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**NATIONAL RENEWABLE ENERGY LABORATORY**

**SOUTH TABLE MOUNTAIN SITE**

**Initial Acquisition: 1981 \[300 acres\] from the State of Colorado**

**Second Acquisition: 1983 \[0.83 acres\] from Golden Development
Company**

**Third Acquisition: 1999 \[25 acres\] from Jefferson County Open
Space**

**Conservation Easement: 1999 \[177 acres\] to Jefferson County Open
Space**

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory currently encompasses
approximately 326 acres of land on the toe, slope, and mesa of South
Table Mountain (STM) in Golden, Colorado. This is a semi-arid geographic
region typified by sparse precipitation, low relative humidity, abundant
sunshine, and large daily and seasonal temperature variations. The solar
radiation (sunlight energy) climate of the region is excellent for
outdoor research and testing of solar energy conversion devices and
systems. Since sunshine is abundant throughout the year and remarkably
consistent from month to month and season to season, the STM site is
especially suitable for outdoor solar energy research. High insolation
rates and seasonal changes make it ideal for outdoor research with
nationally applicable test results.

**Regional Information**

The physical features of South Table Mountain (STM) dramatically
characterize the complexity and diversity of the region. The STM site is
located at the intersection of the eastern plains of Colorado and the
foothills of the Rocky Mountains. The grassy, gently rolling hills of
the plains contrast sharply with the craggy, steep slopes, forests, and
alpine meadows of the mountains. Erosional forces have sculpted deep
gorges and gentle valleys in the area. Spectacular \"hogback\"
outcroppings of tilted sandstones, shales, and conglomerates line the
interface between mountain and plain. Steep mountains, sharp ridges,
mesas, gentle slopes, valleys, and ravines are all found in close
proximity.

The STM site is located approximately 3 miles east of the Front Range of
the Rocky Mountains. The site is situated on the top and south facing
slopes of South Table Mountain, an isolated mesa that stands about 480
feet above adjacent valley areas. The mesa top slopes to the south and a
prominent cliff rims the top, ranging from approximately 30 feet high on
its south side to over 145 feet on the north side. Elevations on the STM
site range from 5,730 to 6,050 feet above sea level.

The STM site contains fourteen buildings and structures utilized as
research, development, and support facilities, in fields such as basic
materials science, basic chemistry, analytic studies, photovoltaics,
biomass conversion, biofuels, building technologies, solar radiation,
and solar thermal. Individual buildings and their functions are listed
separately.

As part of a \"Good Neighbor\" policy, the STM site is an \"Open\" site
during daylight hours allowing pedestrians access to the open space and
natural beauty of the mesa top and slopes through our lands. Many animal
and hiking trails exist on South Table Mountain. Wildlife is abundant
and visible during dusk and dawn periods. The most commonly observed
species include the field mouse, cottontail rabbit, jackrabbit, coyote,
red fox, mule deer, red-tailed hawk, golden eagle, American kestrel,
horned lark, American robin, European starling, black-billed magpie,
western meadowlark, garter snakes and rattlesnakes. The spore of elk and
mountain lion has also been observed at the mesa top. Although the site
is open during daylight hours, no hunting is allowed since this is a
federal reservation and weapons of any sort are banned.

The STM site also contains two structures of historic interest; an
amphitheater with a stone footbridge and a stone faced ammunition bunker
dating back to the years of World War II. Both structures were nominated
and accepted for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places
list.

**Utilities**

Consolidated Mutual Water Company of Lakewood, Colorado supplies potable
and firewater to the STM site and numerous easements exist for the
routing of the pipelines. This water is provided via a one million
gallon underground storage tank located adjacent to the STM site on the
mesa top. Pleasant View Water and Sanitation District provides
wastewater service to the STM site. Xcel Energy supplies electricity
(13.2 KVA) via overhead lines to a single point metering location and
underground natural gas pipelines to individual facilities. NREL takes
the power from the metering point and provides power to the remainder of
the site via an underground system. Qwest supplies telephone and
electronic communication services through a government-owned switch.

**Transportation**

A well-developed system of streets, roads, and highways provide access
to the STM site. The site is within 0.2 miles of Interstate 70 (I-70)
and slightly farther from U.S. Highways 6 and 40. Denver International
Airport (DIA) is approximately 34 miles (50 minutes drive) from the STM
site and downtown Denver is a 20 minute drive. The Regional
Transportation District (RTD) provides public transportation (buses) to
the STM site.

**Site Issues and Challenges**

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**Number range CHAPTERVISITORS CENTER (VC)**

Year Constructed: 1994

Acquisition Cost: \$1,063,690

Replacement Plant Value: \$1,195,987

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 6,459 gsf

Net Usable Space: 3,127 nsf

Full Time Staff: 2

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Visitors Center in
Golden, Colorado, highlights technologies that can save energy; improve
the environment, and lower energy bills. The Visitors Center building is
a model of energy-efficient design taking advantage of the sun for
heating and lighting. Visitors of all ages are encouraged to take a
self-guided tour through the interactive exhibit hall and learn about
energy from the sun, wind, biomass, and other sources of renewable
energy. Education programs for children, teens, and adults are offered
free of charge. These interactive programs provide a fun engaging way to
explore renewable energy and energy efficiency concepts and
applications. Renewable energy and energy efficiency are good for homes,
communities and the planet.

> **Energy exhibits**
>
> Visitors of all ages may take a self-guided tour through the
> interactive exhibit hall and learn about energy from the sun, wind,
> biomass and other sources of renewable energy. Through the tours,
> visitors:

-   Find out how scientists capture alternative energy resources to
    produce electricity and fuels;

-   Investigate the future of transportation;

-   Observe a demonstration of the sun\'s power at several outdoor
    exhibits; and

-   Discover energy-conserving strategies for homes that can be
    implemented today.

> **Information resources**
>
> The DOE public reading room contains current information on renewable
> energy and energy efficiency. The Visitors Center offers a collection
> of energy-related videos for on-site viewing. In addition, group
> programs for most ages are available at no charge. Knowledgeable
> volunteers are always happy to answer questions and provide
> assistance.
>
> **Facility Issues and Challenges**

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**Number range CHAPTERSITE ENTRY BUILDING (SEB)**

Year Constructed: 1994

Initial Acquisition Cost \$181,560

Replacement Plant Value: \$121,055

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 814 gsf

Net Usable Space: 733 nsf

Full Time Staff: 13

The Site Entry Building is staffed 24 hours a day and houses the on-site
security operations for the South Table Mountain site. Operations
include:

-   Access control;

-   Employee/visitor badging;

-   Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) monitoring;

-   Toxic gas alarm monitoring;

-   Fire alarm monitoring; and

-   Emergency Response.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

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**Number range CHAPTERSCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FACILITY (S&TF)**

Year Constructed: 2006

Initial Acquisition Cost \$21,396,572

Replacement Plant Value: \$24,029,527

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 71,347 gsf

Net Usable Space: 44,800 nsf

Full Time Staff: 47

Solar cell, thin film, and nanostructure research are conducted in our
Science and Technology Facility (S&TF). With the benefits from a forty
percent reduction in energy use compared to standard laboratory
buildings; energy recovery for ventilation in laboratories; and
functional and flexible laboratory space, the S&TF is the first and
currently only federal laboratory facility to achieve a U.S. Green
Building Council PLATINUM Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) certification.

