Techno-enviro-economic assessment of a stand-alone parabolic solar dish stirling system for electricity generation

In this study, a stand-alone parabolic solar dish/Stirling (PSDS) system model is developed and investigated. The techno-enviro-economic performance of a 25-kW stand-alone PSDS system is simulated in the System Advisor Model (SAM) tool under ambient conditions of Jamshoro, Pakistan. The avoided CO2 emissions due to the installation of the proposed system are calculated in an Excel spreadsheet. The methodology for emissions calculation is based on the average value of emissions per kWh recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The results indicate that the proposed PSDS system generates 38.6 MWh of electrical energy annually, and the maximum energy of 3.38 MWh is achieved in January. The main reason for that is the highest value of DNI in that month. The system has attained a net efficiency of 23.39% and a levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of 0.13 $/kWh. The yearly emissions from PSDS are 762 kg, which is only 2.2% and 4.69% of coal and natural gas, respectively. Moreover, the sensitivity analysis of the PSDS system showed that the projected mirror area and collector cost affects the power output and cost of generation significantly.