RE: PG&E will shut off power for nearly 800,000 customers starting Wednesday
11-02-2019, 03:05 AM
11-02-2019, 03:05 AM
Something I came across that I thought I should drop in here since it's relevant and all.
You may recall that I've brought up the idea of absorption chiller systems (e.g.: just like those propane powered freezers in RVs) using evacuated tube solar collectors as the heat source (which can gather quite a bit of thermal energy even on a cloudy and chilly day).
Apparently, this tech is actually quite mature. Like in the same timeframe Skylab and Space Shuttle. Nothing new-fangled about it at all.
And apparently the US Federal Government was looking into the feasibility of it. I can do no better than to quote from one of the last sections in the document.
4.5 RECOMMENDED DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS OF A RESIDENTIAL SOLAR ABSORPTION CHILLER SYSTEM
The simulation studies examining the performance of the solar operated absorption chiller in various operating configurations reveal no "add on" equipment which is economically viable in improving the performance in residential operation. The simplest design, and there-fore the least capital intensive, fortunately is the most economically viable. A complete design schematic for a residential solar operated air conditioning system and its specifications are shown in Figures 4.6.1, 4.6.2, 4.6.3, 4.6.4, and Table 4.6.1. This design specification may be used to build a technically sound solar operated air conditioning system. The economic characteristics of the system, however, must be determined by other means.
I'm pretty sure that whatever those economic characteristics are, they can be vastly improved upon by using photovoltaic cells to power the various blowers and pumps such a system would need. You can see the rest of the document here, which comes in that nice, tidy, and easy-on-the-eyes double-line spacing government tech-pub look: https://www.osti.gov/biblio/6742944
This is actually already going places. There's a Chinese manufacturer that has, for some years now, been building "slim" units that don't store chilled water. And they only use electricity to operate the pumps and blowers, but since there's no need for compression, they're very efficient. And here in the US, there is a company in North Carolina that can equip homes with a hybrid system that is not only incredibly efficient, but the government will also give tax credits to cover two-thirds of the cost to purchase and install said system. (Though I think they only use the evacuated tube collectors to replace your heating elements... I could be wrong, though.)
I'll check in again sometime later next week.
You may recall that I've brought up the idea of absorption chiller systems (e.g.: just like those propane powered freezers in RVs) using evacuated tube solar collectors as the heat source (which can gather quite a bit of thermal energy even on a cloudy and chilly day).
Apparently, this tech is actually quite mature. Like in the same timeframe Skylab and Space Shuttle. Nothing new-fangled about it at all.
And apparently the US Federal Government was looking into the feasibility of it. I can do no better than to quote from one of the last sections in the document.
4.5 RECOMMENDED DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS OF A RESIDENTIAL SOLAR ABSORPTION CHILLER SYSTEM
The simulation studies examining the performance of the solar operated absorption chiller in various operating configurations reveal no "add on" equipment which is economically viable in improving the performance in residential operation. The simplest design, and there-fore the least capital intensive, fortunately is the most economically viable. A complete design schematic for a residential solar operated air conditioning system and its specifications are shown in Figures 4.6.1, 4.6.2, 4.6.3, 4.6.4, and Table 4.6.1. This design specification may be used to build a technically sound solar operated air conditioning system. The economic characteristics of the system, however, must be determined by other means.
I'm pretty sure that whatever those economic characteristics are, they can be vastly improved upon by using photovoltaic cells to power the various blowers and pumps such a system would need. You can see the rest of the document here, which comes in that nice, tidy, and easy-on-the-eyes double-line spacing government tech-pub look: https://www.osti.gov/biblio/6742944
This is actually already going places. There's a Chinese manufacturer that has, for some years now, been building "slim" units that don't store chilled water. And they only use electricity to operate the pumps and blowers, but since there's no need for compression, they're very efficient. And here in the US, there is a company in North Carolina that can equip homes with a hybrid system that is not only incredibly efficient, but the government will also give tax credits to cover two-thirds of the cost to purchase and install said system. (Though I think they only use the evacuated tube collectors to replace your heating elements... I could be wrong, though.)
I'll check in again sometime later next week.