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5th Task Meeting in Italy
March 2007
The 5th Task meeting was organised as a 3 day meeting and hosted by
the University of Padova, Vicenza in Italy, 12-14 March 2007. Three PV/T
collectors are being tested here and the meeting in Italy was a good
opportunity for the group to see the test stand and discuss various
issues related to testing.
The status for the different subtasks is listed in the following.
Subtask A - Market and Commercialisation:
About 65 market survey interviews of architects and solar dealers
have been made in Denmark, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, and USA to
obtain information from the market place about which things will affect
or influence the purchase design, supply and installation of future PV/T
projects.
The preliminary results need to be seen as an information source on how
different actors on the markets are reasoning more than a statistic
analyze of a possible market. One of the important conclusions is that
the markets are very different, depending mainly on how well PV has
become part of the solar industry. The architects stressed building
integration as the most important factor for a successful system. For
both interview groups and in all countries, price of the systems is an
essential parameter. Payback time is on all markets depending on what
grants PV and Solar Thermal has, making the PV/T sector double sensitive
to political decisions. Articles on the interviews will be made during
2007.
More work will be done on identification of key persons/groups (decision
makers) and order qualifiers and order winners. This will be concluded
in an article during 2007.
An overview of commercially available PV/T collectors has been made and
is made public available at the Task website.
Important input to the Task work has been provided from the PVT Forum
project, which is part of the EU-supported project PV Catapult. Here a
main deliverable is an overall road-map for commercialisation of PV/T.
The focus of the EU-funded work is naturally with the focus on the
European situation, but non-European countries have been reviewing and
commenting on the roadmap. It is not finally clarified whether this work
will be concluded in a more world wide oriented article.
Subtask B - Energy analysis and modelling:
A draft report on PV/T, PV, and Solar Thermal Models has been made.
It has been decided to elaborate on the TRNSYS models for Water/Air PV/T
collector (type 50d) and Concentrating PV/T collectors (type 50h).
Development of TRNSYS models for non-tracking PV/T concentrators and
transpired air PV/T collectors is currently being carried out.
All the PV/T collector models will be compiled into a standard
downloadable package of models for researchers and a standard
downloadable package(s) for non-researchers, the latter based on TRNSED.
Development of a standardized method for characterisation and monitoring
of PV/T-modules is now on-going and different approaches have been
discussed. This deals with a method by which the thermal and electrical
output of PV/Thermal collectors can be quantified. Principally three
ways of rating are being proposed as mentioned below. The first rating
scheme is very detailed and complex but there is a decrease in detail
and complexity as you go down in the list:
- "design rating scheme"
- "technical rating scheme"
- "marketing scheme".
The schemes are now and will in the coming period be detailed further
in collaboration with participants in Subtask C.
The development of control strategies needed for PV/Thermal Systems has
been discussed. For liquid based PV/T collectors the control strategy
could be the same as for a solar thermal collector but there could be
other control strategies. However, it has been decided that
investigation of control strategies will not be made within this Task
unless somebody has the time.
Subtask C - Product and system development, test and evaluation:
An overview of PV/T components and projects has been completed and is
available at the public Task website.
Flat plate glazed liquid PV/T collectors from the Dutch manufacturer
PVTWINS, previously tested at the Danish Technological Institute, and a
prototype, COGEN, from Ecosolar Engineering, DTG in Italy are now being
tested at the University of Padova in Italy together with a unglazed
liquid/air PV/T collector, MSS from Millennium Electric, Israel.
Testing of a transpired air PV/T collector from Conserval Engineering,
Canada, previously tested at the National Solar Test Facility in Canada,
is now being performed at the Danish Technological Institute.
Testing of other categories of PV/T collectors are currently being
carried out at Lund University in Sweden.
Different test methodologies based on the experiences from the
participating laboratories and most recent international standardisation
of testing procedures of PV/T collectors have and will be used. The aim
of the activities is to achieve a much better understanding of the
performance of already existing systems and to suggest standard methods
for testing of the characteristics and durability of PV/T collectors.
Regarding investigation of the need for development for PV/T components,
industry, manufacturers, and designers have been asked and the experts
in the Task group will now formulate the Task´s recommendations for R &
D needs.
Subtask D - Demonstration projects:
Interviews of stakeholders for realised PV/T systems are being
carried out on a national basis for Canada, Denmark, Germany, The
Netherlands, United Kingdom, and USA. The aim is to learn from their
experience and to make recommendations for next generation of
demonstration projects. Monitoring results for existing PV/T projects
will be collected to the extent where it is practically possible and of
value to the Task. The results of the interviews will be included in a
brochure.
An effort is being done to identify potential new PV/T demonstration
projects. To support this activity an advertisement for demonstration
projects explaining the interest of the Task and benefit of hosts by
having demonstration projects has been made and is available at the
public Task website. There have been enquiries from Greece, Italy, and
USA but no projects have been initiated so far.
Subtask E - Dissemination:
An article, "PV/T collectors - Technologies combine to increase
output" describing the aims and organisation of Task 35, tests of
different PV/T collectors and expected outcomes of the Task has been
published in the IEA SHC Solar Update Newsletter, December 2006. The
article is available at the public Task website. An abstract has been
made for the 22nd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and
Exhibition (EU PVSEC), Milan, Italy, 3-7 September 2007. The abstract
has been accepted for an oral presentation on the conference and
preparation of the full paper describing the aims and organisation of
Task 35, the PV/T technology and some preliminary results of the Task
work, will now be initiated.
An abstract has been made for the ISES Solar World Congress 2007,
Beijing, 18-21 September 2007. If accepted, the paper will describe the
PV/T technology, results from research and development of PV/T systems
in Thailand and Hong Kong, the aims and organisation of Task 35, and
some preliminary results of the Task work.
A Task 35 flyer has been completed and is available at the public Task
website. The flyer has been printed in 1,300 copies and has been sent to
all contributors to the Task 35 work for further distribution.
The Task meeting in Italy, 12-14 March 2007 had intensive media
coverage. The regional newspaper "Il Gazzetino" interviewed the Italian
hosts and an article was published the following day. Furthermore the
local TV channel "Canale 68" and the TV channel "Antenna 3" covering a
larger area also filmed some of the meeting and interviewed the Italian
hosts.
A Task 35 brochure describing aims and organisation of Task 35, the PV/T
technology, manufacturer contact, and the final Task results will be
made in the end of the Task period.
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