A modular solar system provides hot water for alligator farm

Journal Article · Tue Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 1994 · ASHRAE Journal (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers); (United States)

OSTI ID:7031169

Healey, H M ^[1]

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1. Healey Associates, Merritt Island, FL (United States)

This article describes an 8,000 ft[sup 2] (743 m[sup 2]), site-built, large volume, Integral Collector Storage (ICS) solar water heating system installed at the farm to preheat water for the building washdown as part of a Florida Energy Office demonstration project. The project utilized at Foster Farms was a Shallow Solar Pond (SSP)--a modular, site-built, solar water heating system capable of providing in excess of 5,000 heated gallons (19 m[sup 3]) per day. During the past 10 years, a large number of solar systems have been proposed to provide economical hot water for industrial processes. Most of these water heating systems have proven to be too costly or too complex to compete with the traditional water heating methods using conventional fuels. Technology initiated at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory and expanded upon by the Tennessee Valley Authority was shown to have outstanding potential in Florida. This technology, which was utilized at Foster Farms, consists of a site-built large-volume ICAS system called the Shallow Solar Pond. Shallow Solar Pond (SSP) systems utilize the modular approach in which modules, built in a standardized size, are tied together to supply the required load. The SSP module can be ground mounted or installed on a roof. Each SSP module is typically 16 ft (5 m) wide and up to 200 ft (61 m) in length. The module contains one or two flat waterbags similar to a waterbed. The bags rest on a layer of insulation or bed of sand inside concrete or fiberglass curbs. The bag is protected against damage and heat loss by greenhouse-type glazing. A typical 200 ft [times] 16 ft (61 m [times] 5 m) pond, filled to a 4 in. (10 cm) depth, holds approximately 8,000 gallons (30 m[sup 3]) of water.

• OSTI ID: 7031169
• Journal Information: ASHRAE Journal (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers); (United States), Vol. 36:3; ISSN 0001-2491
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
FARMS
SOLAR PONDS
SOLAR WATER HEATERS
ANIMAL GROWTH
AUGMENTATION
APPLIANCES
EQUIPMENT
GROWTH
HEATERS
PONDS
SOLAR COLLECTORS
SOLAR EQUIPMENT
SURFACE WATERS
WATER HEATERS
140907* - Solar Thermal Utilization- Water Heating
320303 - Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization- Industrial & Agricultural Processes- Equipment & Processes