Designed specifically to reduce time delays associated with transferring
technology to industry, the S&TF\'s 71,000 square feet is a multi-level
facility of laboratory space, office space, and lobby, connected by an
elevated bridge to the Solar Energy Research Facility (SERF). The S&TF
houses the Process Development and Integration Laboratory (PDIL) and
nine advanced material synthesis, characterization, and general support
laboratories.

**Process Development and Integration Laboratory**

Located in the center of the S&TF, the Process Development and
Integration Laboratory (PDIL) with 10,170 square feet of laboratory
space is dedicated to a new class of thin film photovoltaics (PV)
deposition, processing, and characterization tools. One of the exciting
capabilities in the PDIL is the ability for researchers to pass samples
between equipment without contamination from the air. The integrity of
this process is possible through the Process Integration Project. Other
capabilities of the PDIL include a thorough integration of control
systems and databases enabling researchers, with various levels of
expertise, to work together on integrated tools and integrated data.
This happens with the added advantage of scientists collaborating in a
facility that is easily accessible with no physical separations.

> **Interconnect Process Development Laboratory**
>
> Research in thin-film PV is accomplished in this laboratory with
> techniques used for monolithic integration of cells into modules.
> Developing ways to make small, thin-film modules onsite are useful for
> demonstration purposes. A goal of this laboratory is to close the gap
> between cell and module performance for thin-film PV by defining the
> best ways to use laser and mechanical scribing to make monolithically
> integrated modules, and depositing insulators by spray deposition of
> nano-particles.
>
> **PV Manufacturing Diagnostics Laboratory**
>
> Equipment dedicated to the study of PV materials and devices including
> optical diagnostics, PVScan, etc., is available in this lab.
>
> **User Characterization Laboratory**
>
> Sample Preparation, General Equipment, and Specialized Equipment are
> the three associate labs all designated under the User
> Characterization Laboratory.
>
> **Sample Preparation Laboratory**
>
> This laboratory houses equipment for final device electrical
> contacting and isolation steps performed prior to light/dark
> current-voltage and spectral quantum efficiency measurement. This
> laboratory is physically separated from the other User
> Characterization Labs because of the chemical and process capabilities
> used in these contact and isolation steps.
>
> **General Equipment Laboratory**
>
> The General Equipment Laboratory is used to conduct routine analysis
> and quality control with equipment such as a stylus profilometry and
> ellipsometry for thickness measurement, and an optical microscope for
> routine surface morphology analysis. Most of this equipment is used by
> a variety of users and for training purposes.
>
> **Specialized Equipment Laboratory**
>
> Most equipment in the Specialized Equipment Laboratory is more complex
> and operated by a limited user base. The more specialized apparatus in
> this laboratory including a Hall and four-point-probe for electrical
> analysis, and UV-Vis.-NIR spectrophotometers for optical analysis,
> complement the equipment in the Sample Preparation Lab.
>
> **Electro-Optical Diagnostic Development Laboratory**
>
> In this laboratory, researchers collaborate with other research teams
> using established in-situ electro-optical characterization techniques
> to develop new in-situ diagnostics tailored for the specific growth
> and processing steps used in PV manufacturing. Spectroscopic
> ellipsometry, photoluminescence, photocurrent decay, reflectometry,
> fourier transform infrared, and Ramen scattering are experimental
> techniques used to develop new diagnostic tools directly applicable in
> manufacturing.
>
> **Surface Analysis Laboratory**
>
> Researchers study and control PV surfaces and interfaces in this lab.
> High spatial resolution Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) provides
> essential complementary information on the elemental makeup and
> distribution in PV films. The XPS/UPS system enable data collection on
> insulating samples, the probing of both core level and valence band
> electronic structures, and information on the chemical environments of
> specific elements. These capabilities ultimately provide a platform
> for the study of in-situ real-time control of PV device manufacture.
>
> **Analytical Microscopy Laboratory**
>
> In this laboratory, researchers study PV surface and interface
> morphologies that are of interest to the PV community. Scanning probe
> microscopies and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) provide real space
> characterization of PV material morphologies and electronic structures
> down to the nanometer scale.
>
> **Thin-Film Deposition/Process Development Laboratory**
>
> As the second largest laboratory in the S&TF, this laboratory supports
> the work of three different material types:

-   Deposition Techniques to deposit various semiconductor layers
    necessary to form the active junction regions of polycrystalline
    II-VI devices are conducted in this area of the lab. Deposition
    processes include close-spaced Sublimation (CSS), sputtering, and
    evaporation. Materials include CdS and CdTe, as well as related
    ternary and quaternary alloys such as CdZnTe, CdSTe, and CdZnSTe.
    Resources in this lab include equipment used to modify properties of
    deposited films, such as heat-treatment using CdC12 vapors;
    development activities related to in-situ process monitoring; and
    equipment required for substrate cleaning.

-   Development of absorber, window, and metal contact thin film layers
    for Cu(In,Ga)Se2-based photovoltaic devices are performed in this
    area of the laboratory. Thin-film layers are deposited by physical
    vapor deposition methods and other hybrid methods to integrate
    improved deposition techniques, and evaluate critical issues related
    to the surfaces/interfaces between layers, and in-situ control and
    diagnostics. Higher performing solar cells and improved deposition
    methods for industrial processes are expected outcomes in this
    laboratory.

-   Studies of Amorphous and thin silicon materials and devices are
    performed in the third area of the lab. This includes
    electro-optical and thermal processing capabilities. This area was
    built to accommodate deposition processes in the future.

> **Contact Process Development Laboratory**
>
> In this laboratory, various surface modification and deposition
> processes are used to develop materials and investigate the function
> of various front and back contact schemes for advanced thin-film
> photovoltaic solar cells. Contact materials include metals,
> semiconductors, and transparent-conducting oxides (TCOs). Surface
> modification processes include semi-automated chemical cleaning for
> ceramic substrates in a micro-clean environment, as well as in-situ
> plasma etching (PE) and reactive ion etching (RIE) within vacuum
> chambers prior to material deposition.
>
> Deposition processes include resistive and electron-beam evaporation,
> d.c. and r.f. sputtering, molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE), and
> chemical-vapor deposition (CVD). In-situ surface characterization is
> used on some equipment including a Kelvin Probe for analysis, and
> residual-gas analysis (RGA) for information regarding incorporation of
> trace impurities from the sputtering environment into contact
> materials.
>
> **Wet Chemistry/Electrodeposition Process Development Laboratory**
>
> Chemical (wet) processes will be used to deposit metal, oxide, and
> semiconductor thin-films for existing programs, as well as research
> aimed at development of novel processes and materials for
> next-generation technologies. Routine chemical depositions include CdS
> and related alloys for use in CdTe and CIGS polycrystalline device
> technologies. The laboratory includes apparatus for post-deposition
> thermal treatment, and equipment to perform inductively coupled plasma
> spectroscopy (ICP) required for elemental compositional analysis of
> bulk and trace impurities.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

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**Number range CHAPTERSOLAR ENERGY RESEARCH FACILITY (SERF)**

Year Constructed: 1993

Initial Acquisition Cost \$18,491,239

Replacement Plant Value: \$39,031,857

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 114,800 gsf

Net Usable Space: 70,386 nsf

Full Time Staff: 172

Photovoltaics (PV) and basic energy sciences are two major research
areas conducted in the Solar Energy Research Facility (SERF). The
building incorporates a multitude of energy saving features that make it
one of the government\'s most energy efficient buildings with 40 percent
lower energy costs than similar buildings designed to meet federal
energy standards. The SERF houses three adjoining modules each
containing a laboratory pod and an office pod. Laboratories in the west
module develop semiconductor material for high-efficiency crystalline
solar cells. Laboratories in the center module fabricate prototype solar
cells and analyze the semiconductor material used to make solar cells as
well as research hydrogen generation and storage. The east module
contains labs used to measure and characterize solar cell and module
performance. The SERF roof is a platform to ten PV panels used to
evaluate the performance of integrated PV systems on commercial
buildings. These panels generate as much as 12 kilowatts of electricity
fed into the power grid.

