Performance analysis & energy benefits of a desiccant based solar assisted trigeneration system in a building

In this paper, performance details and operational benefits of a large scale solar trigeneration system that provides for solar assisted desiccant cooling, heating and hot water generation installed in a teaching institute building have been reported. A two-rotor desiccant system designed for handling 12 000 m3/hr of air was integrated into existing plant to provide a net reduction in energy consumption over the pre-existing heating ventilation and air-conditioning and domestic hot water systems. The system is controlled and monitored by a building management system which has been used to investigate and analyse the typical system behaviour. Heat from solar energy contributed consistently to reduce gas usage for water heating and on an annual basis showed a reduction of 21% of consumed energy. The solar energy contribution for space heating varied over winter months and during some months it was observed to contribute more than 50% of the total energy requirements for space heating. Under suitable ambient conditions, approximately 35% of total building cooling load was met by the solar driven desiccant cooling system. Continuous monitoring has also helped understand some of the operational issues of the system.     

Potential of solar heat pipe vacuum collectors in the desiccant cooling process: Modelling and experimental results

Desiccant cooling is an alternative technique to vapour compression systems. When thermally driven at moderate temperatures, it can be coupled to solar collectors. The use of flat-plate collectors and air collectors has demonstrated low efficiency in the coupling process and so a low potential of solar energy use in desiccant cooling. In this paper the use of heat pipe vacuum tube (HPVT) collectors in a solar desiccant cooling set up is investigated. First, a model for the collectors is proposed and experimentally validated under various operating conditions. A model of the storage tank taking into account thermal stratification is also validated. The experimentally evaluated efficiency of the HPVT collectors for one operating day varies between 0.6 and 0.7. Finally, simulation of the solar desiccant plant cooling a building is performed for different climates over a summer season. The solar fraction and the overall efficiency of the solar plant are calculated for this period and the potential of the vacuum tube collectors is evaluated for application to the desiccant cooling process.     

Energy and economic assessment of desiccant cooling systems coupled with single glazed air and hybrid PV/thermal solar collectors for applications in hot and humid climate

This paper presents a detailed analysis of the energy and economic performance of desiccant cooling systems (DEC) equipped with both single glazed standard air and hybrid photovoltaic/thermal (PV/t) collectors for applications in hot and humid climates. The use of ‘solar cogeneration’ by means of PV/t hybrid collectors enables the simultaneous production of electricity and heat, which can be directly used by desiccant air handling units, thereby making it possible to achieve very energy savings. The present work shows the results of detailed simulations conducted for a set of desiccant cooling systems operating without any heat storage.System performance was investigated through hourly simulations for different systems and load combinations. Three configurations of DEC systems were considered: standard DEC, DEC with an integrated heat pump and DEC with an enthalpy wheel. Two kinds of building occupations were considered: office and lecture room. Moreover, three configurations of solar-assisted air handling units (AHU) equipped with desiccant wheels were considered and compared with standard AHUs, focusing on achievable primary energy savings.The relationship between the solar collector’s area and the specific primary energy consumption for different system configurations and building occupation patterns is described. For both occupation patterns, sensitivity analysis on system performance was performed for different solar collector areas. Also, this work presents an economic assessment of the systems. The cost of conserved energy and the payback time were calculated, with and without public incentives for solar cooling systems. It is worth noting that the use of photovoltaics, and thus the exploitation of related available incentives in many European countries, could positively influence the spread of solar air cooling technologies (SAC). An outcome of this work is that SAC systems equipped with PV/t collectors are shown to have better performance in terms of primary energy saving than conventional systems fed by vapour compression chillers and coupled with PV cells.All SAC systems present good figures for primary energy consumption. The best performances are seen in systems with integrated heat pumps and small solar collector areas. The economics of these SAC systems at current equipment costs and energy prices are acceptable. They become more interesting in the case of public incentives of up to 30% of the investment cost (Simple Payback Time from 5 to 10 years) and doubled energy prices.     

