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Solar Gas Turbine Systems

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From Madhlopa, A., Okoroigwe, E., 2017. Solar Gas Turbine Systems. In: Abraham, M.A.
(Ed.), Encyclopedia of Sustainable Technologies. Elsevier, pp. 377–388.
ISBN: 9780128046777
Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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Solar Gas Turbine Systems

Amos Madhlopa and Edmund Okoroigwe, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
Ó 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Acronyms
CCGT Combined cycle gas turbine ORC Organic Rankine cycle
CCSGT Combined cycle solar gas turbine PDC Parabolic dish concentrators
CLCGT Closed cycle gas turbine PTC Parabolic trough concentrator
CLCSGT Closed cycle solar gas turbine RC Rankine cycle
CSP Concentrated solar power RE Renewable energy
DNI Direct normal irradiance SAR Steam to air ratio
EC External combustion SCLCGT Semiclosed cycle gas turbine
GEF Global environment facility SGT Solar gas turbine
GT Gas turbine SISGT Steam injection solar gas turbine
IC Internal combustion ST Solar tower
ISCC Integrated solar combined cycle TIT Turbine inlet temperature
LCOE Levelized cost of electricity h Enthalpy (J)
LFR Linear Fresnel reflector LHV Lower heating value (kJ kg
1 K
1)
LG Landfill gas S Entropy (J K
1)
M&O Maintenance and operation T Temperature (K)
OCGT Open cycle gas turbine

Introduction

Energy plays a critical role in the social and economic development of every nation, and it can be derived from renewable and
nonrenewable resources. Renewable energy (RE) resources replenish themselves through natural mechanisms, and have low carbon
emissions. However, most of the primary energy on a global scale comes from fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas), as shown in
Fig. 1, which are nonrenewable and have higher associated carbon and other undesirable emissions. In view of this, efforts are being
made to augment the production of energy from RE resources.
The energy production chain comprises different stages: fuel acquisition, fuel processing, plant construction, power generation
(and transmission), and plant decommissioning, with a supply chain of plant components. These production stages may entail
social, economic, and environmental impacts (Fig. 2). It is known that economic growth is unsustainable if it demands a lot of

Fig. 1 Fuel shares (%) of the world total primary energy supply in 2013. Other sources of energy include geothermal, heat, solar, and wind.
Source: IEA (2015). Key world statistics. International Energy Agency (IEA). http://www.iea.org.

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378 Solar Gas Turbine Systems

Fig. 2 Social, economic, and environmental impacts (Ien) at various stages of the energy production chain. The supply chain of plant components
involves raw material acquisition and processing, and manufacturing of the components, with associated social, economic, and environmental
impacts (Ipc).

energy, generates significant pollutants, and negatively affects public health (Abdallah et al., 2013). Most of the electricity in the
world is currently produced by thermal power plants, which operate on the principles of thermodynamics.

Thermodynamics
Thermodynamics is generally the study of energy, its change from one form to another, and its relation to the states of matter. In
this regard, the first law of thermodynamics describes the conservation of energy for a given system while the second law of ther-
modynamics is concerned with the quality of energy, and the maximum useful work in a process is called exergy or irreversibility.
Entropy flow in an open system and irreversibility can also be used to describe the second law of thermodynamics. In the third
law of thermodynamics, the change in the entropy of a system approaches zero as the temperature of the system nears absolute
zero. This law indicates that the entropy of a pure material is zero at absolute zero. These laws assist in the thermodynamic anal-
ysis of power plants and other heat engines. Researchers employ energy and exergy to evaluate the performance of thermal tech-
nologies. Among other parameters, the energy efficiency of a technology is commonly used in decision-making to deploy the
technology.
Energy transformation in a heat engine is exothermic (heat release), which is utilized to produce mechanical work. For combus-
tion engines, the burning of fuel yields the required thermal energy to drive the engine, and these engines are of two types, internal
combustion (IC) and external combustion (EC) engines. An IC engine is a heat engine in which the combustion of fuel takes place
with an oxidizer (usually air) in a combustor, which forms part of the flow circuit of the working fluid. In many combustion engines,
the working fluid commonly undergoes a thermodynamic cycle which comprises a series of processes (such as adiabatic, isothermal,
and isobaric processes) and the fluid returns to its original thermodynamic state. Examples of IC engine cycles include the Brayton
(also known as the gas turbine), Otto, and Diesel cycles. An EC engine is a heat engine in which the working fluid is heated by fuel
combustion in an external combustor, and heat is transferred to the working fluid through a heat exchanger. Some of the EC cycles
are the Rankine (steam) and Stirling cycles. For electricity generation, the solar gas turbine (SGT) is gaining popularity where solar
energy is integrated into the Brayton cycle for increased efficiency and power output.