> **Photovoltaic**
>
> Converting sunlight into electricity through the development of
> advanced solid-state materials and devices is the objective of PV at
> the SERF. This involves R&D in PV materials and devices, measurement
> and characterization, reliability testing and analysis, and
> development of new materials and devices such as those used in
> thermophotovoltaics.
>
> **Materials and Devices**
>
> Research on PV materials, devices, and material properties are all
> performed at the SERF. Work in material technologies includes
> crystalline silicon and thin-film materials with high-efficiency
> concepts such as polymer solar cells and nanostructured solar cells.
> Device processing uses many different techniques to deposit PV
> materials and process PV devices, discovering additional ways of
> combining materials for deposition and growth.
>
> [**Measurement and
> Characterization**](http://www.nrel.gov/measurements/)
>
> NREL is the only laboratory in the world to hold accreditations in
> both 1) photovoltaic secondary cell, and 2) secondary module and
> primary reference cell calibration. Using sophisticated instruments
> and techniques, NREL researchers measure, image, and characterize
> properties of PV and electronic materials, devices, and interfaces
> including such properties as optical, electrical, material, surface,
> chemical, and structural performance. Core competencies include
> analytical microscopy, device performance, electro-optical
> characterization, and surface analysis.
>
> **Reliability Testing and Analysis**
>
> Research and development in module packaging improve the long-term
> reliable performance of PV modules. Researchers develop new materials
> that can be used for module encapsulants and moisture barrier coatings
> under a variety of conditions to ensure materials work at the highest
> efficiency and do not provide a conduction path to the ground.
>
> **Development of New Materials and Devices**
>
> Thermophotovoltaics (TPV) research at the SERF focuses on developing
> semiconductor materials and devices that convert radiation from heat
> energy to electricity, with emphasis on alloys from gallium indium
> arsenide and indium phosphide arsenide, which can be engineered to
> achieve low-energy band gaps (0.4 eV to 0.7 eV).

**Basic Energy Sciences**

Expanding the scientific foundations of renewable energy technologies
through research in basic materials science, basic chemical sciences,
and carbon-based hydrogen storage is the objective of Basic Energy
Sciences.

> **Basic Materials Science**
>
> Basic Materials Science develops materials to improve the efficiency,
> economy, and environmental acceptability of energy generation,
> transmission, and use. NREL\'s research emphasizes semiconductor and
> condensed matter physics, and high-temperature superconductors and
> electrochromics.
>
> **Basic Chemical Sciences**
>
> NREL\'s experts in basic chemical science perform photochemistry
> research with an emphasis in photoelectrochemical conversion. Research
> on the synthesis and characterization of quantum dots and
> third-generation solar cells is conducted in this lab.
>
> **Carbon-based Hydrogen Storage**
>
> Safe, lightweight, high-density storage of hydrogen has NREL
> researchers especially motivated for the future of hydrogen economy in
> supplying energy for heating, cooling, electricity, industrial
> processes, and transportation. NREL continues to explore the valuable
> applications of single-wall nanotubes and multi-wall nanotubes and was
> selected to play a major role in the Center of Excellence for
> Exploratory Research in hydrogen storage and nanostructured
> carbon-containing materials.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

The Solar Energy Research Facility, first occupied in 1993, was the
second major laboratory constructed at the South Table Mountain site.
Originally developed to house 85 research and support staff, the SERF
has housed approximately 172 staff until recently. With the completion
of the Science and Technology Facility adjacent to the SERF, some of the
overcrowding has been alleviated by relocating some laboratories and
associated staff into the new facility. Decommissioned and vacated
laboratories in the SERF are presently undergoing modifications for new
research activities. Additionally, moderate wear and tear over the last
14 years in the common areas requires new floor coverings and some
miscellaneous maintenance and/or repairs.

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**Number range CHAPTERFIELD TEST LABORATORY BUILDING (FTLB)**

Year Constructed: 1984 (with major renovations from 1999 through 2004)

Initial Acquisition Cost: \$9,507,626

Replacement Plant Value: \$42,217,848

RPAM Condition: Good (2-\<5% RPV)

Space: 126,590 gsf

Net Usable Space: 75,193 nsf

Full Time Staff: 130

Scientists and Engineers in The Field Test Laboratory Building (FTLB)
research new and more efficient methods of using unwanted resources such
as waste to create useful fuels, electricity, and chemicals. Forty-one
laboratories and the Thermochemical Users Facility are housed in the
FTLB just west of the Solar Energy Research Facility (SERF).

**Thermochemical Users Facility**

The Thermochemical Users Facility (TCUF) provides a platform test
facility where processes and equipment can be evaluated for potential
commercial applications such as converting renewable feedstocks,
plastics, waste, and other materials into a variety of products.
Electricity, high-value chemicals, and transportation fuels are products
of using renewable resources and waste productively.

**Analytical Laboratories**

The Thermochemical Process Development Unit and other FTB analytical
laboratories analyze the chemical composition of products produced from
renewable feedstocks. The labs also collect and analyze data to
characterize feedstock material and evaluate process control, product
quality control, energy use, and waste minimization.

**Plastics Recycling Laboratory**

Recycling plastics and recovering high-value chemicals in a process
called selective pyrolysis, and combinations of pyrolysis and other
thermal and catalytic treatments, are some of the technologies
researched at the Plastics Recycling Laboratory. For example, selective
pyrolysis is adaptable in recycling old carpets into material for new
carpets by using a small, fluidized bed reactor to melt carpet made of
nylon 6 fiber, and then converting the plastic into the chemical

caprolactam. Recycled caprolactam can be made at half the cost of new
caprolactam and uses one-third as much energy consumption cost.

**Microalgal Biotechnology Laboratories**

Research conducted in these laboratories focuses on producing bio-diesel
fuel from microalgae and other plants. Bio-diesel fuel generates fewer
pollutants than typical diesel fuels, is made from oils and fats found
in microalgae, and can be substituted for diesel fuel or used as an
additive. Typically, microalgae are grown in ponds, harvested, and the
oils extracted. The extracted oils are chemically reacted with alcohols
to produce diesel fuels. Research in the laboratory directed towards
genetic enhancement of the fat and oil content of the algae will make
bio-diesel fuel product more cost effective by 2010.