System performance and economic analysis of solar-assisted cooling/heating system

The long-term system simulation and economic analysis of solar-assisted cooling/heating system (SACH-2) was carried out in order to find an economical design. The solar heat driven ejector cooling system (ECS) is used to provide part of the cooling load to reduce the energy consumption of the air conditioner installed as the base-load cooler. A standard SACH-2 system for cooling load 3.5 kW (1 RT) and daily cooling time 10 h is used for case study. The cooling performance is assumed only in summer seasons from May to October. In winter season from November to April, only heat is supplied. Two installation locations (Taipei and Tainan) were examined.It was found from the cooling performance simulation that in order to save 50% energy of the air conditioner, the required solar collector area is 40 m² in Taipei and 31 m² in Tainan, for COP_j = 0.2. If the solar collector area is designed as 20 m², the solar ejector cooling system will supply about 17–26% cooling load in Taipei in summer season and about 21–27% cooling load in Tainan. Simulation for long-term performance including cooling in summer (May–October) and hot water supply in winter (November–April) was carried out to determine the monthly-average energy savings. The corresponding daily hot water supply (with 40 °C temperature rise of water) for 20 m² solar collector area is 616–858 L/day in Tainan and 304–533 L/day in Taipei.The economic analysis shows that the payback time of SACH-2 decreases with increasing cooling capacity. The payback time is 4.8 years in Tainan and 6.2 years in Taipei when the cooling capacity >10 RT. If the ECS is treated as an additional device used as a protective equipment to avoid overheating of solar collectors and to convert the excess solar heat in summer into cooling to reduce the energy consumption of air conditioner, the payback time is less than 3 years for cooling capacity larger than 3 RT.     

光伏/光热-地源热泵联合供热系统运行性能研究

为解决太阳电池的发电效率随温度升高而下降以及地源热泵系统供热引起的土壤热失衡问题,以典型居住建筑的光伏/光热-地源热泵（PV/T-GSHP）联合供热系统为研究对象,基于TRNSYS软件,采用土壤温度、地源热泵机组季节能效比、光伏发电效率和太阳能保证率为评价指标,对该联合供热系统进行运行性能分析。研究结果表明：夏热冬冷地区（以长沙为例）太阳能保证率相对较高,PV/T组件面积为满屋顶最大化安装（900 m²）时,第20年末土壤温度相比初始地温仅升高0.8 ℃,热泵机组季节能效比约为5.1,太阳能保证率为97.0%~98.7%;不同气候地区的太阳能保证率与PV/T组件面积和建筑全年累计供热量有关,通过定义单位建筑全年累计供热量PV/T组件面积指标,得到中国不同气候地区的太阳能保证率与该指标的耦合关系,回归方程的决定系数R²为0.983,得出在已知建筑全年累计供热量和太阳保证率设计目标值的条件下所需PV/T组件面积的计算方法。PV/T-GSHP联合供热系统的全年运行能耗显著小于平板太阳能集热器-地源热泵联合系统（最小降幅为沈阳,49.7%）,远小于空气源热泵（最小降幅为石家庄,79.8%）和燃气壁挂炉（最小降幅为沈阳,65.1%）。     

太阳能吸收式空调系统的经济性分析

针对一个特定的对象,进行了太阳能吸收式空调系统寿命周期内的模拟计算及影响因素的分析,结果表明：（1）单纯太阳能空调（无采暖与热水供应）的经济性很差,太阳能空调与供热的复合系统的经济性要优于单纯的太阳能空调系统;（2）太阳能采暖与空调的复合系统,采暖与供冷的负荷比对系统的经济性有很大影响,即使在最佳的负荷比时仍无法和常规的系统竞争;（3）太阳能与生活热水系统的负荷系统中,热水负荷所占比重越大,经济性越好,当太阳能空调使用生活热水系统夏季多余的热量时,太阳能空调系统经济上可以和天然气锅炉＋电动制冷机竞争,并具有很好的节能性和环境效益。     

Field thermal performance of naturally ventilated solar roof with PCM heat sink

For decades, residential and commercial roofs have been considered a prime location for installation of building integrated solar systems. In climatic conditions of East Tennessee, USA, an experimental solar roof was tested during 2009/2010, by a research team representing Metal Construction Association (MCA), and a consortium of building insulation companies, photovoltaic (PV) manufacturers, and energy research centers. The main objective was to thermally evaluate a new roofing technology utilizing amorphous silicon PV laminates integrated with the metal roof panels. In order to mitigate thermal bridging and reduce roof-generated thermal loads, this novel roof/attic assembly contained a phase change material (PCM) heat sink, a ventilated air cavity over the roof deck, and thermal insulation with an integrated reflective surface. During winter, the experimental roof was expected to work as a passive solar collector storing solar heat absorbed during the day, and increasing overall attic air temperature during the night. During summer, the PCM was expected to act as a heat sink, reducing the heat gained by the attic and consequently, lowering the building cooling-loads.In this paper, field thermal performance data of the experimental PV-PCM roof/attic system are presented and discussed. Performance of the PV-PCM roof/attic is evaluated by comparing it to a control asphalt shingle roof. The test results showed about 30% heating and 50% cooling load reductions are possible with the experimental roof configuration.     

