Technology

W2 Solar has developed several proprietary technologies which will allow the highest efficiency and lowest cost in converting solar energy to heat, steam and electricity.

The SunCatcher parabolic solar collector gathers all the available sunlight and focuses it on a central vacuum tube. One side of the vacuum tube is covered with light absorbing material, which converts the solar energy into heat. A vacuum layer between an inner and an outer layer of glass traps nearly 100% of that heat inside of the tube.

The heat inside the vacuum tube is transferred to the hot water loop via a pipe filled with heat transfer fluid inside of each vacuum tube.

The hot water inside the loop is pressurized and heated to approximately 400 degrees Fahrenheit. This pressurized hot water runs through a heat exchanger where it flashes steam.

That steam powers the The SteamRay steam engine. It is a rotary engine which makes the most efficient use of the steam power by eliminating the frictional losses associated with piston-design steam engines.

The SteamRay generates AC power, which travels to the power conditioning unit, which makes sure that the power conforms to utility specifications.

The wet steam exits the SteamRay and gives up most of its remaining heat to another heat exchanger, which can be used to make hot water for a building or a factory.

If the customer does not require any hot water, the wet steam is sent back to the heat exchanger where it is again flashed into higher temperature dry steam, and then recycled back into the SteamRay.

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