**Biomass Conversion/Organic Synthesis Laboratories**

Two major efforts in these laboratories include: 1) exploring new
methods to separate the basic components of biomass (cellulose, lignin,
hemicellulose, and extractives); and 2) investigating processes to
convert bio-based materials into potentially useful chemicals and
materials (such as, using processed pyrolysis oils derived from
petroleum feedstocks as a suitable replacement for phenol at half the
cost). Products resulting from separating components of biomass include
paper, packaging materials, and fabric such as rayon, and fuel additives
or agrichemicals from wood wastes converted by pulping sludge.

**Photobiology Laboratories**

In these labs, NREL researchers examine microbes that clean up the
environment and make hydrogen and biodegradable plastics. Microbes
integrated with electrodes also serve as biosensors to detect
explosives, drugs, and organic pollutants. Other examples include:

-   Binding Leachable Metals - Slime secreted by algae is embedded in
    special bioreactors and used to bind metals. As contaminated water
    flows through the reactor, the slime layer traps and binds metal
    ions, leaving only contaminant-free water.

-   Photosynthetic Bacteria - Researchers use bacteria to clean up soil
    and water tainted with contaminants from pesticides, wood
    preservatives and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) used in
    electrical insulators. Fueled by sunlight, the bacteria break down
    the contaminants.

-   Biodegradable Plastics -- NREL developed biodegradable plastics are
    consumed in weeks by soilbound microbes. The potential market for
    biodegradable plastics is several billion pounds per year. Several
    large corporations are considering commercializing the technology.

-   Hydrogen Production - Algae are used to separate hydrogen from water
    to produce clean-burning hydrogen that could power vehicles and
    power plants. Because algae are not inherently proficient at this
    process, researchers are genetically engineering algae to produce
    hydrogen more readily.

**Optical Mechanical Characterization Laboratory**

Research in module packaging conducted at this laboratory includes
testing the optical properties of samples for the ability to reflect or
transmit light. Researchers also characterize the mechanical properties
of samples for strength, adhesion, and the ability to keep out moisture
and oxygen. Noteworthy equipment includes the Lambda 9
Spectrophotometer, D&S Instruments Portable Specular Reflectometer 15R,
various digitally equipped microscopes, Instron 5500R Electromechanical
test instrument, and many others.

**Thin-Film Deposition and Mechanical Characterization Laboratory**

Thin-films of metals, oxides, conductors, and insulators are studied and
tested in this laboratory. Extensive Barrier deposition equipment such
as the Vac-Tec DC&RF Sputtering---RF/DC Planar Magnetron and the
Pernicka 3-Chamber Vacuum Deposition System are featured in this
laboratory.

**Accelerated Exposure Testing Laboratory**

Weathering durability, corrosion on mirrors, and delamination of
polymers under controlled conditions are tested in this laboratory with
temperature- and humidity-controlled chambers. Equipment featured in
this laboratory includes temperature, humidity, and vacuum ovens;
accelerated weathering machines; and a Q-Panel QUV.

**Analysis and Process Control with a Molecular Beam Mass Spectrometer**

The NREL developed Molecular Beam Mass Spectrometry (MBMS) system
directly extracts and analyzes gases and vapors produced in high
temperature or reactive systems. Data from the MBMS help researchers
determine the effectiveness of processes such as solar and thermal
destruction of toxic gases and selective pyrolysis of mixed plastics to
recover valuable chemicals. NREL also developed and is evaluating a
transportable MBMS system designed to perform field monitoring of
effluents, gases, and other emissions produced from biomass power
systems.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

Numerous additions, due to programmatic and funding level changes over
the life of the facility, have contributed to a sub-optimal interior
arrangement resulting in office and laboratory combined spaces and
inefficient working conditions. Originally designed and constructed to
DOE standards, this facility does not currently meet industrially
approved codes. Additional expense is now required for new
construction/reconfiguration of this facility to achieve DOE standards
and meet accepted International Building Codes.

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**Number range CHAPTERWASTE HANDLING FACILITY (WHF)**

Year Constructed: 1991

Acquisition Cost: \$223,600

Replacement Plant Value: \$327,824

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 1,165 gsf

Net Usable Space: 1,065 nsf

Full Time Staff: 0

The Waste Handling Facility is a waste collection depository. It is
neither a waste treatment nor waste consolidation facility. NREL
laboratories transport their chemical and biological waste to the WHF
where it is temporarily stored then packaged and transported to an
approved disposal site by an approved, contracted waste transportation
company.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

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**Number range CHAPTEROUTDOOR TEST FACILITY (OTF)**

Year Constructed: 1995

Initial Acquisition Cost: \$1,042,138

Replacement Plant Value: \$3,476,403

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 10,285 gsf

Net Usable Space: 9,462 nsf

Full Time Staff: 14

Outdoor Test Facility (OTF) researchers study and evaluate advanced or
emerging PV technologies under simulated, accelerated indoor and
outdoor, and prevailing outdoor conditions. One of the major roles of
researchers at the OTF is to work with industry to develop uniform and
consensus standards and codes for testing PV devices. Researchers also
calibrate primary reference cells for in-house and other national
laboratories, calibration and testing labs, and PV manufacturers.

**Indoor Testing at the OTF**

Integral to indoor testing at the OTF is a wide variety of equipment,
tools, and techniques for testing and analyzing modules and systems
under standard simulated conditions, as well as diverse environmental
and stress conditions. Tests include environmental testing, indoor
accelerated testing, failure analysis, and cell and module
characterization.

> **Environmental Testing**
>
> Specialized chambers in the highbay area test the performance of
> modules when exposed to varying weather conditions such as heat, cold,
> humidity, moisture, and ultraviolet light. Modules are tested in
> high-voltage and wet conditions to evaluate electrical insulation and
> moisture intrusion that could cause corrosion, ground faults, or pose
> an electrical safety hazard.
>
> **Indoor Accelerated Testing**
>
> In accelerated testing, relative and absolute performance of PV
> modules is determined for samples exposed to continuous light; intense
> simulated lighting conditions; elevated levels of temperature and
> humidity; and accelerated cycles of temperature and humidity.
>
> **Failure Analysis**
>
> Researchers in the laboratory perform destructive and non-destructive
> analysis to determine failure mechanisms in cells and modules. New
> measurement techniques and tests are developed to identify future
> problems.
>
> **Module Characterization**
>
> The electrical output performance of modules is determined under
> simulated conditions using three different current versus voltage
> (I-V) measurements systems. The performance characteristics measured
> by these systems includes the open-circuit voltage of the module;
> short-circuit current; fill factor; maximum power output of the
> module; voltage at maximum power; current at maximum power; and the
> module\'s conversion efficiency. To perform these measurements,
> researchers use two systems that use pulsed light and one system that
> uses continuous light to simulate the solar spectrum. The systems can
> test modules as large as 200 cm x 200 cm.