Experimental study with operational solar‐sorption cooling

Building integrated solar systems have been considered as a reasonable system for building heating, cooling and hot water supply. Various types of solar collectors, such as plate type, evacuated tube type and solar air collector, have been used as the heat source, whereas adsorption chillers, absorption chillers and desiccant dehumidification systems have been considered to match the above solar heat sources. Now, such sorption chillers are more matured, but their coupling with suitable solar heat source is not well researched. Experimental study has been done in this paper to analyse four kinds of typical solar air‐conditioning system with different sorption chillers and solar collectors. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

屋顶光伏与建筑负荷之间的相互影响

建立了3种不同形式光伏屋顶和普通屋顶的一维非稳态模型,采用天津地区典型年的气象数据,考察了不同屋顶形式对建筑冷热负荷的影响,并对3种不同光伏屋顶系统中光伏组件的电性能进行了研究.研究结果表明:夏季采用带通风流道的光伏屋顶比较有利,而冬季则比较适宜采用封闭通风流道的光伏屋顶形式.     

Development and construction of the novel solar thermal desiccant cooling system incorporating hot water production

This paper reports the development and construction of the novel solar cooling and heating system. The system consists of the thermal energy subsystem and the desiccant cooling subsystem. The system utilizes both the cheaper nighttime electric energy and the free daytime solar energy. The system is conceptualized to produce both cooling during summer daytime and hot water production during winter. Testing and evaluation of the system had been done to determine its operational procedure and performance. Based on the results, the thermal energy subsystem functioned to its expected performance in solar energy collection and thermal storage. The desiccant cooling subsystem reduced both the temperature and the humidity content of the air using solar energy with a minimal amount of back-up electric energy. The system however, needs further investigation under real conditions.     

Performance improvement of PV/T solar collectors with natural air flow operation

The electrical efficiency of a photovoltaic system drops as its operating temperature rises and PV cooling is necessary. The photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) system is a relatively recent type of solar collector where a circulating fluid of lower temperature than PV module extracts heat from it, cooling the module to improve its output power while the solar pre-heated fluid provides sensible heat. In the present work, air cooling of a commercial PV module configured as PV/T air solar collector by natural flow is presented, where two low cost modification techniques to enhance heat transfer to air stream in the air channel are studied. The considered methods consist of thin metal sheet suspended at the middle or fins attached to the back wall of the air-channel to improve heat extraction from the module. A numerical model was developed and validated against the experimental data obtained from outdoor test campaigns for both glazed and unglazed PV/T prototype models studied. The validation results show good agreement between predicted values and measured data and thus could be used to study analytically the performance of these PV/T air collectors with respect to several design and operating parameters. The modified systems present better performance than the usual type and will contribute to better performance of integrated PV systems for natural ventilation applications in buildings, both space cooling and heating.     

不同地区住宅能耗与太阳能吸收式空调系统匹配性分析与模拟研究

为了满足农村住宅清洁用能的需求,多种形式的能源系统逐渐开始应用于广大的农村地区。随着太阳能集热器集热效率的提高,热驱动机组各项性能不断改善,这样有利于太阳能吸收式空调系统在农村地区的应用。为了研究太阳能吸收式空调系统与农村住宅全年能耗的匹配问题,文章首先建立了DeST住宅模型,然后利用TRNSYS软件建立了太阳能吸收式空调系统模型,最后根据模拟结果对国内不同气候区内农村住宅供热季、供冷季的平均热负荷值,以及全年的能耗进行分析。此外,文章还分析了典型日太阳能吸收式空调系统的运行策略与效果。分析结果表明:在无辅助热源的条件下,太阳能集热器的集热温度会大于80℃,满足空调机组的热驱动温度,因此可以作为太阳能吸收式空调系统的的热源;当启动温度为85℃时,空调机组的制冷量可以达到8 kW,性能系数COP为0.733。     

