SPS: Projet d'une minicentrale pilote électro-thermo-solaire de 10 KWe.

This report presents the field tests synthesis of a small Hybrid Solar Power Plant integrating three technologies : hermetic volumetric scroll expander - generators working with two superposed Organic Rankine Cycles (ORC) a cogeneration group composed by a Diesel engine coupled with an asynchronous generator with heat recovery at two levels of temperature and a solar field made of plate concentrators. This type of hybrid power plant is mainly intended for rural electrification purposes in developing countries or cogeneration in applications like heating swimming pools in other countries. After having been tested separately, the three main components of the plant (Concentrators, ORC and cogeneration group) have been coupled in a field on the EPFL campus in Lausanne (Switzerland) in order to allow experimentation of the entire installation with real conditions. The general concept is promising, thermal cycles being quite robust and adapting well to the very variable solar conditions, and this for the two working modes (Solar and Hybrid). In terms of performances, results have been encouraging, even if improvements are still necessary. Expanders worked at part load, the concentrating surface having been under-dimensioned and there are no doubts results could be achieved with better adaptation between these two elements. In hybrid mode, fuel energy was transformed up to 40.5 into electricity, opening good perspectives for the future including with other cogeneration technologies like micro gas turbines or medium to high temperature fuel cells.