Fundamentals of Gas Turbines

A gas turbine (GT) is an IC engine that utilizes air as the conventional working fluid. Basically, air is inlet into a compressor where it
is pressurized before flowing into a combustion chamber. Then, the compressed air is mixed with fuel and combustion of the fuel–
air mixture takes place in the combustion chamber while the expansion (exhaust) takes place in the turbine section, resulting in the
development of mechanical power by the expanding air. In the GT, the working fluid maintains the same gaseous phase throughout
the cycle.
Gas turbines come in various forms and capacities, and their classification can be complex but thermodynamically all GTs fall
into three main operating categories as depicted in Fig. 3: the open cycle gas turbine (OCGT), semiclosed cycle gas turbine
(SCLCGT), and closed cycle gas turbine (CLCGT), which can be combined with other thermodynamic bottoming cycles, such as
the Rankine cycle (RC) and organic Rankine cycle (ORC), to form a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT). Recovery of the exhaust
heat to drive a steam turbine increases the overall thermal efficiency to about 60% (Poullikkas 2005). Figs. 4–7 are schematic repre-
sentations of basic OCGT, SCLCGT, CLCGT, and CCGT configurations.

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Fig. 3 Classification of gas turbines based on thermodynamic cycles.

Fig. 4 Open cycle gas turbine: (A) Schematic representation of system and (B) T–S diagram.

Gas Turbine Fuels

There is a variety of fuels that can be used in gas turbine power generation. Fuel type, source, and composition are important factors
to consider when selecting fuels, although aeroderivative and heavy duty gas turbines have a special feature of wide fuel flexibility
(El_Hossaini, 2013). Conventionally, gas turbines operate on high calorific fuels such as natural gas (lower heating value,
LHV ¼ 39–46 MJ kg
1) and number 2 diesel fuel (LHV ¼ 42 MJ kg
1), but modern gas turbines are being developed to operate
on a variety of fuels (El_Hossaini, 2013).
Owing to the environmental and energy-security issues, alternative means of driving the GT technology are being developed,
including biofuels. Gupta et al. (2010) reviewed biofuels for propulsion of gas turbines. It was observed that gas turbines develop
a steady flame which renders them flexible to run on biofuels. Although combustibility has been demonstrated at laboratory and
pilot scales and much research carried out on biofuels and their blends with fossil hydrocarbons for gas turbines, combustion diffi-
culties such as atomization and emission of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) remain prohibiting problems at the present gas turbine
combustion features (Gupta et al., 2010). Nonetheless, the formation of NOx is inevitable due to the combustion of fuel at high
temperatures expected in gas turbine combustors (Bergthorson and Thomson 2015). In addition, other thermodynamic conditions
in the combustion chamber such as primary air temperature, equivalence ratio and LHV of fuel, fuel temperature, and composition
affect the emission of NOx and other pollutants from gas turbines (Seljak et al., 2016). Cleaning and refining of biofuels may be
required alongside calibration of fuel injection and combustion systems for GTs to accept a wide range of biofuels. Another prom-
ising alternative means of driving the GT technology is the use of solar energy. However, information is scarce on the development
of SGT systems, taking into account their thermodynamic, social, economic, and environmental aspects.

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Fig. 5 Semiclosed cycle gas turbine: (a) schematic representation of the system and (b) T-S diagram. G ¼ generator, HRSG ¼ Heat recovery steam
generator.

Fig. 6 Simple closed cycle gas turbine: (A) system and (B) T–S diagram.

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Fig. 7 Combined cycle gas turbine system with a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) and generators (G).