Aspects and improvements of hybrid photovoltaic/thermal solar energy systems

Hybrid photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T or PVT) solar systems consist of PV modules coupled to water or air heat extraction devices, which convert the absorbed solar radiation into electricity and heat. At the University of Patras, an extended research on PV/T systems has been performed aiming at the study of several modifications for system performance improvement. In this paper a new type of PV/T collector with dual heat extraction operation, either with water or with air circulation is presented. This system is simple and suitable for building integration, providing hot water or air depending on the season and the thermal needs of the building. Experiments with dual type PV/T models of alternative arrangement of the water and the air heat exchanging elements were performed. The most effective design was further studied, applying to it low cost modifications for the air heat extraction improvement. These modifications include a thin metallic sheet placed in the middle of the air channel, the mounting of fins on the opposite wall to PV rear surface of the air channel and the placement of the sheet combined with small ribs on the opposite air channel wall. The modified dual PV/T collectors were combined with booster diffuse reflectors, achieving a significant increase in system thermal and electrical energy output. The improved PV/T systems have aesthetic and energy advantages and could be used instead of separate installation of plain PV modules and thermal collectors, mainly if the available building surface is limited and the thermal needs are associated with low temperature water or air heating.     

Performance of a solar liquid desiccant air conditioner – An experimental and theoretical approach

In this paper the results of testing a solar liquid desiccant air conditioner (LDAC) in the tropical climate of Queensland, Australia have been presented. The system uses polymer plate heat exchanger (PPHE) for dehumidification/indirect evaporative cooling, and a cooling pad as the direct evaporative cooler for the dry air leaving the PPHE. Lithium chloride, which is an effective desiccant in air dehumidification, was used in the experiments and a scavenger air regenerator concentrates the dilute solution from the dehumidifier using hot water from flat plate solar collectors. The data obtained from performance monitoring of the solar LDAC operating on a commercial site in Brisbane was compared with a previously developed model for the PPHE. The comparison reveals that good agreement exists between the experiments and model predictions. The inaccuracies are well within the measuring errors of the temperature, humidity and the air and solution flow rates. The above tests further indicate a satisfactory performance of the unit by independently controlling the air temperature and humidity inside the conditioned space.

In order to prevent carryover of the solution particles into the environment, eliminators are used at outlet of the absorber unit and the regenerator. An alternative method in preventing the carryover is the use of indirect cooling, in which the supply air does not contact the solution. The method can be used to produce potable water from the atmospheric air in remote areas.

The liquid desiccant system can be used in the HVAC industry, either as a packaged roof-top air conditioner, or as an air handler unit for commercial applications. The system could also be used for space heating in winter due to the property of desiccants to provide heat when wetted.     

Technical development of rotary desiccant dehumidification and air conditioning: A review

Rotary desiccant air conditioning system, which combines the technologies of desiccant dehumidification and evaporative cooling, is advantageous in being free from CFCs, using low grade thermal energy and controlling humidity and temperature separately. Compared with conventional vapor compression air conditioning system, it preserves the merits of environment-friendly, energy saving, healthy, comfortable, etc. Ongoing research and development works suggest that new desiccant materials and novel system configurations have significant potential for improving the performance and reliability and reducing the cost and size of rotary desiccant dehumidification and air conditioning system, thereby increasing its market competitiveness and breaking out the current fairly small niche market. For the purpose of providing an overview of recent efforts on these issues and showing how rotary desiccant air conditioning systems can be designed and coupled to available thermal energy, this paper presents and analyzes the status of rotary desiccant dehumidification and air conditioning in the following three aspects: the development of advanced desiccant materials, the optimization of system configuration and the utilization of solar energy and other low grade heat sources, such as solar energy, district heating, waste heat and bioenergy. Some key problems to further push forward the research and development of this technology are also summarized.     

Evaluation of the thermal performance indices of a ventilated double window through experimental and analytical procedures: Uw-values

Simulations to evaluate energy demand for heating and cooling and thermal comfort are becoming more and more common place in the building design process, at least in the most complex cases. In all detailed or simplified calculations, to analyse heat transfer to and from a building, several input parameters are needed. The inputs for the simulation of a whole building are at least the building geometry, the building envelope thermal indices (like thermal transmittance or the solar heat gain coefficient) and typical local climatic data. In a ventilated double window, the air flow through the channel between the two windows makes its thermal performance highly dynamic and dependent on the air flow characteristics. For a whole building simulation, single coefficients or easily calculated coefficients are needed for each facade system, including ventilated systems. In this paper, equivalent thermal transmittance coefficients for a ventilated double window are assessed and presented. For that, experimental measurements in the absence of solar radiation (night period) were used to identify tendencies and validate calculations. Furthermore, simulations were done in order to estimate the U_w-values of the ventilated double window under different windows configuration and different air flow rates. These values can then be used in whole building simulation programmes.     

