The technical challenges of solar thermal for power generation were discussed by [39, 40]. The authors presented three main challenges and proposed solutions for low conversion efficiency, land limitation, and demand mismatch issues. ... ...
Open challenges for the next future are summarized. Among the diverse technologies for producing clean energy through concentrated solar power, central tower plants are believed to be the most promising in the next years. In these plants a heliostat field collects and redirects solar irradiance towards a central receiver where a fluid is heated up.
All the issues commented above make solar power towers, among other concentrated solar power technologies, a promising technology with commercial possibilities in the mid term. Better performance and cheaper electricity compared with other options seems within reach.
Solar Power Towers (SPT), also denominated Central Receiver Systems (CRS), are set up by a heliostats field which reflects solar radiation into a central receiver located atop a tower. These heliostats track the Sun with two axis. They are also considered as point focus collectors.
Solar power towers have the potential for storing much more heat than parabolic trough collectors . Nevertheless, some key challenges must be addressed in order to become a real option for storing energy in large power capacity plants with low electricity costs in the near future .
Conclusions As concluding remarks from this review it can be said that on the whole, it is clear that there is still margin for innovation in concentrated solar power plants, particularly solar power towers.