**Outdoor Testing at the OTF**

Nearly 40 test beds surround the OTF laboratory building. These test
beds allow researchers to characterize the electrical output performance
of modules under outdoor conditions, test the long-term performance and
stability of PV modules and systems under standard and accelerated
outdoor conditions, and measure the performance of hybrid systems.
Systems used for PV measurement include the Standard Outdoor Module
Characterization, Long Term Module Outdoor Performance and Stability,
Grid-Tied PV Systems Testing, Stand-alone PV Systems Testing, Outdoor
Accelerated Testing, Flexible Test Bed, International Test Bed Building,
and Qualification Testing.

> **Standard Outdoor Module Characterization**
>
> Researchers use two I-V measurement systems (see above) to measure the
> electrical output performance of PV modules under outdoor conditions
> that are as close as possible to Standard Test Conditions. One system
> is the Standard Outdoor Measurement System (SOMS), a fixed system upon
> which modules are placed for testing and can track the sun. The other
> is a portable system used in the field to measure output
> characteristics of modules.
>
> **Long-Term Module Outdoor Performance and Stability**
>
> Long-term module performance testing is conducted on the Performance
> and Energy Rating Test bed (PERT), located on the roof of the OTF, and
> in the array field. The PERT is used to continuously monitor more than
> 30 modules of various technologies for performance under various
> weather conditions. Additionally, in the adjacent array field, nine
> test beds are used to conduct outdoor exposure and stability tests on
> more than 50 PV modules.
>
> **Grid-Tied PV Systems Testing**
>
> Seven grid-tied, 1- to 2-kW PV systems are installed at the OTF. These
> systems employ various photovoltaic module technologies, including
> copper indium diselenide, cadmium telluride, amorphous silicon and
> crystalline silicon. These systems are monitored for long-term
> performance and reliability.
>
> **Stand-Alone PV Systems Testing**
>
> Several types of stand-alone PV systems are monitored at the OTF,
> including remote solar home systems and area streetlights. Test
> procedures are developed to determine how well the system components
> perform as a complete system.
>
> **Outdoor Accelerated Testing**
>
> Two test beds are dedicated to stressing photovoltaic modules under
> accelerated conditions outdoors. The high-voltage stress test bed
> (HVST) places 600-2000 volts across the module leads and frame and
> then measures leakage currents. The Outdoor Accelerated-weathering
> Tracking System (OATS) reflects sunlight at 2.5 concentrations to
> increase the light exposure on the modules.
>
> **Flexible Test Bed**
>
> The flexible test bed (FTB) is designed to test PV systems and
> components---inverters, charge controllers, batteries and loads,
> etc.---in grid-tied or stand-alone configurations. The FTB can be
> easily customized to suit the needs of manufacturers and system
> designers.
>
> **International Test Bed**
>
> At this test bed, researchers monitor small, off-grid PV systems and
> hybrid systems. All of the electricity generated by the 2.8-kW PV
> system and the 900-W wind turbine at this test bed are used for
> running the test bed building itself (lighting, air conditioning,
> instrumentation, battery charging, etc.)
>
> **Qualification Testing**
>
> On this test bed, in accordance with recommended procedures,
> manufacturer\'s modules are short-circuited and subjected to specified
> exposures to solar radiation and to defined amounts of electrical,
> mechanical, and thermal stress in order to qualify that modules meet
> or exceed standard performance criteria.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

![](media/image9.jpeg){width="6.5in" height="4.315972222222222in"}

**THERMAL TEST FACILITY (TTF)**

Year Constructed: 1996

Acquisition Cost: \$1,205,474

Replacement Plant Value: \$3,550,953

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 10,682 gsf

Net Usable Space: 9,614 nsf

Full Time Staff: 6

At the National Renewable Energy Laboratory\'s Thermal Test Facility
(TTF) researchers develop, test, and optimize advanced energy-saving
technologies---focusing their efforts on cost-effective and
environmentally friendly building equipment and energy systems. Research
at the TTF supports the U.S. Department of Energy\'s Building
Technologies Program, which advances the development and application of
energy-efficiency measures.

The goals of this research are to create and evaluate building system
designs; develop building commissioning, maintenance, and retrofit
tools; maintain an optimum balance between renewable energy and energy
efficiency technologies to meet a building\'s energy needs; and test
advanced building components.

The TTF also houses the Energy Storage Laboratory, which supports the
U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium and DOE\'s Freedom CAR and Vehicle
Technologies Program. In this laboratory, researchers use cutting-edge
modeling and analysis tools to focus on thermal management systems from
the cell level to the battery pack or ultracapacitor stack. These
systems can be applied to electric, hybrid-electric, and fuel cell
vehicles.

**Building-Related Testing**

This facility strengthens NREL\'s collaboration with industry by
offering industry partners easy access to a broad range of research
capabilities. The TTF\'s open-space, high-bay layout provides tremendous
flexibility to set up, modify, or tear down experiments to accommodate
the changing needs of industry partners.

**The TTF as a Test Bed**

In addition to providing state-of-the-art laboratory space, the TTF also
serves as a large-scale, live-in laboratory. Researchers monitor such
energy-saving features as high-efficiency lighting, space conditioning
(heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning, or HVAC), water heating,
and daylighting. The goal is to determine how well these features work
as an integrated system and how effective they are at providing a
comfortable and functional environment.

> **Solar Heating**
>
> NREL researchers in collaboration with industry partners, work to
> determine how heat is transferred and stored in solar collectors and
> thermal storage systems, then developing new, more cost-effective
> systems. Researchers make use of a multisystem hot water collector
> test loop mounted on the roof of the building to support the Solar
> Rating and Certification Commission\'s efforts to develop performance
> certification procedures for active solar domestic hot water systems.
>
> **Ventilation**
>
> The Ventilation Test Facility evaluates the system-level effects of
> advanced building technologies under realistic and controlled
> conditions. The test room can be configured to evaluate residential
> and commercial building ventilation systems; it includes a
> two-component laser Doppler anemometer to measure flow velocities
> during tests. In addition, a thermal imaging system simultaneously
> measures air temperature at more than 100,000 points in the test room.
> Because air flow accounts for about 30%-40% of all the electricity
> used in commercial buildings, measuring and understanding airflow is
> an important step toward improving a building\'s energy performance.
> NREL scientists and industry partners are currently using the
> Ventilation Test Facility to test air cleaning and air distribution
> strategies that improve indoor air quality and occupants\' comfort.
>
> **Thermal Conversion**
>
> The Advanced Thermal Conversion Laboratory is unsurpassed in the
> speed, accuracy, and flexibility for full-scale systems and components
> evaluation. The Department of Energy calls on this lab\'s unique
> capabilities to develop next-generation HVAC and combined heat and
> power (CHP) equipment and concepts. The laboratory addresses
> industry\'s needs in areas such as:

-   Solid and liquid desiccant dehumidification and cooling;

-   Waste-heat recovery for CHP and distributed power generation;

-   Energy recovery and ventilation in buildings;

-   Sensing and removing indoor air contaminants;

-   Quantifying the benefits of enhanced ventilation and humidity
    control, with fully automated control and measurement equipment that
    produces steady state results in a fraction of the time required by
    a calorimetry chamber, resulting in rapid generation of
    comprehensive performance maps and accelerated development of
    prototypes; and

-   Providing dual test stations, unique conditioning, and control
    systems that seamlessly accommodate fundamentally different
    technologies, with no downtime for experimental reconfiguration.

