 DOE Launches New Prize to Advance Heliostat Technologies
Today the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) launched the American-Made Heliostat Prize, a $3 million competition designed to accelerate technology innovation through the design, development, and demonstration of key components of heliostats. In concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP), heliostats are devices that tilt mirrors to track the sun and reflect sunlight toward a receiver.
The DOE Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) is seeking to reduce the cost and improve the performance and reliability of heliostats by developing novel components, including heliostat support structures, mirror facets, and wireless control systems. Lowering the cost of heliostats supports the goals of achieving a decarbonized energy sector by 2035 and a net-zero economy by 2050, which will require the deployment of flexible and dispatchable generation and energy storage technologies, like CSP with thermal energy storage and high temperature process heat.
The Heliostat Prize builds on the DOE roadmap to expand production and deployment of heliostats in the United States.
The prize is open to individuals, private companies, and nonfederal government entities (such as states, counties, tribes, municipalities, and academic institutions). Competitors are encouraged to form diverse, multidisciplinary teams while developing their concepts.
Competitors will drive innovations from concept to prototype on an accelerated schedule—just short of 18 months—as they participate in escalating challenges.
-
Phase 1 “Concept” – Incentivize the creation of teams with credible concepts for technology supporting the advancement of heliostat technologies.
-
Phase 2 “Design” – Design and modeling of the components from Phase 1.
-
Phase 3 “Assess” – Build prototypes, perform initial testing of the components from Phase 2, and finalize design.
This prize contest offers a total of $3 million in cash prizes for innovations and credible concepts for technology supporting the advancement of heliostat technologies, with up to three winners. Competitors can win up to $580,000 in cash across the three phases of the prize contest.
Sign up to compete by August 31, 2023 and follow the competition on HeroX.
The Heliostat Prize is a part of the American-Made Challenges and is administered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
|