Solar Integration In Gas Turbine Systems

Concentrated Solar Power
Concentrated solar power (CSP) is a technology that generates electricity by using thermal energy from solar radiation, which is
focused on a small area (line or point). Solar radiation coming from the sun is reflected by a large area of mirrors onto the small
area (receiver) where it is converted to heat, which is then collected by a working fluid and employed to drive a gas or steam
engine cycle for electricity generation. The concentration of solar radiation on a small area enables the achievement of high
temperatures of the working fluid, thereby rendering the CSP technology to be thermodynamically comparable with conven-
tional power plants.
At present, four CSP technologies are frequently deployed in the power sector: linear Fresnel reflector (LFR), parabolic dish
concentrators (PDC), parabolic trough concentrators (PTC), and solar tower (ST). Zhang et al. (2013) reported that PTC and
LFR systems operate within lower temperature ranges than ST and PDC, with the PDC technology being capable of achieving up
to 1500 C. This variation in operational temperature range could be attributed to differences in the values of solar concentration
ratio. The PTC and LFR technologies have low thermodynamic efficiencies compared to the ST and PDC technologies. Nevertheless,
PTC and LFR also find application in the gas turbine technology.
SGT systems are driven by CSP which heats up the compressed air before it enters the combustion chamber. SGTs also include
systems driven directly by solar heated air fed into the turbine which bypasses the combustion chamber when the solar receiver
outlet temperature is equal to the required turbine inlet temperature (TIT). This implies that solar radiation can be the only source
(or hybridized with other sources) of heat to drive the GT cycle. In the hybrid system, solar energy can be integrated in series or
parallel with the combustion chamber. The PTC technology can be exploited in the series configuration to preheat the working fluid
before it enters the combustion chamber.
It is also possible to integrate solar energy with the gas cycle via steam injection into the combustion chamber. In this config-
uration, solar radiation generates steam, which is then injected into the combustion chamber for the augmentation of output power
and for the abatement of NOx (Poullikkas 2005). Gas turbines are designed to take up steam up to a certain limit. A schematic repre-
sentation of the basic configurations of the SGT is presented in Fig. 8.

Hybrid Solar Gas Turbine System

In a hybrid SGT system, solar radiation is used to augment the energy input to the system (Fig. 9). This can be achieved through
a series or parallel hybrid configuration. In the former configuration, the working fluid (air) flows from the compressor C to valve v2
to solar receiver SR to valve v3 to combustion chamber CC to mixer M and then to turbine T. Biofuel or fossil fuel may be added to
the air in the combustion chamber. This configuration is applicable during days of low insolation or in regions where direct normal
irradiance (DNI) is low but enough to sustain a CSP. During days of high insolation or in regions with high levels of DNI, the
parallel configuration may be applied where the air from compressor C splits into two streams through valves v1 and v2 and recom-
bine in the mixer before entering the turbine.
A gas turbine, such as the one depicted in Fig. 9, needs to be fitted with a sensitive and efficient control system to regulate the
operation of the system under transient weather conditions. A major advantage of hybrid SGTs is the optimization of the available
fuel. During days of high insolation, solar energy is fully used, with fossil or another fuel being exploited at night or when the level
of insolation is low.
For a GT system driven by solar energy only, the ST technology is most suitable because of its capability to achieve high temper-
ature output from the receiver. Spelling et al. (2012) reported TIT values of up to 1523 K for a hybrid GT using a ST technology.
Nevertheless, Turchi and Ma (2014) have proposed two innovative concepts where a gas turbine can be integrated with PTC
and salt-heat transfer fluid through systems. Other CSP technologies, such as the PDC and LFC, can be applied to preheat the
compressed air before it enters the combustion chamber for top-up heating to achieve the required TIT.

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Fig. 8 Basic configurations of: (A) solar-only, (B) series hybridization, (C) parallel hybridization, and (D) steam-injected gas turbine.

Progress in SGT Systems

Thermodynamic Performance
Thermodynamic factors influence the economic competitiveness of a thermal power plant. So, Chacartegui et al. (2011) investigated
the thermodynamic performance of three different gas turbine cycles: two closed cycles with carbon dioxide (CO2) as a working
fluid and a combined cycle which comprised a topping CO2 gas turbine and a bottoming ORC. They found that the efficiency
of these cycles was competitive with that of conventional technologies. Ferraro and Marinelli (2012) analyzed the thermodynamic
performance of solar power plants with PTC and gas turbine. This variety of plants performed very well despite their simple design.
A dynamic model to study the thermodynamic performance of a solar-only gas turbine was developed by Spelling et al. (2012).
They reported energy efficiency values of 18%–24%, which are comparable with those of a conventional power plant. Al-
Sulaiman and Atif (2015) compared the performance of five supercritical CO2 Brayton cycles (simple, regenerative, recompression,
precompression, and split Brayton cycles) integrated with an ST in Saudi Arabia. They found that the recompression Brayton cycle

