Economically feasible solutions in concentrating solar power technology specifically for heliostats – A review

The alarming issue of climate change and the necessity to increase the renewable energy stake has become the driving force for cost reduction measures taken in various renewable technologies. One of the most promising sources of renewable energy, solar energy, can be harnessed most efficiently by heliostat driven solar tower plants that provide multiple benefits like high concentration, storage, etc. and are thoroughly summarised in the text. Efforts are made to clearly state the history of deployment of solar tower plants and their journey in the improvement of various technologies which led to cost reduction by 8–14 %. The review is focused on the heliostat field which constitutes 40 % of the losses incurred by the plant and it covers 2/3rd of the plant land with sharing about 30–50 % of the total capital expenditure of the plant. Also, the cost reduction is categorised into: (a) during R&D and (b) after the design phase. The sub-functions for the R&D phase are heliostat size and shape, structure, field layout and their tracking and control mechanism. While the factors that affect the cost after the design phase are qualification of heliostats, their O&M and manufacturing. A list of existing and upcoming power tower plants is produced as well.