https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1880-9428
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ABSTRACT
Conventional methods of space heating are not only expensive but also environmentally harmful, as they emit greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. To tackle this issue, a hybrid solar water heating system assisted by a solar evacuated tube collector has been developed at the Madhav Institute of Technology and Science in Gwalior, India. Experiments conducted from November to February 2022–23 (winter season) revealed promising results. Throughout the winter season, the system achieved a daily average effective solar heat collection of 2.85 kWh, with a daily average collector efficiency of 45.5%. The average coefficient of performance (COP) of the solar water heat exchanger was 3.5. Additionally, the system demonstrated an energy payback time of 1.2 years, shorter than that of conventional systems. Over its lifetime, the developed winter heating system is estimated to mitigate 127.9 tonnes of CO2 emissions, earning a carbon credit of $1408. Economic analysis further revealed a favorable benefit-to-cost ratio for the hybrid system, ranging from 3.13 to 3.36, with a payback period varying from 5.03 to 4.47 years for an inflation rate of 6–13%. These findings affirm the feasibility and efficacy of a solar-powered hybrid active winter heating system.
Nomenclature
| AS | = | Annual savings |
| Cacc | = | Annually capital cost of the HAWHS, Rs. |
| Caf | = | Operating cost of the fan per year, Rs. |
| Ccc | = | Total capital cost of the HAWHS, Rs. |
| Ce | = | Cost of electricity per unit |
| Ch | = | Humid air specific heat, J/kgK |
| Cm | = | Maintenance cost per year, Rs |
| Cw | = | Annually cost of the HAWHS, Rs. |
| D | = | Interest rate, % |
| did | = | Internal diameter of fan, m |
| dod | = | External diameter of fan, m |
| Eateo | = | Annual thermal energy output, kWh |
| Edteo | = | Daily thermal energy output, kWh |
| Emd | = | Embodied energy, kWh |
| Fc | = | Capital recovery factor |
| IC | = | Initial Cost |
| I(s) | = | Solar radiation intensity falling over the surface of ETC at any time t, W/m2 |
| Lw | = | Life of WHS, year |
| OC | = | Operational Cost |
| Tr | = | Temperature of room, °C |
| Vair | = | Velocity of air inside the room, m/s |
| Vf | = | Speed of fan, m/s |
| Greek Letters | = | |
| µ | = | Air viscosity, Ns/m2 |
| ƍa | = | Air density, kg/m3 |
| γi | = | Relative humidity of air inside the room, % |
| γo | = | Atmospheric relative humidity of air, % |
Acknowledgments
The authors are thankful to All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE), New Delhi for providing the fund through RPS project (File No.: 8-24/FDC/RPS (policy-1)/2019-20) to develop the experimental setup and carryout the experimentation.
Disclosure statement
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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Notes on contributors
Amit Shrivastava
Amit Shrivastava has obtained his Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Branch from Maharana Pratap College of Technology, Gwalior, Master of Technology in Thermal System & Design from ShriRam College of Engineering & Management, Banmore and Pursuing Ph.D under QIP scheme from Madhav Institute of Technology and Science, Gwalior. He possesses eight years teaching experience of Post Graduate and Under Graduate classes.
Manoj Kumar Gaur
Manoj Kumar Gaur has obtained his Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Branch from Oriental Institute of Technology and Science, Bhopal, Master of Technology in Engineering Materials from Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology, Bhopal and Ph.D from Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi. He hasbeen working as Professor in Mechanical Engineering, Associate Proctorand Incharge of the Institute Industry Interaction Cell at Madhav Institute of Technology and ScienceGwalior (MITS), (an Autonomous Institute, Madhya Pradesh, India). He possesses eighteen years teaching experience of Post Graduate and Under Graduate classes. He has authored two bookstitled ‘Solar Energy: Problems Solutions and Experiments’ and “Optimization of machining parameters of hard porcelain on CNC machine”. Sixty of his papers have been published in various international and national journals and conferences. He attended one week summer school ‘UKERC’ at University of Sussex, Brighton, U. K. in July, 2009. One Phd is submitted under his guidance and six are under progress. He has guided 35 M.Tech Scholar. His broad area of interest includes thermodynamics, heat transfer, Solar Energy and Solar Distillation. He is a life member of the Indian Society for Technical Education (India) IET and Faculty Advisor of Society of Automotive Engineers INDIA MITS chapter.