Numerical Evaluation on the Thermal Performance of the Solar External Cylinder Receiver using Monte Carlo Ray-Tracing Algorithm

The heat receiver is an essential part of the Concentrating Solar Power plant,directly affecting its operation and safety.In this paper,the Monte Carlo ray-tracing algorithm was introduced to evaluate a 50 MW(e)external cylindrical receiver’s thermal performance.The radiation heat flux concentrated from the heliostats field and the view factors between grids divided from the tubes were both calculated using Monte Carlo ray-tracing algorithm.Besides,an in-house code was developed and verified,including three modules of the view-factor calculation,thermal performance calculation,and thermal stress calculation.It was also employed to investigate the 50 MW(e)receiver,and the detailed 3D profiles of temperature and thermal stress in the receiver were analyzed.It was found that the molten salt was heated from 298℃to 565℃and the tube at the 50 MW(e)receiver’s outlet had a high temperature,while the high thermal stress came out at the receiver’s entrance.Finally,the over-temperature of the receiver was discussed,and an optimization algorithm was introduced.The tube wall temperature and film temperature at the overheated area matched the safety criteria,and the outlet molten salt temperature still reached 563℃after the optimization process,with only 2℃dropped.