Available online at ScienceDirect. Procedia Environmental Sciences 38 (2017 )

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1 Available online at ScienceDirect Procedia Environmental Sciences 38 (2017 ) International Conference on Sustainable Synergies from Buildings to the Urban Scale, SBE16 EU-SOLARIS: The European Infrastructure for Concentrated Solar Thermal and Solar Chemistry Technologies M. Blanco a, Th. I. Oikonomou b, * and V. Drosou b a CSIRO Energy, Newcastle Energy Centre, 10 Murray Dwyer Circuit, Mayfield West, NSW 2304, Australia b CRES - Centre for Renewable Energy Sources and Saving, 19 th km Marathonos Ave, GR 19009, Pikermi, Greece Abstract EU-SOLARIS project is a European project, co-funded by the 7 th framework programme of the European Union. It is a Research Infrastructure (RI) initiative aimed to foster and promote the scientific and technological development of Concentrating Solar Thermal (CST) and Solar Chemistry technologies. EU-SOLARIS aims to create a new legal entity to explore and implement new and improved rules and procedures for the overall coordination and join exploitation of the main European RI for CST and Solar Chemistry technologies, in order to optimize RI development and Research and technology Development (R&D) coordination. It is expected to be the first of its kind, where industrial needs and private funding will play a significant role. The success of the EU-SOLARIS initiative will be the establishment of a new governance body, aided by sustainable financial models for this unique European large and distributed research infrastructure in the CST and Solar Chemistry fields. EU-SOLARIS is expected to be an important tool in consolidating Europe s leadership in these areas. This will be accomplished by linking the research community and the industry involved in the CST sector and providing them the research infrastructures needed to innovate and advance the state of the art of CST and Solar Chemistry technologies. EU-SOLARIS is also expected to increase the efficient use of the economic and human resources required throughout the European research context and to provide efficient resource management to complement research and to avoid unnecessary technological duplication and repetition. This article presents the vision, objectives, activities and current status of the EU-SOLARIS project and discusses the most important - expected to be achieved - outcomes of the project, which is currently at its last year of its preparatory phase The Authors. Published by Elsevier by Elsevier B.V. B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ( Peer-review under responsibility ofthe organizing committee of SBE16. Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of SBE16. Keywords:Concentrating solar thermal; solar chemistry; research infrastructure; research and technology development; solar thermal electricity * Corresponding author: tel.: , fax: address: thoikonomou@cres.gr The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ( Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of SBE16. doi: /j.proenv

2 486 M. Blanco et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 38 ( 2017 ) Introduction EU-SOLARIS project is a European project, co-funded by the 7 th Framework Programme of the European Union (EU), whose initiative is to foster, contribute and promote the scientific and technological development of the CST and solar chemistry technologies. CST technologies are expected to become a considerable supplier of green energy throughout the world. They can provide a dispatchable source of renewable energy, in case that they are deployed with thermal energy storage and/or hybridize with other sources of renewable energies, such as biomass or photovoltaics system. CST technologies use mirrors or lenses to concentrate the direct sunlight onto a small area receiver where the concentrated solar radiation is transformed into thermal energy. There are two main of solar concentrating technologies; line focus and point focus. Line focus technologies concentrate direct solar radiation in one-dimension, i.e, along one line, while point focus technologies concentrate direct solar radiation along two dimensions, i.e., generating a focal spot. The main commercial line focus CST technologies are represented by the parabolic trough and the linear Fresnel collectors, whereas the main commercial point focus technologies are represented by the parabolic dish collectors and central receiver system also known as solar tower, since usually the receiver is located a top of a tower to maximize the concentration of sunlight from the mirrors that compose the heliostat field. The different types of solar concentrating technologies achieve different degrees of concentration of the direct solar radiation onto the receiver and therefore allow for the achievement of different operating temperatures at varying thermodynamic efficiencies. Typically increasing the concentration allows for operating efficiently at higher temperature, but needs higher accuracy in tracking the sun and higher optical quality in the solar concentrator. Therefore, each technology is used for specific applications. The primary applications of CST technologies are power, steam, solar cooling, desalination and thermochemical plants. EU-SOLARIS is expected to improve the state-of-art of the abovementioned CST and solar chemistry technologies. It aims to create a new legal entity to explore and implement new and improved rules and procedures for RI for CST and solar chemistry technologies, in order to optimize RI development and R&D coordination. It is expected to be the first of its kind, where industrial needs and private funding will play a significant role. EU-SOLARIS aims to design a distributed research infrastructure in the form of a legal entity that will rely on a sustainable financial mechanism; a structured organization that brings together the resources and infrastructure of R&D of its members, and a shared management that acts as a single access point to European solar thermal research for the rest of the world. This initiative is integrated in the frame of European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) in the EU. Through this project new technologies in the field of CST energy will be identified and coordinated by the main European centers of the sector to respond to future technological needs. The EU-SOLARIS consortium consists of fifteen (15) partners that provide an excellent mix representing all actors relevant for supporting the further development of the CST and solar chemistry technologies research. The fifteen partners represent seven EU countries (Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Greece and Cyprus), two associate countries (Turkey and Israel) and one European Association. Nomenclature Acronyms CST EU ESFRI ERIC GIS R&D RES RI STE Concentrated Solar Thermal European Union European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures European Research Infrastructure Consortium Geographical Information System Research and technology Development Renewable Energy Sources Research Infrastructure Solar Thermal Electricity

