How to calculate hybridization rate?

Question:

I'm currently performing simulations with SAM.

I have a parabolic trough configuration, w/ storage and w/ hybridization, and I would like to calculte the solar share of the energy produced.

Should I do the following ratio? :
(annual fuel usage/(annual fuel usage +thermal energy delivered by solar field))

Thank you for your explanation.

Answer:

The current version of SAM does not model hybrid gas-solar parabolic trough systems. The backup boiler model is designed to represent a gas boiler that heats the HTF to supply thermal energy to maintain power cycle output during cloud transients.

The physical trough model reports annual values for the variables you mention in the Data Tables on the Results page. To calculate your ratio, you could either make the calculations by hand, or export the values to Excel. Here's how:

1. Run simulations by clicking the green arrow button at the bottom left of the window.
2. On the Results page, click Data Tables.
3. Double-click "Single Values" to expand the list of output variables
4. Check "Annual Fuel Usage (kWht)" and "Thermal Energy From Solar Field" to display those variables in the table.
5. In Windows, click Send to Excel, or on a Mac, click Copy to Clipboard and then open Excel and paste the data.
6. In Excel, type a formula to calculate the ratio.

Best regards,
Paul.