Solar heating and cooling experiment for a school in Atlanta: performance report. [George A. Towns Elementary School]

Technical Report · Mon Aug 01 04:00:00 EDT 1977

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/5290381· OSTI ID:5290381

This report documents the performance, and conclusions therefrom, of a 13 month period of monitoring the performance of the experimental solar heating and cooling system installed in the George A. Towns Elementary School, Atlanta, Georgia. The solar collector system involves 10,360 ft/sup 2/ of PPG ''Baseline'' flat-plate collectors with an ALCOA selective coating, augmented by 10,800 square feet of aluminized Mylar reflectors. Three 15,000 gallon steel storage tanks, a 100-ton Arkla absorption chiller together with its cooling tower, a collector gravity drain system with a 1,600 gallon holding tank and a collector nitrogen purge system, six pumps and 26 pneumatic control valves were installed and interfaced with the pre-existing gas furnace and distribution system. In the winter heating mode, the solar energy is stored in all three tanks, total capacity of 45,000 gallons, between design temperatures of 105/sup 0/ to 140/sup 0/F. As soon as Tank 1 is brought up to 140/sup 0/F, the control valves isolate it from the collector loop, and the hot water from the collectors is used to charge Tanks 2 and then Tank 3. Water can be drawn from Tank 1 to heat the school while Tanks 2 and 3 are being charged. As a consequence of the flexibility provided by the three tanks, compared to a single tank of equivalent capacity, the thermal lag in the system is reduced. A variable speed pump, in response to sensors at the inlet and outlet of the collectors, modulates the flow of water through each collector from a maximum of .5 gpm to a minimum of .1 gpm, attempting to maintain a temperature rise of about 10/sup 0/F. In the summer cooling mode, storage tanks 2 and 3 are designed to store hot water at temperatures between 180/sup 0/ to 200/sup 0/F, and tank 1 is used to store chilled water. (WHK)

• Research Organization: Westinghouse Electric Corp., Falls Church, Va. (USA). Solar Heating and Cooling Systems
• OSTI ID: 5290381
• Report Number(s): COO/2628-3
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
140901* -- Solar Thermal Utilization-- Space Heating & Cooling
ABSORPTION
AIR CONDITIONERS
APPLIANCES
BUILDINGS
CONTAINERS
CONTROL EQUIPMENT
COOLING LOAD
COST
DATA ACQUISITION SYSTEMS
ELECTRIC APPLIANCES
ENERGY BALANCE
ENERGY STORAGE
FLAT PLATE COLLECTORS
FLOW REGULATORS
GAS APPLIANCES
GEORGIA
HEAT STORAGE
HEATING
HEATING LOAD
HEATING SYSTEMS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INFORMATION
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
MONITORING
NORTH AMERICA
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PERFORMANCE
SCHOOL BUILDINGS
SENSIBLE HEAT STORAGE
SOLAR AIR CONDITIONERS
SOLAR COLLECTORS
SOLAR CONCENTRATORS
SOLAR COOLING SYSTEMS
SOLAR HEATING
SOLAR HEATING SYSTEMS
SOLAR REFLECTORS
SOLAR SPACE HEATING
SPACE HEATING
STORAGE
TABLES
TANKS
USA
VALVES
WATER