Solar Boiler Links and Info

[Phil Timmons]

Hi, I figured I would start this entry to compile anyone's/everyone's information regarding Solar Boilers -- including everything from little homebrew ones to the biggie-sized Govt. sponsored super boilers.

So I guess my request is that anyone who feels like it, please post any info and/or links to other information on Solar Boilers.  I want to try to use the information to create a test-bed of ideas for low (low, low) cost home/shop built ones.  

Thanks,

Phil Timmons

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Status of our home/shop built boiler -- I have enough mirrors collected to get started and a couple partners in the project.  As we start to test some different hardware/mirror/tracker configurations, I will post those methods and results in different diary thread.  

I plan on building it up in modules/pieces, and improving the methods and design on each step.  Start with something like 25 ft^2, then 100 ft^2, next 400, and then eventually about 3000 ft^2 -- the size of a typical house or shop/barn roof.

[Kwazai]

this one is the best I've found, the rest only discuss it-these people are actually doing it.

http://www.lightlink.com/francis/stevenhomepage.html

L8r

Mike

[Kwazai]

there is a link somewhere on this site to the tesla turbine group and they also have one with a lot of info on fabbing it. don't have the link handy.

[BigBreaker]

Seems like several people/groups have hit on the same DIY solar thermal plan: Direct steam generation using parabolic trough collectors and using that steam to drive a tesla turbine with the exhaust providing hot water.  It's sort of a co-gen concept.

I have also though about using propane or butane as the working fluid.  It doesn't corrode and you can use the pressure in the system to tweak the vaporization temperature - especially to make it lower.  The working fluid and storage tank can also double as your fuel if the sky is cloudy.  You'd be surprised how little you need and how safe it can be.  Lots of refrigerators in Europe use hydrocarbons like propane as the refrigerant.

Anyone else kicking this around?

[Phil Timmons]

Here is the Tesla folks >>>

http://phoenixnavigation.com/ptbc/home.htm

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Here is the Tesla folks' forum >>>

http://phoenixnavigation.com/disc2_toc.htm#00000041

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Here is a concentrator / tracker design with a lot of engineering details, as well.

I am fairly fond of this guy's approach and attitude >>>

http://www.ida.net/users/tetonsl/solar/solarhom.htm

He uses simple mirror tiles that can easily be reconfigured to try different designs.

[Phil Timmons]

I really like your propane idea.  Thanks.  Might run some on our test equipment.

For add-ons in the co-gen area, yeah, I like the hot water for domestic and building heat, and we are looking at making stills (as in distillary) for  distilled water and alcohol production.

Had considered freon but it seemed too big a PITA.  

We put up a tracker last month . .  4 of them actually.  About 225 ft^2 each, for solar cell arrays.  They work with freon outrigger tubes that sit in the Sun and heat up and shift gas/liquid back and forth as weight to re-balance the trackers to track the Sun.  

We were chatting about NH4 systems, too.  I used to do air conditioning/refrigeration work and played with some of that, but am not so keen on that for leaks, etc.  The idea of highly pressured hot ammonia blowing out a leak does not excite me.   But it might be good to use as a co-gen absorbtion cooling system on the back-end of a boiler.  

[paradigmdesign]

Couldn't these solar heaters be used to make electrolizing water much cheaper?  I thought I read somwehre that the big elecrtolizers actually crack steam, because it is more efficent than cracking water.  I will look for a link.

[Gordy]

If you want lots of links and info goto http://redrok.com  .

He has info on solar consintraters, heliostats, trackers (one of which he builds and sells), plans for parbolic dishes and troughs, ect...

"cracking steam"

I saw one web site, they were consentrating solar down to about the size of a dime, and feeding it through a thick quarts window to get 5,000F. Then inject water, flash to steam and crack. Once cracked the H2 and O were drawn off though metal nozzles, one with a + electric the other - . One is suposed to atract O the other H2.

Gordy

[BigBreaker]

Distilling and ammonia absorbsion are both things I have looked into as well.  You really need to troll for anything that can run off waste heat, because you make so much of it and need good "sinks" for your heat engine.

I love the concept of ethanol production because it becomes the fuel for any backup generator you need and that reduces the need for batteries.  Ethanol also vaporizes at a lower temperature than water and is a non-conductive/corrosive hydrocarbon so it has some great advantages as a working fluid.