Andasol solar power station

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/andasol-solar-power-station

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the scientific name?N/A (This is a power station, not a biological organism)
2. What is the location?Guadix, Andalusia, Spain
3. How does Andasol store heat?The plant uses big insulated tanks filled with molten salt that stays hot after the sun warms it, and this heat can later be turned into steam to run a turbine.
4. Why can Andasol keep working after sunset?Because the molten salt keeps the heat inside, so the plant can produce electricity for several hours without sunlight.

Concentrated Solar Power (CSP): A renewable energy technology that uses mirrors to concentrate sunlight, generating heat to produce electricity.
Parabolic Trough: A solar collector that uses a curved mirror to focus sunlight onto a linear receiver tube, heating a fluid.
Molten Salt Thermal Energy Storage: A system that stores heat energy in liquid salts, enabling electricity generation when solar input is unavailable.
Dispatchable Renewable Energy: Renewable energy sources that can be controlled and turned on or off as needed, similar to conventional power plants.