Experimental Comparison of Flat Plate and Evacuated Tube Solar Thermal Collectors for Domestic Hot Water Preparation in Education Facilities

Abstract

One key component of the energy demand in the built environment is the thermal energy required for domestic hot water preparation. Currently, fossil fuels are mostly used to meet the thermal energy demand in the built environment, lately, solar thermal systems have been increasingly implemented, mainly for domestic hot water preparation, enhancing the building’s sustainability. A case study is presented in the paper for a solar thermal system with six flat plate ‒ and three evacuated tube solar thermal collectors installed on the rooftop of the Renewable Energy Systems and Recycling Research Centre, in the Colina Campus of the Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania. In 2017, this system provided 17,412 kWh of thermal energy to prepare domestic hot water for a Solar House and for the Sports Hall locker rooms. Evacuated tube solar thermal collectors showed better specific thermal output than flat plate ones.

Keywords

• solar thermal system
• solar thermal system infield assessment
• flat plate solar thermal collector
• evacuated tube solar thermal collector
• solar thermal conversion efficiency.