Progress In Solar Energy Technology And Applications

Energy is one of the most important topics of our time, and renewable energy has been a long and still-unfolding story that has taken decades to bring us to where we are today. Even after so much progress, engineers and scientists are always still developing new and innovative techniques, processes, equipment, and materials to further the science and fulfill the mission of generating cleaner, renewable energy for the world’s consumption. This new groundbreaking series, Advances in Renewable Energy, covers these topics across the spectrum, including solar, wind, and other renewable energy sources. This first volume in the series focuses on solar energy, probably the fastest-growing and developing area of renewable energy. With new materials and processes constantly coming online, it is important for engineers and scientists to stay abreast of the state-of-the-art in the field, and this volume does just that. Covering not just the basics of the technology and technological advances, the contributors delve into the financial aspects of solar energy systems as well. They look at total costs, not just initial costs, but the costs of maintenance, as well, Covering nearly every aspect of solar energy systems and the latest advances in the field, this is a must-have volume for any engineer, scientist, student, or educator working in or studying solar energy.

The main objective of writing the three volume 'Advances in Solar Energy Technology' is to consolidate all the relevant latest information available in the field of solar energy (applied and theoretical in nature) and to as sist both the students ( i. e. undergraduate, postgraduate, research scholars etc.) and the professionals (i.e. consulting, design and contracting firms). I have discussed each and every topic in depth rather than a cursory overview. All the material required on a particular topic is included in the chapter and I have wherever possible given useful relationships in equation, graphical and tabular form. It is hoped that this completed Solar Energy Technol ogy will serve the best source material in this field. The first chapter deals with the evacuated tubular col lecors suitable to operate at a temperature of about 150°C with a daily energy collector efficiency in excess of 40 per cent. These collectors thus would be useful for efficient operation of Solar Airconditioning System, Power Generation and Process Heat System. Various advanced features like vacuum insulation, selective black coating, anti-reflective coating, heat pipe, cusp reflector, etc., used in designing this advanced type of collector are discussed separately in this chapter. Transient mathematical model for its perfor mance prediction and different designs of evacuated tubular collectors commercially produced in different countries of the world are described in brief to give the reader a good picture about their scopr and working.

'Essential for any serious technical library' Professor Martin Green, University of New South Wales, Australia The Advances in Solar Energy series offers state-of-the-art information on all primary renewable energy technologies, including solar, wind and biomass, bringing together invited contributions from the foremost international experts in renewable energy. Volume 16 is the first volume to be published by Earthscan. Topics covered include: * Anthropogenic global warming: evidence, predictions and consequences * Comparing projections of PV generation ad European and U.S. domestic oil production * Recent advances in solar PV technology * III-V compound multi-junction and concentrator solar cells * Progress of highly reliable crystalline Si solar devices and materials * Recent advances in parabolic trough solar power plant technology * Solar pond technologies: a review and future directions * Passive cooling of buildings * Renewable solar energy for traveling: air, land and water * Modeling solar hydrogen fuel cell systems * Renewable energy for the Russian economy * An innovative, high temperature and concentration solar optical system at the turn of the 19th Century: the Pyreheliophoro Spanning a broad range of technical subjects, this volume and series is a 'must-have' reference on global developments in the field of renewable energy, suitable for solar energy experts (including engineers and architects), utilities and industry professionals, students, teachers and researchers in renewable energy, technical libraries and laboratories.

The purpose of writing this three volume 'Advances in Solar Energy Technology' is to provide all the relevant latest information available in the field of Solar Energy (Applied as well as Theoretical) to serve as the best source material at one place. Attempts are made to discuss topics in depth to assist both the students (i.e. undergraduate, postgraduate, research scholars etc.) and the professionals (i.e. Consultancy, design, and contracting firms). Chapter 1 starts with a brief history of solar houses (active heating), one of the oldest and still the widely used application of Solar Energy. Various methods of build ing heating and other general aspects such as building form and functions are also described. Various components of active solar heating of building like solar collector, storage system, control unit, auxiliary heat source, etc. are discussed very briefly. Three types of solar active heating of buildings like Solar air systems, solar liquid systems, and solar assisted heat pump systems are discussed in detail in this chapter. Design details and performance of nine typical solar houses which are in use in different climatic conditions and using some newer concepts are also discussed in depth in this chapter.

'Essential for any serious technical library' PROFESSOR MARTIN GREEN, UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTHWALES, AUSTRALIA 'Valuable, detailed information that helps me plan for the future' DON OSBORN, FORMERLY OF SACRAMENTO MUNICIPAL UTILITY DISTRICT The Advances in Solar Energy series offers state-of-the-art information on all primary renewable energy technologies, including solar, wind and biomass, bringing together invited contributions from the foremost international experts in renewable energy. Spanning a broad range of technical subjects, this volume and series is a 'must-have' reference on global developments in the field of renewable energy. Volume 17 focuses primarily on solar energy, with respect to heating, hot water, drying and detoxification. Specific chapter subjects include: Alternative World Energy Outlook 2006: A Possible Path towards a Sustainable Future Quantum Well Solar Cells Recent Progress of Organic Photovoltaics Thermal and Material Characterization of Immersed Heat Exchangers for Solar Domestic Hot Water Photocatalytic Detoxification of Water with Solar Energy Solar-Hydrogen: A Solid-State Chemistry Perspective Solar Heat for Industrial Processes Solar Energy Technology in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) for Sustainable Energy, Water and Environment

This volume is the third in the series of the book entitled, 'Advances in Solar Energy Technology'. The purpose of writting this multiple volume book is to provide all the relevant latest information in the field of Solar Energy (Applied as well as theoretical) to serve as the best source material at one place. Attempts are made to discuss topics in depth to assist both the students (undergraduate, pos- graduate, Research Scholars) and the professionals (consulting, design, contracting firms). The third volume discusses the heating, agricultural and photovo1taic applications of Solar Energy. Chapter 1 deals with solar cookers, one of the important application area for developing countries. After discussing the history of solar cookers, eight types of direct solar cookers, two types of box solar cookers and two types of advanced solar cookers are discussed in detail. The performance studies carri~d out on direct type and on box type solar cookers are also presented. A test procedure for rating a box type solar cooker is also introduced. The limitations and advantages of various cookers are discussed briefly in the chapter. Desalinated water for drinking purposes, for industrial and agricultural applications is required. The topic of Solar Distillation is discussed in detail in chapter two. Solar Distillation has a long history and in this chapter various kind of solar stills like conventional solar still, tilted tray solar still, wick type solar still, mUltiple effect diffusion solar still, multistage flash distillation, etc.