Solar Thermal Applications CMX-CIPHEX 2012 Learning Forum 22nd March 2012

Presentation by Bob Swartman

1 Index • Solar energy- PV and S/T • Parameters- hot water load, measure, radiation • Sarnia CCC solar system • Simulation programs • Flow strategy - closed loop, drainback • Solar collector efficiency- ETC vs FPC • Cross-section of flat-plate collector • Adapting design to location- rack design • Heat exchanger, tanks, pumps, controllers • Solar products in Canada • Installation- lifting • Swimming pool heating • Solar water heating • Insulation and jacketing

2 Index • Safety concerns • Commissioning the system • Monitoring the system • Certification for solar installers- CanSIA and NABCEP • Permits- building and plumbing • Government incentives • Solar PV and water heating in Tobermory, ON • Combined solar space and water heating • Parkway Apartment Building in Owen Sound, ON • Rockwood Terrace Nursing Home in Durham, ON • Sixplex solar project in Windsor, ON

3 Solar energy includes two technologies- photovoltaics and thermal

Photovoltaics is electricity from the sun.

Solar thermal is heat from the sun.

4 Parameters for design of a solar hot water system

• hot water load -measured volume per day by flowmeter -estimate from ASHRAE for application • radiation and location -watts/m2 (max 1,000 w/m2) • azimuth and tilt of collectors -azimuth = angle from south -tilt = angle from horizontal 5 A typical residential solar water heating package comprises: one or more collectors, a storage tank (to match the collector area and the load) a pump and a controller.

6 Sarnia Child Care Centre

Solar collectors con

Storage tanks

Controller, pumps, heat exchanger and expansion tank 7 Simulation

• using RETScreen - uses solar radiation and average temperature on a monthly basis • HW load, rack azimuth and tilt • storage volume to collector area - 100 litres to match a 4 x 8 collector • using TRYNYS

8 Flow strategy

• closed loop- requires expansion tank

• drainback- requires high head pump

• thermosiphon- seasonal use only

9 Solar collector efficiency comparing an unglazed plastic pool panel, a flat plate collector and an evacuated tube collector

10 Solar collector efficiency Evacuated Tube Collector vs Flat Plate Collector

11 Cross section of flat-plate solar collector tempered low-iron class on aluminum box with isocyanurate insulation, selective coating on copper absorber fins

12 Adapting design to location rack design flush mount

inclined mount

13 rack design

ballasted on the roof

steel or aluminum

14 Heat exchanger shell-in-tube brazed flat plate

coil of stainless steel coil of copper

15 Heat exchanger Solar water heating with external heat exchanger

16 Heat exchanger and circulators in Rockwood Terrace mechanical room

17 Two 400 gallon solar tanks and a 300 gallon hot water storage tank at Rockwood Terrace, Durham, ON 18 Heat exchanger Solar water heating with internal heat exchanger

19 Tanks

• stainless steel

• enamel coated

• glass-lined

20 Pumps

• circulators- low head and high flow

• pumps- low flow and high head

• DC pumps

21 Controllers differential temperature controllers- compare temperature of solar collector to water temperature • 10k thermistor sensors : Goldline

• 1k Pt resistance sensors: Resol

22 Goldline solar controller and energy meter at Landmark Condominium, Kingston, ON

23 Solar products in Canada

• ThermoDynamics • Enerworks • Solcan • Viessmann • KBB • Others?

24 Lifting

Lifting rack materials, pipe and collectors to roof -manhandle or crane

25 Installing

26 Swimming pool heating

27 Solar water heating

Installation at Five Oaks, United Church of Canada Retreat Centre near Paris, ON

System comprises five flat-plate solar collectors secured to wall and sitting on roof as shown.

28 Solar water heating

40 panels on apartment building on 20 panels on condominium Nelson St., London, ON apartment building, Kingston, ON

29 Solcan 2101 Collectors (back view) on the roof of World Salon, Adelaide St., Toronto 30 PV and solar thermal panels

Two banks of 14 PV panels and one bank of 4 thermal panels installed on Visitors’ Centre at Parks Canada in Tobermory, ON 31 Insulation and jacketing

32 Safety concerns

• Fall arrest training

• Safe worksites

• Harnesses and safety lines

33 Commissioning the system

• temperature rise

• balancing the flow

• pumps running OK

34 Monitoring the system

Heat = flow x (Tin –Tout) x specific heat Heat = Flow measurement x temperature rise Sun reports (kit shown) download to iphone

35 Certification for solar installers

• CanSIA- Canadian Solar Industries Association

• NABCEP- North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners

• CSA- Canadian Standards Association

36 Permits • Building- may require letter from P Eng. for building permit; cost from $70 to $1,000 ….

• Plumbing permit may not be required. System may require vacuum breakers. Some inspectors require backflow preventers and double wall heat exchangers.

37 Government incentives • ecoEnergy for Retroft: for residential applications including single family dwellings and multi-unit residential units (MURBs) approx $625 per panel- until end of March 2012. • save ON energy from OPA through LDCs for displacement of electricity = approx $865 per panel on buildings in Ontario. • new incentive through microFIT.

38 Solar hot water feeding conventional hot water tank with summer bypass

39 Combined solar hot water and space heating

System installed near Goderich, ON.

40 Combined solar hot water and space heating

41 Combined solar hot water and space heating

System installed on Pelee Island in Lake Erie

42 Strategies for space and water heating

43 Combining solar with a heat pump

• Typical European solar/heat pump combo

44 Parkway Apartments, Owen Sound, ON

45 Rockwood Terrace Nursing Home in Durham, ON

Rockwood Terrace Nursing Home in Durham, ON near Owen Sound has 100 residents and substantial needs for hot water for laundry, bathing the residents, washing dishes and general usage, totaling about 12,000 litres per day. There are 30 Solcan flat-plate solar collectors mounted on racks on the roof supplying heat through a heat exchanger to the 3,000 litres of solar storage. The measured energy output is 183 GJ per year which is 42% of the load. 46 Heat exchanger and circulators in Rockwood Terrace NH mechanical room 47 Solar hot water storage tanks in Rockwood Terrace mechanical room 48 Project was part of modernizing and upgrade of existing buildings owned by Windsor and Essex County Housing Authority.

Solar hot water storage tank in sixplex mechanical room

49 Conventional hot water tanks are on a re-circulation loop.

50 Pro temp controls Reduces your energy costs by 25% or more

Automatically regulates water temperature

For domestic hot water or hydronic space heating systems

ROI can be measured in weeks

51 Pro temp controls

Energy use before and after Pro temp installation

52 Thanks for your attention!

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