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Fig. 9 Model of hybrid solar gas turbine: C, compressor; T, turbine; CC, combustion chamber; E, exhaust; M, mixer; G, generator; SR, solar receiver;
v1, v2 and v3, control valves.

had the highest efficiency (52% observed in summer). All these cycles were driven by solar energy only. Other studies have exam-
ined solar-fuel hybrid power plants.
Klein et al. (2015) analyzed the performance of a hybrid SGT with recuperation and thermal storage. They found that the system
could achieve a storage efficiency of 88% and utilization factor of 85% when solar energy was hybridized with fossil fuels. Zhu et al.
(2015) studied the thermodynamic effect of solar addition to a combined cycle power plant driven by natural gas. Their results
demonstrated that solar integration increased the power plant efficiency, power output, and the efficiency of the bottoming steam
cycle without a storage subsystem. Nevertheless, it was suggested that when the solar fraction is fairly significant, the plant perfor-
mance might deviate greatly from its fossil-only state. The effect of ambient temperature was observed to decrease the steam cycle
efficiency while its boosting factor was increased with ambient temperature. Another benefit of the solar thermal addition to the
combined cycle systems is the reduced energy penalty (additional energy required to maintain the power plant’s output capacity
without burning carbon emitting fuel) in natural gas combined cycle.
Semprini et al. (2016) investigated the performance of a micro gas turbine integrated with PDC and recuperation under solar-
only and solar-fossil fuel hybrid modes of operation. Their findings showed that a moderate share of fossil fuels (gas and diesel)
increased the mean efficiency of the system and annual yield (compared to the solar-only mode). However, the carbon footprint of
the hybrid system increased with the share of fossil fuels, thereby rendering it less competitive against conventional power systems.
A model for predicting the seasonal thermodynamic performance of a hybrid closed cycle solar gas turbine (CLCSGT) was devel-
oped by Santos et al. (2016). The hybridization configuration was serial and the system could function with and without recuper-
ation of exhaust heat. Natural gas was used as a fuel in the combustion chamber. They found that a recuperative plant operating in
the hybrid mode has a good potential of providing a stable power output. As expected, the highest fuel saving is observed during
summer time when insolation is abundant (Fig. 10). In the nonrecuperative mode, the turbine outlet temperature was high (about
890 K) and independent of the seasons. Clearly, hybridization assists in overcoming the challenge of the intermittency of solar radi-
ation. In the recuperative mode, the temperature of the working fluid, after the recuperation process, varied between 650 and 675 K
throughout the seasons, which is still relatively high and therefore has the potential for driving a bottoming cycle (such as the RC).
Ultimately, the recuperation and bottoming-cycle processes boost the overall efficiency of the plant, and can therefore contribute to
the reduction of the quantity of fuel required to produce the same amount of electricity, thereby enhancing the sustainability of the
technology.
Biofuel is one of the RE sources with the potential to displace fossil fuels. However, few studies have investigated the thermo-
dynamic performance of solar–biofuel hybrid systems. Cameretti et al. (2015) modeled the thermodynamic performance of
a hybrid solar–biogas OCGT power plant with recuperation. Their analysis confirmed the benefits of fuel saving and the rise in
the availability of thermal output. They also observed that the correct combustion process took place under different conditions,
which were driven by the variations in the solar irradiance. There was a decline in the major pollutants emitted by the plant.
Steam injection has also been explored to increase the efficiency of a power plant. Selwynraj et al. (2014) have reported solar to
electricity efficiency values of 11.5%–17.0% for a hybrid solar power plant simulated under Indian conditions. In addition, it has
been found that the total exergy destruction in a steam injection solar gas turbine (SISGT) increases with steam to air ratio (SAR) and
TIT, while the exergetic efficiency increases in the range of 40.0%–54.2% (Selwynraj et al., 2015a). A range of values of the efficiency
of the SGT have been reported: 11.5%–55.5% (Selwynraj et al., 2014; Prosin et al., 2015). There are some improvements to the
thermodynamic efficiency of the CLCSGT when CO2 is used in the supercritical state.
Different studies have investigated ways of improving the thermodynamic performance of the Brayton cycle. There is a general
agreement that the combined cycle solar gas turbine (CCSGT) exhibits a higher thermal efficiency compared to single cycles. The
Brayton–Rankine cycle is usually referred to as the conventional combined cycle, with reported thermal efficiency of up to 60%
(Poullikkas 2005). This indicates that the CCSGT can contribute to the sustainable provision of energy through diminished use
of fuel to produce the same amount of electricity. Nonetheless, a review conducted by Jamel et al. (2013) revealed that only 3

