SkyFuel’s Glass-Free Parabolic Trough to Be Installed at 43-MW Plant

SkyFuel Inc. has signed an agreement with Sunray Energy Inc., a subsidiary of Cogentrix Energy, for the installation of SkyTrough collectors at Sunray’s 43-MW parabolic trough generating plant near Daggett, Calif.,

The plant was formerly known as Solar Energy Generation Systems I and II (“SEGS I & II”). The agreement with Sunray Energy allows for the first commercial installation of the SkyTrough, an advanced parabolic trough concentrator that uses glass-free ReflecTech Mirror Film reflectors.

The agreement allows SkyFuel to integrate an array of SkyTrough solar collector assemblies into the Sunray plant to demonstrate their commercial viability in a full-scale, solar generating plant application. The SkyTrough installation is to be operational later this year. No business terms were disclosed.

The SkyTrough, first introduced to the market in October 2008, offers a departure from the prior state-of-the-art for parabolic trough concentrating collectors. A key difference is that the SkyTrough does not use glass mirrors. Instead, is uses a new mirror system with an advanced material developed with scientists at the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The goal was to replace traditional glass mirrors that could shatter under operating conditions—resulting in considerable expense to replace the mirror panels and any receiver tubes damaged by flying glass shards.

Construction of the SkyTrough installation at Sunray’s plant will begin in the current quarter with completion and commercial electricity production scheduled for the end of 2009.

Source: SkyFuel