March 27, 2008—Ausra Inc., developer of utility-scale solar thermal power technology, has published a peer-reviewed study showing that over 90 percent of the US electric grid and auto fleet’s energy needs could be met by solar thermal power.
Solar power is the nation’s largest primary renewable energy resource, offering many times total US energy needs, notes Ausra. Solar thermal power stations use fields of mirrors to capture the sun’s energy as heat to boil water and drive steam turbines. Solar thermal’s low-cost, efficient heat storage makes solar thermal power uniquely able to provide a reliable energy supply from ever-varying sunshine.
The Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration projects over 70 percent total growth in the nation’s electricity demands by 2025, and analysts predict a further increase in electricity needs as plug-in electric hybrid vehicles come to the market.
Converting the national electricity grid to solar thermal power would reduce overall American global warming pollution by 40 percent, says the study, and the combination of plug-in hybrids and solar thermal power would eliminate the importation of 13 million barrels of fuel per day.
The study finds that because the seasonal and daily patterns of solar radiation already correlate strongly with electricity use, just 16 hours of thermal storage can provide reliable, load-following electric power.
A copy of the complete findings, “Solar Thermal Electricity as the Primary Replacement for Coal and Oil in U.S. Generation and Transportation,” can be found online.
