[co-authors: Stephanie Wald, BrightSource and Nicholas Frasse-Sombet, NCC Group]
Solar power is one of the “green” alternatives to fossil fuels that will help our world address its energy needs. In one hour, the Sun hits the Earth with more energy than is consumed worldwide in a year, according to ClimateScience.org. Yet harnessing this solar energy is complex: engineering solutions include both Solar Photovoltaics (Solar PV) technology and solar thermal methods such as Concentrated Solar Power (CSP).
Solar PV generates electricity directly and is more widely deployed worldwide; the battery-based storage solution available with PV has limited capacity. By contrast, CSP plants use thermal energy to generate electricity, replacing fossil fuels. CSP plants can also provide heat for industrial processes. Although there are high construction costs related to the CSP plant, this…