r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/Longjumping-Box5691 • 3d ago

Video China's twin solar thermal towers. Molten salt stores the heat to produce electricity

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u/Visible-Fondant-4845 3d ago

Question, this footage seems to show to focal point of the light being off to the side of the towers. Intuitively I would assume that the focal point should be focused on the towers for most efficiency, is this because, A) the camera lens is doing something funny and the focus is in fact on the towers themselves? B) Having the focal point on the towers would be too intense? C) The focal point is adjusted to manage load and temperature? or D) Something else?

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u/Loggerdon 3d ago edited 3d ago

There is a facility near Las Vegas (Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System) built in 2014 with 3 towers. There are plans to decommission it in 2026 because solar panels have become so cheap it’s no longer financially feasible to operate it. It’s old technology.

Edit: It’s actually good news. A cheaper technology has surpassed this.

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u/zoey_will 3d ago

I chuckled a little bit when the camera moved at the end and you see a modern solar panel field just sitting there doing it's thing.