Minimizing the Computational Effort to Optimize Solar Concentrators with the Open-Source Tools SunPATH and Tonatiuh++

Integrals that are of interest in the analysis, design, and optimization concentrating solar thermal systems (CST), such as annual optical efficiency light collection concentration (LCC) subsystem, can be accurately computed or estimated two distinct ways: on time domain spatial domain. This article explores these ways, using a case study is highly representative commercial CST being deployed worldwide. In domain, computation integrals explored 1-min, 10-min, 1-h DNI input data The Cyprus Institute (CyI)’s High-Performance Computing (HPC) system an open-source ray tracer, Tonatiuh++, actively developed at CyI. SunPATH, another software tool CyI, tandem with Tonatiuh++. comparison between approach clearly indicate SunPATH dramatically more computationally efficient than approach. According to results obtained, least for analyzed this article, compute energy delivered by LCC subsystem relative error less 0.1%, it enough provide input, request from sun position weights just 30 points celestial sphere, run Tonatiuh++ simulate 15 million rays per run. As test representative, expected will yield similar most interest.