3 M. Blanco et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 38 ( 2017 ) EU-SOLARIS project objectives, activities and vision 2.1. Project objectives When operational, EU-SOLARIS project intends to provide the most complete, high quality scientific infrastructure portfolio at international level and to facilitate researchers access to highly specialised research infrastructure through a single access point. This will be accomplished by linking scientific communities, industry and universities involved in the CST sector. Moreover, it is expected to increase the efficient use of the economic and human resources required throughout the European research context. EU-SOLARIS infrastructure will provide efficient resource management to complement research and to avoid unnecessary technological duplication and repetition Project activities The EU-SOLARIS project is currently in its Preparatory Phase. Within this context, the activity development is distributed into eight Work Packages. The structure of project combines horizontal activities (management, legal consultancy, human resources, communication) and vertical activities (knowledge breakdown, systems, project management, measures). These activities can be further grouped according to the following four set of topics: Legal: EU-SOLARIS as a legal entity. Operational: EU-SOLARIS as a distributed large research infrastructure. Managerial: Activities to assess EU-SOLARIS economic and social impact and to foster EU-SOLARIS outreach. Technological: Related technology activities Project vision EU-SOLARIS project intends to create an infrastructure which will: Become a unique distributed RI for CST technologies Optimize RI development and R&D coordination by creating a new legal entity to explore and implement new and improved rules and procedures for RI for CST technologies Ensure the alignment of the RI activities with the industry s needs Maintain Europe at the forefront of CST technologies development External activities to assess the EU-SOLARIS impact and outreach Promote related technology activities 3. EU-SOLARIS infrastructure EU-SOLARIS project is currently at its last fourth - year of its preparatory phase. At this preparatory stage of EU SOLARIS a series of main cornerstones have been accomplished as described below Legal framework The different possible legal structures for EU-SOLARIS entity were extensively analyzed. From this analysis, the European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) was selected as the recommended legal form to be adopted by the future EU-SOLARIS entity. ERIC is a legal entity with legal personality and full legal capacity. The legal framework for an ERIC -Council Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 of 25 June 2009 on the Community 1 - has been designed to facilitate the establishment and operation of RI of European interest with the involvement of several European countries. Its basic internal structure is very flexible, allowing the European countries that decide to participate in EU-SOLARIS to define in the statutes of the EU-SOLARIS ERIC, case by case, membership rights and obligations, the bodies of the ERIC and their competences. The liability of the ERIC s members will generally be limited to their respective contributions.

