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EVALUATING AND DESIGNING ULTRA-LOW-COST SOLAR WATER HEATING SYSTEMS
Impact/Purpose:
Solar water heating technology is well-established and well-understood. However, the relatively high cost of solar water heating systems has limited the user adoption of solar water heaters in the US even in regions with abundant solar resources. The project described in this proposal aims to evaluate and design ultra-low-cost solar water heaters and compare their performance to commercial systems. The goal is to make minor sacrifices in performance in order to achieve significant reductions in cost, potentially opening new markets among individuals for whom the typical payback periods of solar water heaters are not economically viable. This project will explore novel ways to achieve solar absorption and insulation at minimum costs by identifying inexpensive materials and approaches.
Description:
This project will have three key outputs:
- an evaluation of the thermal performance of ultra-low-cost solar components, with components being characterized by their absorbed solar energy per cost;
- a built demonstration prototype of an ultra-low-cost solar water heater, whose absorbed energy per cost will be compared to a typical commercial system; and
- an economic analysis of the commercialization potential of ultra-low-cost solar water heaters.