Linear Fresnel Collector (LFC) solar thermal technology

A single-axis linear Fresnel collector (LFC) system is composed of many long row reflectors that together focus sunlight on elevated linear tower receivers with one or more absorber tubes running parallel to the reflector rotational tracking axis. This allows a large size array to be constructed inexpensively using very similar or identical long focal length (and therefore almost flat) glass mirror elements. The chapter reviews the historical and recent technical development of LFC technology, optical design of the collector types, and thermal performance trade-offs of receiver options. Market potential and future trends are also examined.