This document summarizes solar space heating and cooling systems. It describes passive solar systems that use design features like windows and heat-absorbing materials to collect solar energy. Active systems have collectors that absorb solar radiation and fans/pumps to transfer heat. Passive systems are less complex but active systems allow retrofitting. Solar space cooling uses absorption chillers, where a refrigerant absorbs heat and is pumped to a generator before re-vaporizing to provide cooling. Heat is provided by solar collectors in the form of hot water.
2. Space Heating
• A solar space –heating system can consist
of a passive system, an active system, or a
combination of both. Passive systems are
typically less costly and less complex than
active systems. However, when retrofitting
a building, active systems might be the
only option for obtaining solar energy
3. Passive Solar Space
Heating
• Passive Solar Space Heating takes
advantage of warmth from the sun through
design features, such as large south-facing
windows, and materials in the floors or
walls that absorb warmth during the day
and release that warmth at night when it is
needed most.
4. • Passive solar design systems usually have one of the
three designs:• Direct Gain stores and slowly releases heat energy
collected from the sun shining directly into the
building and warming materials such as tile or
concrete .
5. • Indirect Gain uses materials that hold, store,
and release heat; the material is located
between the sun and living space.
6. • Isolated Gain collects solar energy remote
from the location of the primary living area.
7. Active Solar Space Heating
• Active solar space heating systems consist of
collectors that collect and absorb solar radiation
combined with electric fans or pumps to
transfer and distribute that solar heat.
• Active systems also generally have an energy
storage system to provide heat when the sun is
not shining.
8. • The two basic types of active solar space-heating
systems use either liquid or air as the heat-transfer
medium in their solar energy collectors
• Liquid-based systems heat water and air-based
systems heat air in the collector.
• Both of these systems collect and absorb solar
radiation, then transfer the solar heat directly to
the interior space or to a storage system, from
which the heat is distributed.
9. • An auxiliary or backup system provides heat when
storage is discharged.
• Liquid systems are more often used when storage
is included.
10. Solar Space Cooling
• In the chiller , refrigerant vapor from the evaporator
is absorbed by a solution mixture in the absorber
• This solution is then pumped to the generator
• There the refrigerant re-vaporizes using a waste
steam heat source .The refrigerant –depleted
solution then returns to the absorber via a throttling
device.
• The two most common refrigerant/absorbent
mixture used in absorption chillers are water/
lithium bromide and ammonia / water
11. • Systems use a low-temperature liquid refrigerant that
absorbs heat from the water to be cooled and
converts to a vapor ( in the evaporator section ).
• This used for space cooling
• The refrigerant vapor is then compressed to a higher
pressure by a compressor or generator and converted
back into a liquid by rejecting heat to the external
surrounding in the condenser section.
12. • Next, it is expanded to a low-pressure mixture
of liquid and vapor (in the expander valve),
which boils in the evaporator section,
absorbing heat and producing the cooling
effect.
• Then the cycle is repeated.
• Heat provided in the system is by solar
collector in the form of hot water.