Preliminary operation assessment of a two-stage ORC engine combined with evacuated tube solar collectors throughout Greece

A solar two-stage Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) engine designed, constructed and experimentally tested in authors��� previous work, is hereby evaluated for operation in a wide set of representative locations distributed throughout Greece. The simulation model gathers daily meteorological data for the areas of interest for a thirty-four years reference period. The produced power and operational efficiency of the integrated system that includes the solar collectors combined with the ORC engine is then calculated, with the use of already existing experimental data. The installation, operational and maintenance cost of the integrated system is calculated at current prices for its lifespan and the cost of every produced kWh is presented in maps for the entire country. Finally, the effect of climate variability on energy production performance and the presence of trends were investigated as well. The results show that there is a great spatial variability on the received solar radiation, the thermal energy and the power production in comparison to the relatively small size of the country and this variation is not only a function of the latitude. The energy cost varies considerably between 0.41 and 0.7 ���/kWh throughout the country. The great variance and the complexity of the factors influencing the cost of the produced energy highlight the importance of geospatial analysis approaches to assess renewable energy potential and to support technoeconomic analysis and feasibility studies. The proposed approach was proven to be an effective tool for the assessment of the feasibility and potential of a solar heat-to-power engine for Greece and to be expanded in other regions as well.