Solar hydrogen system for cooking applications: Experimental and numerical study

This paper describes the development of a semi-empirical numerical model for a solar hydrogen system consisting of a proton exchange membrane electrolyser (PEM) powered by photovoltaic panels to produce hydrogen as fuel for cooking applications, focussing on Jamaica as a suitable case-study. The model was developed in TRNSYS and includes a novel numerical component based on FORTRAN to model the operation of the PEM electrolyser. The numerical component was developed based on operational data from a purpose constructed small-scale experimental rig. The numerical model was calibrated using data from the experimental rig powered by operational data from a photovoltaic panel system in the UK and predicted photovoltaic panel power data from Jamaica. For the test conditions, experiments indicated an electrolysis maximum efficiency of 63.6%. The calibrated model was used to develop a case study analysis for a small community in Jamaica with a daily cooking demand of 39.6kWh or 1.7kg of H2 gas. Simulations indicate that the H2 production plan is sufficient for the cooking needs of the case-study.This project is partly funded by ACP Caribbean & Pacific Research Programme for Sustainable Development of the European Union (EuropeAid/130381/D/ACT/ACP)

Analysis of the effect of global climate change on ground source heat pump systems in different climate categories

Ground source heat pump (GSHP) systems exhibit high thermal performance. Consequently, they are increasingly used to heat and cool buildings. The thermal performance of GSHP systems strongly depends on the operation ground temperature and thermal quality of the building envelope (TQBE). The operation ground temperature is a function of mean annual air temperature and annual thermal load of the building. The thermal load depends on the TQBE and outside temperature. Given that ongoing global climate change (GCC) affects air temperatures, it also affects the performance of GSHP systems. The magnitude of this impact on a given GSHP system strongly depends on local weather conditions and the TQBE.The overall aim of the current study is to investigate the impact of GCC on the performance of GSHP systems in different climate. To achieve this aim, three cities located in three climate categories were considered: Stockholm, Sweden (cold), Istanbul, Turkey (mild), and Doha, Qatar (hot). In each city, two buildings were modeled. One was built according to current local building regulations, while the other was built to have a TQBE lower than the standard TQBE. Simulations were run for present (2014) and future (projected for 2050) outdoor designing conditions.</p