University of la Sabana
Faculty of Engineering
Renewable Energy & Sustainability
Bernardo Ferreira Lomelli
First reaction Paper: Use of renewable energies in hvacr systems with a focus on
the case of refrigeration in remote locations
This essay has as objective analyze two of the renewable methods regarding HVACR
systems exposed in class, the solar energy and the biomass combustion. With the
purpose of exploring them and giving a general reaction on their functionality on a
particular case scenario. The refrigerator idea to supply antidotes to remote populations,
which was also part of the speech.
First, talking about HVACR systems, they represent Almost 50% of the energy demand
[1] within the total consumption of a sector, and it mostly depends on fossil fuel energy
which means a high economic and environmental impact for the community, for
example a single simple refrigerator (165 L) based on the vapor compression cycle
consumes around 1755 Wh [2] and the total carbon footprint it produces is around 11.37
Ton CO2 per year [3].
solar power
Naturally, this type of renewable resource is one of the most popular now days. And
when talking about refrigeration systems, it becomes a great candidate to fulfill this task
because when a specific area that required to be highly cooled is when the solar energy
is at is maximum incidence towards the surface. The equipment discussed in class are
the mono crystalline solar pv panels, this seems to be the right choice for the application
that is thought, those panels produce around 780 W/m^2 [7] each.
Also, this technology is the cheapest to afford and require minimum maintenance to
keep its functionality [4]. It is possible to employ those devices on a refrigeration cycle,
called absorption cycle as told in the speech, on which the compression step from the
conventional vapor compression cycle is replaced by an absorber and a generator.
However, this technology may also be used to power the compressor from a
conventional vapor compression cycle. Starting off the case discussed in class, the
absorption cycle had a total consumption of 60.4 KWh/month whereas the compression
cycle had a consumption of 527.6 W/month [7], relying on this data, it seems that the
particular absorption cycle exposed is not convenient thus it requires a higher amount of
energy to power the same refrigerator. Therefore, I strongly believe it is not viable.
Biomass combustion
This type of renewable energy has great potential, just because of its availability and
low environmental contamination. Although this topic was barely discussed in class, it
could be a highly efficient renewable resource to rely on, because just a single ton of
biomass coming from municipally wastes can produce around 115 m^3 of bio gas [5]
which can be used to produce 690 kWh of energy [6].
Accordingly, this energy could be used directly as heat to power the generator on the
absorption cycle to power the same refrigerator or by transforming it to electricity to
action the compressor on the vapor compression cycle.
conclusions
Each type of energy has its own positive side, and a combination of both technologies
to achieve the desired goal which is powering the refrigerator is the best way, due to the
intermittence of the sun and the amount of waste produced by the community.
References:
[1] Vakiloroaya, V., Samali, B., Fakhar, A. and Pishghadam, K., 2022. A review of
different strategies for HVAC energy saving. [online] Science Direct. Available at:
<https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0196890413006584>
[Accessed 20 February 2022].
[2] Borikar, S. A., Gupta, M. M., Alazwari, M. A., Malwe, P. D., Moustafa, E. B., Panchal,
H., & Elsheikh, A. (2021). A case study on experimental and statistical analysis of
energy consumption of domestic refrigerator. Case Studies in Thermal Engineering,
28(101636), 101636. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csite.2021.101636
[3] Kasper, D. [UCCxqelk1xkwZKqemp-DJPXQ]. (2016, octubre 2). Carbon footprint
calculation. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWeI0c1m14Y
[4] El Chaar, L., Lamont, L. A., & El Zein, N. (2011). Review of photovoltaic
technologies. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 15(5), 2165–2175.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2011.01.004
[5] Martinat, S., Dvořák, P., Frantál, B., Van der Horst, D., Klusácek, P., & Kulla, M.
(2013, diciembre 15). Figure 6 Biogas yield from one ton of fresh biomass (m3 / ton).
Source: ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Biogas-yield-from-one-ton-
of-fresh-biomass-m3-ton-Source-Banks-et-al-2006-own_fig5_259812068
[6] Biogas FAQ. (s/f). BiogasWorld. Recuperado el 20 de febrero de 2022, de
https://www.biogasworld.com/biogas-faq/
[7] Beltrán, J. (SF). Eficiencia y Uso de energías Renovables en sistemas de HVAC
[Diapositiva 72].
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