4 488 M. Blanco et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 38 ( 2017 ) Some of the main characteristics of ERIC community entity are: It is structured as a legal tool for high-level RI of a European and international dimension. It is an entity with its own legal personality and full legal capacity, recognised by all of the Member States of the EU. An ERIC is also an international organisation for the purposes of Article 15, letter c), of Directive 2004/18/CE. Its members may come form: the Member States of the EU; associated countries, construed as the countries with which the EU has entered into an international agreement for financial contribution to all or some of Community research, technological development and demonstration programmes; third party countries that are not considered as associated countries; and intergovernmental organisations. The main advantages of an ERIC are: It is a tailor-made legal form for ESFRI projects; It has its own legal personality and is a figure recognised in all of the Member States of the EU. In the third party countries that also wish to form part of ERIC, no further recognition action being required. It is a figure with Community and institutional backing and support, insofar as its members are States and international organisations; The direct participation of States in an ERIC redounds to the benefit of its better financing, given the institutional backing and the greater credibility and reliability that they offer vis-à-vis third party financial backers Facilities and technical services Currently, the potential technical services portfolio of EU-SOLARIS is a list of about 170 services. This list has been built following an iterative process of identification and definition among the members of the EU-SOLARIS Preparatory Phase consortium 2. The available services have been classified in a total of 16 types covering the different key subsystems of Solar Thermal Electricity (STE), the other applications of CST technology and the associated horizontal activities. The largest amount of available services are related to the testing and qualification of reflectors, concentrator, absorbers and receivers (see Figure 1). The amount of training and access to facilities services is also significant.

5 M. Blanco et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 38 ( 2017 ) Fig. 1. Number of services grouped by type. The services portfolio covers characterization and qualification of almost all the key subsystems in STE plants and other applications of CST technology as well as access to facilities, training and technological advising. 4. EU-SOLARIS project dissemination and outreach In terms of dissemination, major efforts have been done in increasing the participation in different events to inform and create awareness of the project s objectives, goals and benefits. So far EU-SOLARIS partners have participated in 25 in total conferences and workshops, where the project was disseminated. The results of the EU- SOLARIS project has been disseminated to EU community, key professionals, scientific communities, policy makes and the general public. For the dissemination of the project an essential instrument has been the website of the project. The EU- SOLARIS project website ( is of crucial importance in order to enhance the visibility of EU- SOLARIS as it is served as the main communication tool for the wide dissemination of the project deliverables and outcomes. This portal is expected to be used as a reference for the sector, providing original content to the scientific communities, policy makers, professionals, academic and researchers, market actors and general public. The website, already developed as part of the preparatory phase, contains information on the project scope, activities and partners, R&D potential and the project outcomes and reports. Currently, the website includes information on the project, under the following structure: Home page Welcoming page and description of EU-SOLARIS project, access to the event calendar and news About EU-SOLARIS project

6 490 M. Blanco et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 38 ( 2017 ) Objectives, partners, EU-SOLARIS activities Deliverables An overview on all publicly available publications issued in the course of the EU-SOLARIS project including leaflets, posters, presentations, progress reports, public reports and events in which the project either will be or was disseminated Technology Introductive page for CST and solar chemical technologies; technologies of parabolic trough, central receivers, linear Fresnel, parabolic dishes Library Reports, legislation, CST links, interactive CST toolkits, multimedia gallery, educational video Contact An important pillar of the project was the creation of project publishable reports, since most of deliverables were restricted to be published, as a whole, according to the project contract. The result of this effort has been the creation of a series of reports which contain publishable content. The public available reports, so far, are listed in Table 1 and they are available to users through the project website. Additional public reports are expected to be uploaded in the website by the end of the project. Table 1. EU-SOLARIS project public reports 3. # Name of report 1 First annual management report 2 Second annual management report 3 Extensive report on funding sources: EU-SOLARIS Grant Map 4 Status report on existing capacities, technological and human resources 5 Report portfolio of existing available technical services of partner centres and report containing the portfolio of available technical services 6 Report of previous experience of spin-off activity and applicable conclusions 7 Report on improved system for spin-off activities 8 Report on the new mechanisms for increasing future collaboration between centres and industry 9 Report questionnaire: EU-SOLARIS user requirements/needs 10 Report (listing) of existing users amongst EU-SOLARIS partners 11 Analysis of the results of the user questionnaire 12 Survey of existing offer of training on STE and proposal of an EU- SOLARIS course schedule Within the project website, users can have access to a valuable library on CST and solar chemistry technologies. Within the sub-menu Reports, statistical data and studies related to Renewable Energy Sources (RES) and CST technologies are given. Also, reports, which contain financial information, are included in the Report web page and in the homepage of the website (EU-SOLARIS Workshop on Financing Resources). In the sub-menu CST links, important website addresses are listed. Among them, there is a section on the available and recognized solar irradiation maps of Europe and the Mediterranean basin and animated geographical information system (GIS). Within the sub-menu Multi-media gallery, a photo gallery of pictures and videos and a description of each of them, collected by partners, are uploaded. Educational video on CST technologies are also available.