Thermoelectric Module Integrated Fuel Cell in a Liquid Desiccant-Assisted Air-Conditioning System

Abstract

This study aims to estimate the energy performance of a liquid desiccant and evaporative cooling-assisted 100% outdoor air system (LD-IDECOAS) combined with a thermoelectric module integrated proton exchange membrane fuel cell (TEM-PEMFC). During the cooling season, recovered heat from the PEMFC was reclaimed to heat a weak desiccant solution and the generated electricity was used to operate the LD-IDECOAS. The TEM was operated as an auxiliary heater for heating the weak desiccant solution. In the off-cooling season, the PEMFC was operated to generate electricity and the recovered heat was also used to generate electricity using TEMs. In this study, a detailed energy simulation model was developed to estimate the energy savings potentials of the proposed system compared with the conventional LD-IDECOAS that uses a gas boiler and grid power without TEM-PEMFC. The result shows that TEMs can operate with a mean coefficient of performance of 2.0 when utilized for auxiliary heater in the cooling season. In addition, TEMs generate additional electricity with a mean power generation efficiency of 0.9%. Finally, the proposed system can save the 10.6% of annual primary energy compared with the conventional LD-IDECOAS. Therefore, the advantages of using TEM-PEMFC as heating and energy harvesting components were verified.     

Performance of a coupled cooling system with earth-to-air heat exchanger and solar chimney

Buildings represent nearly 40 percent of total energy use in the U.S. and about 50 percent of this energy is used for heating, ventilating, and cooling the space. Conventional heating and cooling systems are having a great impact on security of energy supply and greenhouse gas emissions. Unlike conventional approach, this paper investigates an innovative passive air conditioning system coupling earth-to-air heat exchangers (EAHEs) with solar collector enhanced solar chimneys. By simultaneously utilizing geothermal and solar energy, the system can achieve great energy savings within the building sector and reduce the peak electrical demand in the summer. Experiments were conducted in a test facility in summer to evaluate the performance of such a system. During the test period, the solar chimney drove up to 0.28 m³/s (1000 m³/h) outdoor air into the space. The EAHE provided a maximum 3308 W total cooling capacity during the day time. As a 100 percent outdoor air system, the coupled system maximum cooling capacity was 2582 W that almost covered the building design cooling load. The cooling capacities reached their peak during the day time when the solar radiation intensity was strong. The results show that the coupled system can maintain the indoor thermal environmental comfort conditions at a favorable range that complies with ASHRAE standard for thermal comfort. The findings in this research provide the foundation for design and application of the coupled system.     

Experimental investigation of a liquid desiccant system for solar cooling and dehumidification

Growing demand for air conditioning in recent years has caused a significant increase in demand for primary energy resources. Solar-powered cooling is one of the environmentally-friendly techniques which may help alleviate the problem. A promising solar cooling method is through the use of a liquid desiccant system, where humidity is absorbed directly from the process air by direct contact with the desiccant. The desiccant is then regenerated, again in direct contact with an external air stream, by solar heat at relatively low temperatures. The liquid desiccant system has many potential advantages over other solar air conditioning systems and can provide a promising alternative to absorption or to solid desiccant systems.Earlier work by the authors included theoretical simulations and preliminary experiments on the key components of the liquid desiccant system. The objective of the present study has been to construct a prototype system based on the knowledge gained, to monitor its performance, identify problems and carry out preliminary design optimization. A 16 kWt system was installed at the Energy Engineering Center at the Technion, in the Mediterranean city of Haifa. The system comprises a dehumidifier and a regenerator with their associated components operating together to dehumidify the fresh (ambient) air supply to a group of offices on the top floor of the building. LiCl-water is employed as the working fluid. The system is coupled to a solar collector field and employs two methods of storage – hot water and desiccant solution in the regenerated state. The performance of the system was monitored for five summer months under varying operating conditions. The paper describes the operation of the experimental system and presents the measured data and the calculated performance parameters.     

Design of a solar heating and cooling system for CSU solar house II

This paper describes the design of a solar air heating and night/day exchange cooling system with emphasis on the operational modes. In this type of system the collector absorbs solar energy and converts it to heat for space heating and domestic water heating. Cooling is accomplished by using the cool night air available in dry climates) to cool a pebble-bed storage unit and subsequently using the cool pebbles to lower the air temperature in the building during the day. Circulation is from the solar system to the building in the same manner as most modern heating and air conditioning units but uses air as the medium for heat transfer. The air system is particularly suited for climatic regions where heating loads are high and cooling requirements are moderate. The system utilized in Solar House II operates in either the heating or cooling mode as selected through a seasonable change-over switch. Solar preheated hot water is furnished for domestic use in either mode.