the peak at 1 PM. The heliostat that was due north of the tower had the highest cosine efficiency and power. The optical efficiency of the system varied throughout the year and was at its maximum of 60.94 % in December. The results show the effect of heliostat field configuration and optical loss management on field performance and provide insights for small-scale SPT field optimization under equatorial conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":93548,"journal":{"name":"Energy nexus","volume":"19 ","pages":"Article 100489"},"PeriodicalIF":8.0000,"publicationDate":"2025-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Energy nexus","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772427125001305","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"ENERGY & FUELS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Solar power tower (SPT) systems are one of the promising technologies for concentrated solar energy collection efficiently. This study presents the optical performance study of a small-scale heliostat field layout developed at Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Malaysia. Ray-tracing simulations via Tonatiuh software were conducted to analyze the receiver's solar concentration. MATLAB was employed to quantify the optical losses due to cosine loss, shading, blocking, spillage, and reflectivity. The simulation results showed a very good agreement between Tonatiuh and MATLAB with a maximum deviation of 7 %. The power concentration was maximum between 11 AM and 3 PM, with the peak at 1 PM. The heliostat that was due north of the tower had the highest cosine efficiency and power. The optical efficiency of the system varied throughout the year and was at its maximum of 60.94 % in December. The results show the effect of heliostat field configuration and optical loss management on field performance and provide insights for small-scale SPT field optimization under equatorial conditions.
Energy nexusEnergy (General), Ecological Modelling, Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment, Water Science and Technology, Agricultural and Biological Sciences (General)