7 M. Blanco et al. / Procedia Environmental Sciences 38 ( 2017 ) Conclusion EU-SOLARIS project is expected to create a European initiative with the form of a unique distributed RI for CST and solar chemistry technologies that aims to foster and contribute to the technological and scientific development of infrastructure and new technologies in the field of STE and other applications for CST technologies. It will be structured as a new common legal form, with a joint management board and one access point for all users. Its ultimate target is to establish a platform for innovative developments and technology breakthroughs that will reduce the cost of the energy produced by CST technologies in order to be economically competitive and, therefore, maintain the European STE and CST leadership worldwide. EU-SOLARIS infrastructure will constitute a bridge between theory or laboratory testing and demonstration at a commercially-sized plant, offering space and favourable conditions for the implementation of preliminary pilot projects, and coordinating the main European centres within the industry looking towards the fulfilment of future technological requirements. Acknowledgements The EU-SOLARIS project is conducted as part of the EU Seventh Framework Programme. It is partly financed by European Commission under the co-ordination of CTAER (Advanced Technology Centre for Renewable Energies, Spain). The project coordinator, Dr. Manuel Blanco, is a Science Leader at the Solar Energy Systems Group of CSIRO -Australian National Research Agency. He is authorized by CSIRO to coordinate the EU- SOLARIS Project on behalf of CTAER. The project has duration of 48 months, from November 2012 to October The consortium of the project consists of fifteen partners: CTAER (Advanced Technology Centre for Renewable Energies, Spain), CIEMAT-PSA (Centro de Investigaciones Energeticas, Medioambientales y Tecnologicas-Ciemat, Spain), MINECO (Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad, Spain), LNEG (Laboratório Nacional de Energia e Geologia, I.P., Portugal), U.EVORA (Universidade de Evora, Portugal), CNRS (National Center for Scientific Research, France), CyI (The Cyprus Institute, Cyprus), ENEA (Agenzia Nazionale per le Nuove Tecnologie, L'energia e lo Sviluppo Economico Sostenibile, Italy), DLR (Deutsches Zentrum fürr Luft - und Raumfahrt ev, Germany), APTL-CERTH (Centre for Research and Technology Hellas, Greece), CRES (Centre for Renewable Energy Sources and Saving, Greece), ESTELA (European Solar Thermal Electricity Association), GÜNAM (Middle East Technical University, Turkey), SELCUK U (Selcuk Universitesi, Turkey), WEIZMANN (Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel). EU-SOLARIS website is available at References 1. European Commission, Report from the commission to the European parliament and the council on the Application of Council Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 of 25 June 2009 on the Community legal framework for a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) Brussels; E. Zarza and F. Téllez, EU-SOLARIS Project Public Report: Report portfolio of existing available technical services of partner centres and report containing the portfolio of available technical services ; available at 3. EU-SOLARIS Consortium, Project Public Reports; available at