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South Africans Revolutionize Concentrated Solar Power With Mini Heliostats
Taffykay writes: Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) offers significant benefits, but it's often prohibitively expensive. Paul Gauché from Stellenbosch University in South Africa hopes to change that with Helio 100, a series of 'plonkable' miniature heliostats that require no installation or concrete, and offer solar energy that's cheaper than diesel. The Guardian reports: "Helio100 is a pilot project with over 100 heliostats of 2.2 sq meters each, generating 150 Kilowatts (kW) of power in total – enough to power about 10 households. According to Gauché, the array is already cheaper than using diesel, the go-to fuel for most companies and businesses during regular power outages in the country.
One problem with industrial-scale central-focus concentrating solar systems is "smokers" - birds that were fried by the concentrated light.
- The concentrated light isn't visible as a bright spot in the air from below and the sides. It IS visible from above, as is the small percentage reflected from the object at the focus.
- This light attracts insects.
- The insects attract birds wishing to eat them
- The birds fly into the focus.
- The large amount of focussed sunlight kills them quickly and ignites them.
- The birds fall out of the air, trailing a plume of smoke, and are known a "smokers" by people in the trade.
Similarly with birds that see the object at the focus - typically the highest thing in the middle of a big flat region, and thus an especially attractive roosting place for predatory birds. - and decide to land on it..
It's like the cruel kid with the magnifying glass frying ants - but written large.
At 150 kW output (and substantially more input) it's not clear to me whether the birds would be instantly killed or merely blinded, badly burned, and left to suffer and die on the ground. But I bet even this village-scale heliostat system will suffer from this problem.
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way