Scalloping reflector surface reduces sensitivity to manufacturing and aiming errors. Contrary to intuition, most effective shape of concentrating reflector for solar heat engine is not perfect paraboloid. According to design studies for Space Station solar concentrator, scalloped, nonimaging approximation to perfect paraboloid offers better overall performance in view of finite apparent size of Sun, imperfections of real equipment, and cost of accommodating these complexities. Scalloped-reflector concept also applied to improve performance while reducing cost of manufacturing and operation of terrestrial solar concentrator.
Error-Tolerant Quasi-Paraboloidal Solar Concentrator
NASA Tech Briefs ; 12 , 9
1988-10-01
Miscellaneous
No indication
English
Offset paraboloidal solar concentrator
NTRS | 1981
|Pressurized Paraboloidal Solar Concentrator
NTRS | 1982
|Program for Paraboloidal Solar Concentrators
NTRS | 1987
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