> Technologies under inspection vary from residential to commercial
> scale and from liquid to air-cooled, including conventional as well as
> highly innovative devices.

**Transportation-Related Testing: The Energy Storage Laboratory**

NREL works with a number of energy storage manufacturers, automotive
manufacturers, and government programs that guide energy storage
research and development. These programs aid in the establishment of
standard test procedures for the energy storage industry and the
creation of test manuals.

Much of this work with industry is performed at the Energy Storage
Laboratory, in which research is led by NREL\'s Center for
Transportation Technologies and Systems. In this laboratory, a unique
calorimeter is used to measure battery and ultracapacitor performance
over a wide range of temperatures and sizes. Engineers also use thermal
imaging equipment to capture a battery\'s or ultracapacitor\'s infrared
fingerprint to help diagnose areas of thermal concern. They also assess
the thermal and moisture management properties of fuel cell systems. The
capabilities of this laboratory make possible research in energy storage
thermal management, battery and vehicle modeling and simulation, and
energy storage from a vehicle systems perspective.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

![](media/image10.png){width="6.0in" height="3.984027777777778in"}

**Number range CHAPTERALTERNATIVE FUELS USER FACILITY (AFUF)**

Year Constructed: 1984 and 1994

Acquisition Cost: \$220,272

Replacement Plant Value: \$10,887,218

Space: 32,751 gsf

Net Usable Space: 30,176 nsf

Pilot Plant: 8,000 nsf

Full Time Staff: 27

At Alternative Fuels User Facility (AFUF), researchers develop and
improve a number of technologies used in converting biomass to fuels,
chemicals, and materials. The research carried out in the AFUF\'s
state-of-the-art laboratories and in its Process Development Unit (PDU)
pilot plant, processes up to one ton of biomass feedstock per day.

The laboratories in this facility are essential to NREL\'s research in
biomass conversion. Although biomass includes all plant and
plant-derived material, researchers at the AFUF focus on cellulosic
material (the fibrous bulk of most plants) rather than the starch,
sugar, and oil used now for food products and fuels.

The three primary components of biomass are cellulose, hemicellulose,
and lignin. Cellulose and hemicellulose are polymeric chains of sugar
molecules. The challenge is to break down the polymers into their
component sugars for processing to ethanol or other fuels, chemicals, or
materials. Success with this technology enables the development of
biorefineries that produce a slate of different products, similar to
petroleum refineries today with fossil resources.

The AFUF contains facilities capable of bench-scale development of the
various steps in biomass conversion, testing of entire conversion
processes at the \"mini-pilot-plant\" scale, and trials at the pilot
scale. NREL\'s model process for deriving usable products from biomass
involves thermochemical pretreatment of the biomass followed by
enzymatic hydrolysis, fermentation, and product recovery. Researchers at
the AFUF are also engaged in process integration, compositional
analysis, and process engineering.

> **Pretreatment**
>
> After it is mechanically milled, biomass is subjected to
> pretreatment---a process that typically uses heat, pressure, and
> chemical catalysts such as acid to break down hemicellulose to its
> component sugars (hydrolysis) and make the cellulosic fraction
> accessible to enzymatic hydrolysis. NREL\'s researchers work with
> investigators from industry and other organizations to evaluate a
> variety of pretreatment alternatives. All the AFUF pretreatment
> equipment can be used to explore alternative pretreatment processes.
>
> Bench-scale (less than 10-liter working volume) AFUF pretreatment
> equipment includes the following:

-   Stirred-tank, batch Parr reactors with optional hot separation and
    washing;

-   A batch steam gun;

-   A high-solids, stirred-tank Zipperclave reactor; and

-   Various percolation and shrinking-bed flow-through systems.

> Pilot-scale systems (with capacities greater than 10 kilograms of
> biomass per hour) include:

-   A continuous, one-ton-per-day capacity Sunds hydrolyzer;

-   A two-stage, horizontal-vertical, shrinking-bed screw reactor
    system;

-   A Jaygo high-solids, steam-jacketed and steam-injected batch mixed
    reactor; and

-   A pilot-scale Pneumapress pressure-belt filter, which can be used to
    perform NREL\'s hot-wash process to keep solublized lignin from
    recrystallizing.

> **Enzymatic Hydrolysis**
>
> After pretreatment, residual solids are treated with enzymes to break
> down the cellulose to glucose sugar in a process known as enzymatic
> hydrolysis. NREL researchers have determined that enzymatic hydrolysis
> of cellulose has the greatest potential to achieve cost-effective
> biomass conversion.
>
> To make this approach economical, NREL is pursuing a four-fold
> strategy: (1) determine the best mixture of enzymes to use; (2) make
> the enzymes more effective so that fewer enzymes are needed via
> protein engineering; (3) lower the cost of producing the enzymes; and
> (4) reduce the cost of processing by operating at a higher solids
> level.
>
> To succeed with this strategy, NREL, in partnership with industry
> members that have established capabilities for making better enzymes
> and reducing production costs, and university partners, advance our
> knowledge of the structure and function of enzymes. All partners have
> access to the AFUF reactors for conducting and assessing performance
> on a wide range of scales.
>
> **Fermentation**
>
> After hydrolysis, the sugars obtained from both pretreatment and
> enzymatic hydrolysis are fermented to ethanol or otherwise processed
> to desired products. NREL scientists have developed an improved
> Zymomonas mobilis bacterium that is capable of fermenting both glucose
> (the six-carbon sugar derived from cellulose) and xylose (the primary
> five-carbon sugar derived from hemicellulose, which is more difficult
> to ferment than glucose) simultaneously.
>
> This patented bacterium strain could reduce the cost of capital
> equipment and help to streamline process operations in a
> cellulose-based ethanol-production plant. For a biorefinery, however,
> it may be advantageous to ferment the sugar streams separately to
> produce different products. The AFUF fermentation reactors, ranging
> from bench scale to 9000 liters, are capable of testing a variety of
> aerobic or anaerobic processes.
>
> Industrial partners developing processes that start with sugars
> instead of raw biomass can also operate the PDU's fermentation and
> downstream separations and product recovery sections as a
> Bioprocessing Pilot Plant.
>
> **Product Separation**
>
> The AFUF has a 10-meter distillation column for recovering ethanol.
> Researchers use this system as well as a wide range of filters,
> centrifuges, chromatography systems, evaporators, and membrane devices
> to separate, purify, and concentrate a wide range of potential
> products.
>
> **Process Integration**
>
> NREL biomass researchers have expertise in integrating the various
> processing steps, such as the conversion of biomass to sugars and the
> fermentation of sugars to products, into cost-effective industrial
> processes. They are adept at integrating processes using a variety of
> biomass and sugar feedstocks. To test these prospective bioprocesses,
> researchers most often use the AFUF\'s mini-pilot system rather than
> the PDU, which is not as suitable or cost effective for such
> investigations.
>
> AFUF researchers also have extensive experience working with
> industrial partners in support of specific R&D activities aimed at
> commercializing the next generation of bioconversion and bioprocessing
> technologies.
>
> **Process Analysis and Engineering**
>
> The AFUF houses substantial process engineering and analysis
> capabilities. Process simulation, economic analysis, and market
> analysis underpin all experimental research, factoring heavily in
> strategic and tactical business planning.
>
> NREL process engineers use ASPEN Plus and a variety of other process
> simulation, techno-economic analysis, and life-cycle analysis software
> tools to model and assess the environmental and economic impacts of a
> wide range of prospective biochemical or thermochemical conversion
> processes. Process simulation and modeling help determine: the
> economic impacts of specific technology improvements; the implications
> of particular process changes on overall system integration and
> performance; and the techno-economic feasibility of potential
> biorefining scenarios.
>
> **Compositional Analysis and Process Monitoring**
>
> While AFUF researchers are well versed in biomass compositional
> analysis and process monitoring, they can also reliably assess mass
> and element balance closures across discrete process steps. NREL\'s
> analytical chemists have expertise in developing, applying and
> refining a portfolio of analytical methods to determine the
> composition of a wide range of biomass feedstocks and process
> intermediates. Components monitored include polymeric and monomeric
> sugars, lignin, organic acids, proteins, sugar degradation products,
> extractives, ash, and moisture.
>
> The AFUF contains a wide variety of instrumentation, including a range
> of spectrometers (infrared, visible, and ultraviolet), automated
> extraction units, and high-performance liquid chromatographs equipped
> with a variety of columns and detector systems.
>
> Researchers have also developed \"rapid analysis\" methods that use
> multivariate techniques to extract compositional information directly
> from complex sample spectra. These methods enable the accurate,
> low-cost determination of multiple components in solid, liquid, and
> slurry samples, as well as developing on-line compositional analysis.
> The PDU and mini-pilot system include sophisticated data acquisition
> and control systems that permit effective, real-time process control
> and monitoring during any mode of operation (e.g., batch-fed or
> continuous). Additionally, dedicated mass spectrometers permit the
> on-line monitoring of fermenter exhaust-gas compositions.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

