ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the development of solar total energy (STE) system designs to the degree useful in evaluating concept feasibility. Most potential users initially have only a general idea of their energy requirements, and the objective is to provide a basis for formulating designs using this information. The chapter discusses user to determine if there is enough potential gain to warrant investing the time and money required to execute a detailed design of a STE facility for the particular application. The total energy is meant to represent any power-generation system capable of utilizing some or all of the energy normally rejected during the power conversion process to satisfy some thermal energy requirement for heating or cooling. Total energy systems have been in existence for quite some time, but significant interest in actually developing the concept into a major power source in the United States.
