Driving thermodynamic technology forward

Angelantoni is a global leader in the development and manufacture of thermodynamic solar products, testing equipment and services. Philip Yorke reports on a company that is at the cutting edge of solar energy technology and continues to lead the field by driving technologies forward that enhance the protection of the environment.

Angelatontoni is an Italian company that was founded in 1932 by 28 year-old Giuseppe Angelantoni as a refrigeration business. The company has seen consistent growth over the years and in 2012 a new organisational structure was put in place. Today the Angelantoni Group is comprised of three distinct divisions: Angelantoni Test Technologies (ATT), Angelantoni Life Science (ALS) and Angelantoni Clean Tech (ACT). It also has a wholly owned subsidiary by the name of Archimede Solar Energy (ASE).

The Angelantoni Group is a truly global player with eight production plants located throughout Italy, Germany, France, India and China. The group is innovation-driven in the areas of testing, biomedical and clean technology sectors, as well as in advanced solar technologies.

Interestingly, it is the ATT division that stands out for its broad product portfolio of testing solutions, which are marketed through its three main brands: ACS for environmental test chambers, BIA for automotive and aerospace test benches and TIRA for electrodynamic vibration test systems, material testing equipment, balancing machines and mechanical engineering systems.

The ALS division is a global leader in the manufacture of biomedical equipment and medical devices for the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors, as well as for life science research institutes. It also works closely with leading universities and research institutes, which has resulted in a variety of new patents and ground-breaking products being launched. These include unique products which have

been designed for the blood-banking and bio-banking areas and the only fully automated system to store and retrieve individual biological samples at cryogenic temperatures.

Angelantoni Clean Tech and Cold Energy (ACT) controls six companies operating in the renewable energy and energy efficiency sectors with a particular focus on solar power. This division also demonstrates a clear commitment to R&D with numerous registered patents to its name.

Focus on solar energy

The Archimede division’s Concentrating Solar Power Systems (CPS) produce electricity in a similar way to conventional power stations, using steam to drive a turbine. However, the difference is that the energy comes from solar radiation and is converted into high temperatures of between 400 and 1000ºC using hundreds of mirrors.

The special CSP technology allows the conversion of solar radiation into thermal energy through a concentrator, which is made by reflecting areas that focus the sun’s rays onto a receiver and thereby constitute a ‘trough’. The south-western part of the United States is one of the world’s best areas for insolation and the Mojave Desert receives sunlight hours of up to twice that of other regions in the country.

Other promising geographical candidates where CPS technology can be optimised include southern Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and parts of India, China and Australia.

New thermodynamic power plant

Recently Archimede Solar Energy (ASE), a division of the Angelantoni Group, announced that it has completed its first large thermodynamic power plant in China with parabolic trough collectors and molten salts. This major project was started in 2013 and is now fully operational with 32,000 tubes delivered, which generate 55 MWe power and offers 15 hours of thermal storage that will enable it to produce electricity even when the sun is absent.

The system operates by allowing the parabolic troughs to follow the sun to continuously collect and concentrate its radiation onto a receiver tube. Inside the receiver tubes there is a fluid that is heated by the solar rays from 290C to 550C and this result is achieved using a balanced molten salts binary mixture.

ASE is the only company in the world able to produce Molten Salts Solar Receiver Tubes, but it can also offer receiver tubes for different technologies available on the CSP, such as oil and DSG (Direct Steam Generation). Currently ASE tubes production capacity exceeds 200 MWe and this is likely to increase still further in the years to come.

Going beyond environmental compliance

In accordance with the international environmental standard, ISO 14001, the Angelantoni Group has introduced a far-reaching Environmental Management System into its solar testing and biomedical production activities. The company’s adoption of these voluntary environmental management models goes well beyond mere compli-

ance with legal requirements and the environmental statement. It regularly publishes the results attained in its environmental management programme, thereby demonstrating its commitment and transparency to the whole community.

The Angelantoni Group’s commitment to protecting the environment is an essential element of its business strategy that permeates every one of its process and production activities. This is evident in its continuous reduction and elimination of environmental impacts encountered during its manufacturing processes; for example, by the installation of photovoltaic panels on roofs and a biomass thermal energy system for heating and cooling manufacturing facilities. n

For further details of the Angelantoni Group’s innovative thermal products and services, visit: www.angelantoni.it