The project execution allowed the consortium to obtain several new elements beyond the state-of-the-art for understanding the technical and business potential of the hybrid thermionic converter in the CSP field.
Specifically, the progress achieved by TECSAS can be resumed in the following points:
• A simulation tool is now available to estimate the realistic conversion efficiency of TECSAS technology as a function of the operating conditions and applications.
• A developed novel thermionic converter/thermal storage prototype setup is installed and ready for further evaluations of new technological advances.
• The developed novel techno-economic analytical model is now functional to estimate LCOE, ROI, and payback period for TECSAS technology as a function of different parameters.
If we consider the market assessment, the analyses carried out during the project demonstrate competitive values of LCOE and high ROI values, with sustainable CAPEX for the different considered solutions. The economic competitiveness of TECSAS lies mainly in the next main factors:
1) high conversion efficiency (35% - 45% depending on the configuration);
2) small active receiver surface compared to the surface of PV;
3) lower occupation of ground space than PV for the same amount of energy produced, due to the higher efficiency, as well as possibility of easily suspending the system from the ground.
4) capability to be easily dismantled and transported to a new area, without the risk of damaging the active part;
5) versatility of the technology, leading to two different products (all electricity, or electricity and heat) to be produced and commercialized depending on the customer application.
TECSAS is a strategic opportunity for the EU industry and can become a new asset for the EU since it is based on a technology which does not use silicon cells (the PV module production is concentrated in Asia, mainly in China, which holds a share of 66% vs 3% of Europe) and it could store part of the energy collected using fused salts, reducing the necessity for batteries, the production of which is again concentrated in Asian countries (mostly China, India, and Japan). Additionally, TECSAS is the ideal concept to provide energy to the underdeveloped energy communities in Southern Europe by exploiting the renewable resources, thus reducing the use of fossil fuels and improving the resilience of the local grid, as well as developing areas currently poorly served by the national electricity grid. Finally, small-scale CSP plants, based on the concept of scalability and modularity, make the technology more socially tolerable, overcoming the societal approval issues occurred in the past for the conventional CSP technology.
The project allowed to identify two possible exploitable aspects:
a. the feasibility of a vertical structure development thanks to the use of an innovative Bi-Axial Fresnel optical concentrating system, make the technology compatible with crop cultivation (e.g. potato, lettuce, or carrot) at the base of the TECSAS module. This is of relevance for smart agriculture, where TECSAS can be used to supply electricity and heat to greenhouses, with smaller occupation area than PV.
b. The high robustness of the TECSAS technology and its capability to manage high radiation fluxes and to operate at high temperature opened up the route towards aerospace applications such as lunar exploration to supply rovers with laser beaming technique.
