Scope & Main Activities

Applications, systems and technologies which are included in the scope of this task are:

• All industrial processes where heat up to a temperature level of approx. 250°C is needed
• Space heating of production or other industry halls is addressed, but not space heating of dwellings.
• Solar thermal systems using air, water, low pressure steam or oil as a heat carrier, i.e. not limited to a certain heat transfer medium in the solar loop.
• All types of solar thermal collectors for an operating temperature level up to 250°C are addressed: uncovered collectors, flat-plate collectors, improved flat-plate collectors - for example hermetically sealed collectors with inert gas fillings, evacuated tube collectors with and without reflectors, CPC collectors, MaReCos (Maximum Reflector Collectors), parabolic trough collectors.

Specific process engineering technologies to which solar heat has to be supplied, such as the technologies for desalination of sea water, industrial cooling applications and electricity generation, are not the main focus of the Task. They may be considered to a certain extent if there is strong interest from industry.

For cooling applications, for instance, the work will be restricted to the adaptation of the results of SHC Task 25 to industrial applications.

Applications which are not addressed in this task are:

• The drying of agricultural goods
• Greenhouses
• The detoxification of water

MAIN ACTIVITIES

• Potential studies for all participating countries

• Investigation of the most promising applications and industrial sectors
• Development of integral solutions for solar thermal energy applications for given industrial processes
• Development and optimisation of collectors and all other components of the solar loop for medium temperature applications (up to approx. 250°C)
• Collector and component testing (medium temperature applications)
• Development of methods and test procedures for reliability assessment, especially the durability of materials and components
• Development of design tools (based on TRNSYS simulations) and a software tool for fast feasibility assessment.
• Economic analyses
• Feasibility studies
• Design and construction of pilot plants in co-operation with industry

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International Energy Agency Solar Heating and Cooling Programme