Search results for "Solar thermal collector"
showing 9 items of 9 documents
Solar and Heat Pump Systems for Domestic Hot Water Production on a Small Island: The Case Study of Lampedusa
2020
The achievement of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, related to energy and resource use, is a critical issue for small and insulated communities. In many minor islands, solar energy is not correctly exploited, and electrical heaters are connected to weak grids with very a high share of generation by fossil fuels. As a consequence, there is the necessity to assess the potential and the suitability of diffusion of alternative systems to avoid dependency on the electrical grid and reduce carbon emissions. This paper aims to evaluate the technical and economic performances of some alternative systems exploiting renewable energy for domestic hot water production. Four different syste…
Building integrated solar thermal design: assessment of performances of a low cost solar wall in a typical Italian building
2016
Abstract Present work deals with the topic of building integration of solar thermal collector (BIST) as a refurbishment measure. Such equipment, more than its main function as heating generator, plays a specific role as a building component (envelope finishes, thermal insulation layer, roof cover etc). Consequently, from a heat transfer point of view, an integrated component affects twice the global building balance: supporting the thermal plant (i.e. providing heat for final uses) and modifying the wall heat-transfer pattern (i.e. reducing thermal losses). In turn, the collector performance itself is influenced by the wall structure (back losses reduction). Present work proposes a method f…
Hidden energy and environmental loads of solar thermal collectors: A case study.
2001
The general aim of this work was to investigate a solar thermal collector and the energetic and environmental impacts related to this renewable technology. It was realised an eco-profile of an exemplary equipment, calculating the Cumulative Energy Demand (CED) and the Cumulative Emissions related to the production and use of a collector and the energy (or emissions) saved employing the renewable technology.
Life cycle assessment of a solar thermal collector: sensitivity analysis, energy and environmental balances
2005
Abstract Starting from the results of a life cycle assessment of solar thermal collector for sanitary warm water, an energy balance between the employed energy during the collector life cycle and the energy saved thanks to the collector use has been investigated. A sensitivity analysis for estimating the effects of the chosen methods and data on the outcome of the study was carried out. Uncertainties due to the eco-profile of input materials and the initial assumptions have been analysed. Since the study is concerned with a renewable energy system, attention has been focused on the energy indexes and in particular the “global energy consumption”. Following the principles of Kyoto Protocol, …
Life cycle assessment of a solar thermal collector
2005
Abstract The renewable energy sources are often presented as ‘clean’ sources, not considering the environmental impacts related to their manufacture. The production of the renewable plants, like every production process, entails a consumption of energy and raw materials as well as the release of pollutants. Furthermore, the impacts related to some life cycle phases (as maintenance or installation) are sometimes neglected or not adequately investigated. The energy and the environmental performances of one of the most common renewable technologies have been studied: the solar thermal collector for sanitary warm water demand. A life cycle assessment (LCA) has been performed following the inter…
Life Cycle Assessment of Solar Technologies
2015
This chapter analyses the most common solar technologies and assesses their energy and environmental performance, based on a life cycle perspective. After a preliminary description of the main technologies, the chapter presents a review of studies on solar plants, as published in scientific journals in the past decade. Successively, the chapter assesses solar plants in comparison to other renewable and non-renewable based technologies, including a discussion of uncertainties and criticalities in the assessment
Optimization of a thermoelectric system for power generation realized by ‘‘hidden’’ components
2014
Abstract Today the utilization of renewable energy sources is very important to support the traditional ones, and also in order to reach the objectives fixed by the Kyoto Protocol. In this context, also well-known technologies related to the electric energy production, formerly not suitable – due to the poor technological level of the components or due to the high costs linked to the system efficiency – may now find a suitable collocation. Among these technologies, the thermoelectric effect may be very advantageous in some particular applications of small power. A power generation system utilizing this technology has been studied by the authors. This system utilizes the thermal difference b…
Regression analysis to design a solar thermal collector for occasional use
2020
Abstract Optimal design of a solar thermal system is necessary to minimize payback time and to diffuse renewable energy use for Domestic Hot Water production in residential areas. More accurate design is crucial in the case of seasonal or occasional use of the system; indeed, the standard criteria generally applied to a design system for continuous use, can lead to considerable over-sizing. To speed up the design phase and to help the planner in the identification of the best solution without any complex evaluation or long computational time, it would be interesting to have available a simpler method than the standard procedures, but one that is reliable and accurate for the evaluation of t…
Towards achieving net-zero energy communities: Investigation of design strategies and seasonal solar collection and storage net-zero
2019
Abstract This paper explores a solar mixed-use community and its potential towards achieving net-zero energy status. This mixed-use community combines residential and commercial/institutional buildings. Energy performance of this neighbourhood is estimated in terms of energy consumption and generation potential by means of building integrated PV systems. A solar thermal collector system combined with a borehole thermal energy storage (BTES) is designed to investigate the impact on the overall performance of the neighbourhood. The design of solar thermal collectors and the sizing of short-term thermal energy storage is based on the analysis of the thermal loads for heating and domestic hot w…