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384 Solar Gas Turbine Systems

Fig. 10 Variation of fuel saving (%) with season for operational modes with and without recuperation. Source: Santos, M. J., Merchán, R. P.,
Medina, A. and Hernández, A. C. (2016). Seasonal thermodynamic prediction of the performance of a hybrid solar gas-turbine power plant. Energy
Conversion and Management 115, 89–102.

out of 16 main studies on the integrated solar combined cycle (ISCC) system focused on the SGT system. In other words, limited
work has been done on the CCSGT.

Socio-Economic Performance
Knowledge about the socioeconomic viability of a project is an important factor in decision-making to invest in the project. Even if
the performance of a technology is thermodynamically satisfactory, its exploitation is also influenced by social and economic
factors. So, one of the drivers of RE is to create jobs (at different stages of the energy production chain). In this vein, Wei et al.
(2010) developed a model for analyzing the rate of job creation in the power sector in the United States of America. Their findings
on the intensity of employment in the thermal power plants are presented in Fig. 11. It is observed that landfill gas (LG) has the
highest rate of employment, which is interesting considering the fact that gas turbines can be driven by biogas.
For CSP, most of the jobs are created during the manufacturing and installation phases. Unlike the manufacturing process, instal-
lation is an once-off phase, which means that importation of plant components would reduce the number of jobs created at local
level. Nevertheless, the maintenance and operation (M&O) activity lasts longer and its unit is Jobs MWh- 1. This indicates that, for
M&O, the quantity of jobs created would increase with the capacity of the plant. Behrens et al. (2016) studied the social, economic,
and environmental impacts of augmenting the share of RE in the energy mix of Portugal over the period 2000–2010. The

Fig. 11 Job creation factors for different thermal power plants. BM, biomass; CL, coal; GEOT, geothermal; JY, job-year; LG, landfill gas; NG, natural
gas; NUC, nuclear; STE, solar thermal. Source: Wei, M., Patadia, S., Kammena, D. M. (2010). Putting renewables and energy efficiency to work: How
many jobs can the clean energy industry generate in the US? Energy Policy 38, 919–931.

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combination of RE policy and developments created 160,000 job years. It is inferred that there is great potential for job creation in
the CSP and GT subsectors. Thus, integration of the CSP and GT systems can also create jobs. However, information is scarce on job
creation specifically associated with the SGT technology.
The economic performance of an energy technology plays a vital role in promoting the diffusion of the technology. In energy
planning, technologies that yield low costs of energy are more competitive in the energy mix than those that yield higher costs.
Generally, the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) is a convenient and reliable method for assessing the cost-effectiveness of different
competing and alternative energy technologies. Therefore, many researchers have used this tool to evaluate the feasibility of SGT
projects.
Kribus et al. (1998) reported that the LCOE is diminished with increasing the capacity factor of a combined cycle power plant
driven by solar and fossil energy. Spelling et al. (2012) used a dynamic model to optimize the cost of electricity from solar-only
combined cycle. They found a range of values of LCOE, which were comparable with those of conventional power plants. Recently,
Mokheimer et al. (2015) theoretically studied an OCGT hybrid solar-fossil fuel gas turbine by using three different types of CSP
technology: ST, PTC, and LFR. They found that the integration of the LFR-CSP technology with the steam side of a gas turbine cogen-
eration plant of 50 MWe was optimal. The best location for optimal output was Jazan city in Saudi Arabia. The thermo-economic
performance of a PDC hybrid solar power plant with combined cycle was analyzed by Aichmayer et al. (2015). The cost of electricity
was two times that of the ST-driven combined cycle. This shows that, from an economic perspective, the ST technology would be
a better choice to drive the SGT system. Values of the LCOE, ranging from 0.06 US$ kWh
1 for ST-driven CCSGT (Kribus et al.,
1998) to 0.40 US$ kWh
1 for PTC-driven SISGT (Selwynraj et al., 2015b), have been reported. A review of the LCOE worldwide
by Larsson et al. (2014) showed that the values of LCOE for a given technology vary with region and study (authors report different
values due to variations in methods and assumptions).