![](media/image11.jpeg){width="5.997916666666667in"
height="4.060416666666667in"}

**Number range CHAPTERBULK STORAGE BUILDING**

*(Not shown but similar to Butler Building in photo above)*

Year Constructed: 1988

Initial Acquisition Cost: \$124,580

Replacement Plant Value: \$309,096

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 4,000 gsf

Net Usable Space: 3,240 nsf

Full Time Staff: 0

**SHIPPING/RECEIVING FACILITY**

Year Constructed: 1997

Initial Acquisition Cost: \$1,392,142

Replacement Plant Value: \$3,997,483

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 14,600 gsf

Net Usable Space: 13,432 nsf

Full Time Staff: 12

**FACILITY MAINTENANCE BUILDING**

Year Constructed: 1988

Initial Acquisition Cost: \$180,225

Replacement Plant Value: \$888,718

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 4,000 gsf

Net Usable Space: 3,352 nsf

Full Time Staff: 0

**Bulk Storage Building**

The Bulk Storage Building is a metal-skinned \'Butler-type\' building
used as a storage facility for excess equipment and raw biomass to be
used at the Alternative Fuels User Facility as feedstock for the pilot
plant in the production of ethanol.

**Shipping/Receiving Facility**

The Shipping & Receiving Facility is a concrete and metal stud structure
used for the receipt and distribution of goods and supplies to the
various NREL facilities. The SRF also contains primary gas storage for
on-site distribution.

**Facility Maintenance Building**

The Facility Maintenance Building is a metal-skinned \'Butler-type\'
building used for the storage and repair of maintenance equipment and
maintenance supplies.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

![](media/image12.jpeg){width="6.146527777777778in"
height="4.916666666666667in"}

**Number range CHAPTERHIGH FLUX SOLAR FURNACE (HFSF)**

Year Constructed: 1990

Acquisition Cost: \$205,112

Replacement Plant Value: \$245,863

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 1,074 gsf

Net Usable Space: 979 nsf

Full Time Staff: 0

The power generated at NREL\'s High-Flux Solar Furnace (HFSF) can be
used to expose, test, and evaluate many components used in concentrating
solar power systems, such as receivers, collectors, and reflector
materials.

The 10-kilowatt HFSF consists of a tracking heliostat and 25 hexagonal
mirrors to concentrate solar radiation. The solar furnace can nominally
provide flux at 2,500 suns, but when required, can use specialized
secondary optics to generate significantly higher concentrations
(greater than 20,000 suns). Flux levels and distributions can also be
tailored to the needs of a particular research activity.

The operational characteristics and size of the facility make it ideal
for testing a wide range of technologies with a diverse set of
experimental requirements. The high heating rates make the HFSF an ideal
tool for testing high-temperature materials, coatings on metals and
ceramics, and other materials-related applications. Perhaps the most
exciting use of the facility is to provide a platform for testing
prototype advanced converters and chemical reactors for solar electric
and solar chemistry applications. Researchers also use the HFSF to
evaluate and develop state-of-the-art measurement systems for the
extreme solar environment.

![](media/image13.jpeg){width="3.1875in" height="2.40625in"}

The HFSF test building comes equipped with:

-   Computers and data acquisition tools;

-   Video monitors of the outside equipment;

-   Sophisticated instruments to monitor solar radiation and other
    atmospheric data; and

-   Automated devices that enable researchers to control the heliostat,
    primary concentrator, focal point, and the power of the concentrated
    sunlight.

While the HFSF is available to industrial, university, and government
researchers for a variety of experimental objectives, NREL provides
experienced staff to operate the facility.

**Advanced Optical Materials Laboratory**

NREL\'s Advanced Optical Materials Laboratory provides substantial
analytical and measurement capabilities for developing and testing
optical materials used for concentrating solar power systems.

The laboratory has many tools and instruments that measure optical
properties and performance. The equipment in this laboratory measures a
wide range of feature sizes (from nanometers to meters) and sample sizes
(from millimeters to tens of meters) traceable to the National Institute
of Standards and Technology.

> NREL offers three types of exposure testing capabilities for optical
> materials, including:

-   An international network of instrumented, outdoor exposure test
    sites;

-   Accelerated laboratory-controlled exposure chambers; and

-   An ultra-accelerated, natural sunlight exposure testing facility.

> Available analytical capabilities include:

-   X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy;

-   Ion scattering spectroscopy;

-   Auger electron spectroscopy;

-   Atomic force microscopy;

-   Scanning electron microscopy; and

-   Fourier-transform infrared.

**Advanced Thermal Storage Materials Laboratory**

The Thermal Storage Materials Laboratory supports NREL\'s research and
development of advanced heat transfer fluids for the next generation of
parabolic trough systems. The goal is to identify fluids with thermal
and oxidative stabilities that can withstand extreme operating
conditions, such as temperatures up to 425°C while remaining liquid at
or below 0°C, and can function as advanced thermal storage media.

To develop these heat transfer fluids, a synthetic chemistry laboratory
that combines a work area for basic wet chemistry with extensive thermal
and spectroscopic analysis capabilities is used. We can synthesize
fluids in gram quantities and immediately evaluate their thermal
behavior. To evaluate thermal behavior, NREL\'s molecular-beam mass
spectrometry system is used to study the thermal degradation mechanisms
by which newly synthesized fluids decompose at elevated temperatures.

