US 12,013,154 B2
Method and system for determining a state of a solar-thermal parabolic trough power plant
Philipp Christoph Prahl, Grenzach (DE)
Assigned to DEUTSCHES ZENTRUM FÜR LUFT-UND RAUMFAHRT E.V., Bonn (DE)
Appl. No. 18/028,914
Filed by DEUTSCHES ZENTRUM FÜR LUFT-UND RAUMFAHRT E.V., Bonn (DE)
PCT Filed Sep. 15, 2021, PCT No. PCT/EP2021/075331
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Mar. 28, 2023,
PCT Pub. No. WO2022/069228, PCT Pub. Date Apr. 7, 2022.
Claims priority of application No. 10 2020 125 609.4 (DE), filed on Sep. 30, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0332803 A1, Oct. 19, 2023
Int. Cl. F24S 40/90 (2018.01); F24S 23/74 (2018.01)
CPC F24S 40/90 (2018.05) [F24S 23/74 (2018.05)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for determining a state of a solar thermal field having a plurality of rows, arranged in parallel in a transverse direction of the field, of parabolic trough collectors arranged in succession and having a reflecting reflector surface, which each have a focal point line, in each of which at least one absorber tube is arranged, along their longitudinal extension, wherein at least the following steps are carried out
positioning at least one recording device for capturing recordings at least in the infrared range at a predetermined height above the field;
creating recordings of images of absorber tubes, which are reflected by the surface of the respective parabolic trough collectors, by way of the recording device at least in the infrared range, wherein the recording device is moved in a transverse direction transversely to the longitudinal extension over the parabolic trough collectors and the recordings are taken in the form of coherent image sequences by the recording device;
determining an intensity of the thermal radiation of the respective absorber tube by radiometric evaluation of the recordings of the images of absorber tubes reflected by the surface of the respective parabolic trough collectors, at least in the infrared range, wherein at least the following steps are carried out for the radiometric evaluation of the recordings in the visible range and/or in the infrared range:
reading in temperature data of the heat transfer fluid at a point in time of the recordings;
determining a position of the recording device relative to the respective parabolic trough collector;
creating orthoimages of an aperture surface of the respective parabolic trough collector from the recordings in the visible range and/or in the infrared range; and
determining the geometry of the respective parabolic trough collector, and tracking of the respective parabolic trough collector according to the position of the sun from the position of the recording device and the orthoimages.