Thermal storage with molten salt is considered to be an important subsystem for solar thermal power stations due to the fluctuation of sunshine over time. A molten salt thermal storage tank, in which the fluid is stratified in temperature with “hot” on the upper level and “cold” in the...

This study aims to investigate a potential application of concentrating solar power (CSP) systems for producing electricity in the tropical environment of Thailand. An 8-year period (1995–2002) of satellite data was used to generate the direct normal irradiation map of the country. The map...

Micro combined heat and power (CHP) plants operating through an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) using renewable energy are analyzed. The reference system is designed to produce 50kWe. The heat sources of the system are geothermal energy at low temperature (80–100°C) and solar energy. Two...

This paper addresses the optimal design of desalination plants that integrate reverse osmosis, a Rankine cycle, parabolic trough solar collectors and thermal energy storage (TES). A multi-objective mixed-integer nonlinear programming model (MINLP) is developed to model such an integrated system...

This paper presents a study of energy performance enhancement methods in multistory residential buildings. The study is carried out for Montreal location, Canada (45°N). All configurations considered assume a suburban environment that allows high solar exposure and no obstruction from adjacent...

In this paper, an optical analysis on the end loss effect of parabolic trough solar collector (PTC) with horizontal north–south axis (PTC-HNSA) is performed, and a method to compensate its end loss effect is presented. The calculation formulae for the optical end loss ratio and the increased...

We propose fixed (non-tracking) configurations of solar light collector modules which are designed to operate efficiently throughout the day, i.e. for varying incident angles of direct sunlight, and in conditions of diffuse solar irradiation. We present two trough designs of compound parabolic...

The goal of this paper is to assess the suitability of hybrid PVT systems for the provision of electricity and hot water (space heating is not considered) in the UK domestic sector, with particular focus on a typical terraced house in London. A model is developed to estimate the performance of...

In this paper we propose a new solar thermal collector which is suitable for providing heat for endothermic chemical reactions. The particular reaction that is considered is hydrogen production by menthol reforming. The design presented here is based on CPC (compound parabolic concentrator)...

During the heat recovery in a Kalina cycle, a binary aqua–ammonia mixture changes its state from liquid to vapor, the more volatile ammonia vaporizes first and then the water starts vaporization to match temperature profile of the hot fluid. In the present work, a low temperature Kalina cycle...