**Optical Testing Laboratory and Beam Characterization System**

To develop and test concentrators for concentrating solar power systems,
NREL researchers use VSHOT (Video Scanning Hartmann Optical Test) and a
beam characterization system.

VSHOT, developed by the U.S. Department of Energy\'s SunLaboratory,
characterizes the optical performance of point-focus and line-focus
optical concentrators. The system uses laser ray tracing combined with
fast video imaging to mathematically describe mirror concentrator
surfaces and compare them to desired surfaces. It reports slope errors
of the actual surface relative to the desired surface and provides plots
of error location, magnitude, and direction. The surface slope data and
mathematical surface description produced by VSHOT can be input into ray
trace models to predict flux distributions on receivers.

VSHOT is fast. It allows us to test thoroughly a solar thermal
concentrator in 2 to 3 minutes or less. When detailed data is not
needed, VSHOT can test mirrors in even less time. SunLab continues to
improve the speed and functionality of VSHOT, extending its capabilities
as a field instrument for concentrator installation and alignment. The
system has been used extensively both in the laboratory and in the field
to quantify parabolic dish and parabolic trough optical performance,
providing developers with valuable information in their efforts to
deploy cost effective, high performance concentrating solar power
technology.

**Beam Characterization System**

A beam characterization system is used to measure the distribution of
concentrated sunlight on a target. The portable system acquires and
processes images reflected from a diffuse or Lambertian target. These
images are proportional to the incident flux. The system consists of a
10-bit digital camera with a spatial resolution of 736 x 484 pixels, a
motorized zoom lens, a laptop computer with docking station housing the
frame grabber card, and imaging software.

The Beamview Digital Laser Beam Diagnostic System from Coherent, Inc.
comprises the camera, frame grabber, and software. The beam
characterization system measures the solar flux incident at the focal
plane of a thermal or concentrating photovoltaic receiver. The
instrument is used extensively at the High-Flux Solar Furnace. Since the
beam characterization system is portable, it is used periodically to
support field measurements at the request of industry partners.

**Receiver Test Laboratory**

With NREL\'s parabolic trough receiver test stand, researchers analyze
the steady-state, off-sun thermal losses of receivers used in solar
parabolic trough power plants. First, electric heaters and thermocouples
are placed inside the receiver being tested. Then, the heater power use
is recorded at a desired absorber temperature. This routine is repeated
for several different absorber temperatures, generating heat loss curves
for a receiver.

Research continues to help reduce collector optical losses, as well as
to further reduce receiver heat loss at elevated temperatures. For more
information on receiver heat loss testing, visit TroughNet.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

![](media/image14.jpeg){width="5.510416666666667in"
height="3.3819444444444446in"}

**Number range CHAPTERSOLAR RADIATION RESEARCH LABORATORY (SRRL)**

Year Constructed: 2000

Initial Acquisition Cost:\$ 475,000

Replacement Plant Value:\$ 903,966

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 2,688 gsf

Net Usable Space: 2,400 nsf

Full Time Staff: 7

The Solar Radiation Research Laboratory (SRRL) is a unique research
facility located on South Table Mountain in Golden, Colorado. At 6,000
feet above mean seal level and with an unobstructed view of the local
horizon, the SRRL is well positioned to provide a variety of measurement
needs afforded by outdoor and indoor facilities.

Since 1985, the laboratory has continuously measured solar and
atmospheric radiation and other meteorological parameters important for
renewable energy technologies and climate research. These Web-accessible
archived data records and nearly real-time meteorological displays
benefit a wide audience in government, industry, and academia.

**Metrology Laboratory**

Using reference standards traceable to the National Institute of
Standards and Technology (NIST) and the World Radiance Reference (WRR),
the NREL Metrology Laboratory performs calibrations of a wide variety of
measurement and test equipment. Emphasizing the needs of renewable
energy technologies, the lab\'s calibrations capabilities include
electrical properties (volt, ohm, and power), physical properties
(temperature, humidity, time, and frequency), solar and atmospheric
irradiances.

**Optics Laboratory**

The SRRL\'s Optics Laboratory provides NIST traceable measurements for
Spectral Irradiance and Radiance Scale realization, calibration of user
spectroradiometers, measurement of natural and artificial light sources
spectral distribution, indoor/outdoor solar ultraviolet and filter
radiometer calibrations, and pulsed/continuous light source
characterization.

**Electronics Laboratory**

This portion of SRRL provides for the development, characterization, and
maintenance of all data acquisition systems, supporting research
equipment needed to make resource measurements (like automatic solar
trackers), and other specialized electronic devices related to solar
radiation measurements (radiometer signal simulators).

**Data Acquisition Laboratory**

The numerous data acquisition and processing systems needed to provide
web-accessible data from the SRRL and other DOE-sponsored locales are
developed and maintained in this laboratory. At the heart of this
operation is the Measurement & Instrumentation Data Center (MIDC). The
MIDC provides access to continuous solar and meteorological measurements
at the SRRL, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and at other
locations in the United States. More than 25,000 users from around the
world access data from the site each year.

![](media/image15.png){width="2.6041666666666665in"
height="1.40625in"}NREL uses the total Sky Imager Model TSI-880, which
is an automatic, full-color sky imager system that provides real-time
processing and display of daytime sky conditions. Images are captured
every 10 minutes and archived to the YESDAQ database. See the directory
and the image gallery. The system also produces \"cloud analyzed\"
images and computes the percent cloud cover. When a submission is made,
both the raw, unprocessed image and the same image with a software
filter applied will be presented with the thin opaque cloud cover
values.

**Facility Issues and Challenges**

![](media/image16.jpeg){width="6.197916666666667in"
height="3.845138888888889in"}

**Number range CHAPTERSOLAR INDUSTRIAL MESA TEST AREA (SIMTA)**

Year Constructed: 1992

Acquisition Cost: \$184,318

Replacement Plant Value: \$227,338

RPAM Condition: Excellent (\<2% RPV)

Space: 1,220 gsf

Net Usable Space: 1,120 nsf

Full Time Staff: 0

The Solar Industrial Mesa Test Area is an outdoor experimental testing
area located on the top of South Table Mountain. The facility consists
of an outdoor testing area and two metal-sided buildings for control and
monitoring of experiments. With excellent solar access, this facility
has been used in the past for the research and development of solar
detoxification of ground water and is currently being used by another
agency, Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), to
monitor the structural integrity of large scale heliostats and
tracking/drive mechanisms and Sterling Cycle solar engine performance
testing.

**Large Payload Solar Tracker**

NREL recently acquired a multipurpose, large payload tracker to support
testing of solar components that require tracking the sun in elevation
and azimuth. Concentrating collectors require 2-axis tracking to focus
sunlight on a thermal or photovoltaic (PV) receiver. For flat-plate
collectors, flat-plate PV, or solar hot water, this would imply tracking
to minimize variation in solar resource during on-sun testing. As
applicable, the site can be used to supplement metrology activities that
require 2-axis tracking for simultaneous calibration of a large number
of solar radiation measurement instrumentation. The large payload
tracker is capable of carrying a maximum vertical load of 9,000 pounds
with a tracking accuracy of 1 milliradian.

**Facility Issues and Challenges:**