Environmental Performance
Climate change is the main driver of RE initiatives in many countries. Consequently, it is important to establish the impacts of the
SGT on this environmental challenge.
Cameretti et al. (2015) reported lower outlet concentrations of NO, CO, and unburnt hydrocarbons (UHC) from an SGT system
(compared to a standard GT system). Mokheimer et al., 2015 reported annual CO2 emissions of 465.9–540.2 k ton for a GT system
driven by a solar tower. Semprini et al. (2016) theoretically investigated the carbon footprint of a GT under different strategies of
integration. Hybridization with natural gas yielded lower values of carbon footprint than the solar–diesel-driven open cycle solar
gas turbine for a given set of design, and environmental and operational conditions (Fig. 12). The specific carbon emission increases
with decreasing the share of solar energy in the hybrid system.
Behrens et al. (2016) found that the combination of RE policy and developments reduced carbon emissions by more than 7.2 Mt
CO2eq. This indicates that hybridization of solar energy with other fuels to drive SGT systems would assist in reducing carbon emis-
sions. In this regard, Table 1 shows specific carbon emission factors of hybrid SGT systems reported in literature. The lower limits of
carbon intensities for the hybrid CCSGT and SISGT in this table are slightly below those of natural gas-fueled gas turbines. However,
it is possible to include a subsystem of carbon capture (to reduce carbon emission) and thermal energy storage in power plants but

Fig.12 Carbon footprint of a solar gas turbine hybridized with natural gas and diesel under different strategies for solar integration. Source: Sem-
prini, S., Sánchez, D. and De Pascale, A. (2016). Performance analysis of a micro gas turbine and solar dish integrated system under different solar-
only and hybrid operating conditions. Solar Energy 132, 279–293.

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Table 1 Specific carbon emissions of solar gas turbines

Specific carbon emissions

Study Cycle CSP (kgCO2/kWh)

Aichmayer et al. (2015) CCGT PDC 0.341, 0.409

Selwynraj et al. (2014) STIG PTC 0.319–0.413

this plant modification can raise the LCOE. For a SISGT, a specific carbon emission of 0.319–0.413 kgCO2 kWh
1 was reported
(Selwynraj et al., 2014). The foregoing discussion indicates the need for more research to overcome bottlenecks to the wide exploi-
tation of biofuels in the SGT system.

Project Development
The world’s first operational hybrid SGT power plant was built in Israel by AORA Solar and has been operating since 2009
(Merchant 2009). The power plant, which uses 20 heliostat mirrors to concentrate solar energy on the ST, generates 100kWe and
170kWth and is capable of powering 70 households through the Israel’s national grid system. The ST heats up compressed air to
about 1273 K before injecting it into the 100 kW gas turbine. AORA’s second demonstration plant is situated in Almeria, Spain.
Recently, the Solugas project of a hybrid gas turbine, driven by a ST, was commissioned in May 2012 in Abengoa’s Solúcar Plat-
form near Seville, Spain. The solar receiver of this facility is capable of heating the pressurized air to 1073 K, and the temperature of
the air is further elevated to 1423 K by using natural gas (Quero et al., 2013). This plant is for demonstration and it consists of a solar
field of 69 heliostats with a reflective area of 121 m2 each, and a tower which supports the receiver at a height of 65 m, and it has
a capacity of 4.5 MWe. This is the first SGT at mega-scale of capacity and there are plans to increase the share of solar energy so that
the combustion chamber inlet temperature reaches a temperature of 1273 K. Nonetheless, the ST technology has its own shortcom-
ings as shown in the following section.

Challenges in the Advancement of SGT systems

Lack of commercial SGT power plants worldwide demonstrates that there are some constraints to the development of this tech-
nology. It is noteworthy that the conventional gas turbine is a matured technology. Thus, some of the challenges to the progress
in the commercialization of the STG may be attributed to the solar subsystem (with the ST technology being thermodynamically
and economically most favorable). However, there are some barriers that need to be overcome to ensure the diffusion of the ST
technology. These barriers may also impede the advancement of ST-based STG in some countries, and they are presented and dis-
cussed in the following section.

