The main vessel of the Nextower project has been completed

NexTower is a research project that aims to overcome the current technical limit for concentrated solar power (CSP) air-based towers, given by the very high temperature, through the use of liquid lead heat exchangers.

It is a safe, competitive and sustainable way to store thermal energy which will then be transformed into process heat or electricity.

Walter Tosto participates in this project as industrial partner and it has indeed been entrusted with the construction of the main technological vessels, as well as the development of the welding process on a new material able to withstand liquid lead very high temperatures (over 600 ° C).

In these days, the production of the main vessel made with an experimental alloy capable of resisting corrosion caused by high temperatures has been completed. The device, about 5 meters long with a diameter of 1.5 meters, will be installed at the ENEA site in Brasimone-Italy, where the planned testing activities will be carried out.