Maturity of the Technology

Maturity is a variable which indicates the closeness of a technology to commercial application. So, managers of research and devel-
opment use this factor in decision-making to advance a technology. In this vein, research is an important vehicle for upgrading the
maturity level of a technology. Scientific and engineering research can contribute to the reduction of the LCOE of an energy tech-
nology, thereby boosting its rate of diffusion into the market.
There are many studies on the ST technology for power production using the RC, with the maturity of the ST technology appli-
cation in GTs being reportedly low (Zhang et al., 2013). The volume of research on the SGT is smaller than that of solar steam cycle.
Consequently, the growth of the SGT is likely to be curbed, which is also depicted in the diminished number of commercial SGT
plants operating on a global scale. This shows that the SGT system has a low level of maturity, and therefore it requires more research
attention to hasten its rate of diffusion.

Financial and Policy Instruments

Energy projects are capital intensive, and so they require a high level of investment. Moreover, various economic activities compete
for limited financial resources, and a project owner aims at making some profit. In view of this, choices have to be made carefully
among competing opportunities for investment. Uncertainty and risk are important elements in decision-making about investing in
a given project. In this vein, an adequate number of similar previous investments assist in reducing the magnitude of uncertainty
and risk. So, it is difficult for RE technologies to displace fossil-fueled power plants which have proven technical and financial
performance.
The SGT is an emerging technology on the market, and so it needs appropriate financial and policy instruments to support its
transition to commercial scale. Lack of financial motivation through the provision of grant facilities could be a barrier to the
commercial advancement of the SGT. However, the global environment facility (GEF) is one of the Climate Change Finance

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instruments, which provides support for RE projects. In 2000, the GEF provided grants to the first four proposed ISCC plants in
India, Egypt, Morocco, and Mexico (Okoroigwe and Madhlopa 2016). It is possible that this initiative catalyzed the establishment
of the Ain Beni Mathar plant (Morocco) and the Kuraymat plant (Egypt). The Ain Beni Mathar ISCC system project in Morocco
comprised US$43.2 million in grant financing from the GEF, two loans of US$371.8 million from the African Development
Bank (ADB) and a loan of US$ 129 million from Spain’s Instituto de Credito Official (Amelio et al., 2014). Since then, more
PTC–ISCC plants have been established in Algeria and the United States, with no evidence of corresponding SGT power plants.

Technical Factors
A SGT is driven by CSP. Among the four common CSP technologies (LFR, PDC, PTC, and ST), the ST and PDC systems exhibit
a higher thermodynamic efficiency which is more suitable for integration with the gas turbine cycle. In 2014, there were more oper-
ational ST power plants than those which were driven by the PDC technology worldwide (Okoroigwe & Madhlopa, 2016).
However, the ST system has some technical limitations which require research attention.
Major technical factors include solar and land resources, ambient temperature, tower height, materials and supply chain, and
technical expertise. These factors have been presented and discussed elsewhere (Okoroigwe and Madhlopa 2016).

Conclusion

A SGT is one of the promising technologies for sustainable provision of energy. In this study, the thermodynamic, socioeconomic,
and environmental performances of the SGT technology have been investigated. From a thermodynamic point of view, the thermal
efficiency of the SGT system of the hybrid variety exhibits values which are comparable with those of the conventional gas turbine.
There is potential for job creation in the SGT subsector. In particular, exploitation of LG exhibits high levels of employment inten-
sity. The LCOE for the hybrid SGT is comparable with that of the fossil-fueled gas turbine. Nevertheless, hybridization with fossil
fuels tends to raise the carbon footprint of the SGT. Consequently, hybrid solar–biofuel GTs could be most sustainable. Although
the ST technology exhibits higher thermodynamic efficiency, its maturity level is lower than that of the PTC. Nevertheless, very
limited research has been directed toward the development of the ST-SGT compared to the ST-driven steam cycle. This indicates
that there are some barriers to the development of the ST-SGT technology which can broadly be classified into three categories:
(a) technology maturity, (b) financial and policy, and (c) technical factors. It is concluded that the maturity level of the ST-SGT
is low, and so more work is needed to improve its technological readiness. Some of the areas that need research attention are:
(a) Thermodynamic performance of hybrid solar–biofuel SGT.
(b) Intensity of jobs in the SGT subsector.
(c) Techno-economic evaluation of SGT in operation.

Acknowledgments

Authors are grateful to the Department of Science and Technology (Grant number DST/CON 0078/2014) and ERAfrica for the financial support.

See also: Fundamentals and Application of Solar Thermal Technologies.

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