NAME : Yousef Adel Mohamed elwakeel R.

N : 12101411 CLASS : 25

> Figure 1

Large TSAH on an industrial building in the USA (Source: Conserval Systems Inc, Canada)

Transpired Solar Air Heaters

This technical information sheet is intended to be a useful and practical guide on the Transpired Solar Air Heater (TSAH) technology to assist architects and engineers to specify the technology in building designs.

Suitability
Most effective for buildings with: > > > > > > > > > > large heating loads high outside air requirements large indoor spaces high ceilings large north facing walls Supermarkets Sports halls Assembly halls Factories and other industrial buildings Tempering air for other building types such as offices, schools and apartments.

Introduction
TSAH use clean, free solar energy to supply tempered ventilation air to reduce the total heating load for all, or a portion of a building. This technology consists of a dark perforated building cladding that absorbs solar energy. Outside air is drawn through small holes in the cladding by a fan. The air is heated as it travels up through the cavity, behind the cladding and into the building supplying outside air and space heating > Figure 1 . The technology, which uses similar principles to conventional solar air heaters and Trombe walls, has evolved over 30 years through significant research from the USA. The technology is used extensively in Canada, the USA and Europe where there are hundreds of examples it has been proven to be cost effective > Reference 5 . By using this document and other references listed, an engineer will be able to establish key variables including approximate heating capacity, wall areas and fan power. In addition, an architect will be able to determine appropriate applications or, with the use of references, detail a wall that includes a TSAH.

Most suited to:

Not suited to: TSAH are not recommended when a building has an existing heat recovery system, a minimal space heating requirement or where there is no outside air requirement.

Costs and Benefits

Benefits
> Reduces cost of heating outside air > Reduces building wall heat losses > Destratifies indoor air when supplied at high level > Improves indoor air quality by supplying constant tempered outside air > Reduces cold air infiltration by creating a positive air pressure, hence improving comfort > Can be an architectural feature by recladding or covering old, existing walls > Protects northern wall from unwanted summer heat gain > Can preheat outside air by 15C or more > Reduce greenhouse gas pollution by reducing heating and cooling energy required

Costs
If installed as a retrofit the additional costs are for cladding, fixings, flashing, grilles, fans, dampers and connecting ductwork. In new buildings, the cost of heating coils may be included to allow cost comparisons with other systems (such as radiant heating). The cost of the collector cladding including fixings and flashing, at the time of writing, is less than $100/m2 subject to quantities and access. Net capital cost can be very low in new buildings when the cladding is integrated with the building faade. The cost of fans, grilles, dampers and ductwork will depend on the size and application. Preheating ventilation air with solar energy removes load from a conventional space heating system, saving energy and money. Case studies have shown payback periods can be approximately 5 years > Reference 5 .

> Figure 4 SolarWall detail (Source: Conserval Engineering Inc of Canada)

Large unobstructed north facing wall areas are ideal. The system will still work in other orientations however, with reduced effectiveness. Penetrations, such as windows, also affect efficiency. TSAH are an excellent new construction, refurbishment or retrofit solution, particularly where a north wall is un-insulated or requires new cladding. The cladding can be fitted around walls and doors. The system can also be connected to existing conventional fans and ductwork As the system is sensitive to fluctuations in solar energy (i.e. cloud cover), the system is typically combined with a conventional space heating system, either air based or radiant to maintain comfort. As an alternative, the system could be combined with thermal storage, such as a rock store, to extend its heating capacity. There are many variables that determine the optimum design and performance of the system. Collector plate properties are important including: > plate surface absorptance (colour) > size of the perforations > porosity of the plate > profile or shape of the plate System design issues are also important including: > air flow rate > size of the air gap > location of air intake fans > detailing for weather proofing > available wall area
> Reference 2 > Reference 3 and > Reference 5 provide guidance on these variables.

Design description

The installation of a TSAH is relatively simple. The collector can be attached to a buildings existing structure. The cladding is supported by the building frame using vertical channels attached to the existing wall. Horizontal channels are then attached to the vertical channels, and the perforated cladding is fixed to the horizontal channels.

> Figure 3 Solar collector cladding material (Source: NREL Image Exchange)

A hole is cut through the wall for air flow into the building with duct work connections required to form a seal between a fan and the wall. The fan is typically an axial fan, along with dampers and controls mounted directly to the interior side of the wall. This is then connected to the air supply ducts. > Figure 4 shows some details, see > Reference 4 for further examples.

A black collector is best, but a wide choice of dark to medium colours may be used with efficiency losses less than 10%.

Caution !
Despite the collector self-venting in summer, in some circumstances the cladding surface may become too hot to touch safely so may need to be designed to begin above touching height.

Technical description

> Figure 5 shows a schematic of a typical installation of a TSAH. The north-facing wall of a building is covered with a solar collector, consisting of darkcoloured aluminium or steel cladding perforated with 12 mm diameter holes. The collector is externally mounted on the building wall with an air gap (approximately 150 mm > Reference 5 and is sealed around the sides. At the top of the collector there is a plenum which connects to a fan, and air distribution ducts are installed inside the building. These ducts can distribute the air directly as for an industrial building, refer to > Figure 6 , or in other building types the system can be connected to the buildings heating and ventilation system. By placing a recirculation damper between the solar collector and the supply fan the fraction of indoor air that is mixed with the incoming solar-heated air can be controlled so that constant temperature air is distributed to the building. > Figure 8 Typical installation of a TSAH on brick and metal walls (Source: Conserval Engineering Inc of Canada)

Technical performance
Typically the TSAH does not replace a buildings heating system. Rather, it works to reduce the energy required by the heating system to maintain the building temperature by tempering the supply air. It also helps reduce cold drafts that cause discomfort by reducing the negative pressure in a building caused by infiltration through the faade.
> Figure 5 The suns radiation warms the solar collector surface. Air is heated as it is drawn into the cavity by forced convection (Source: Conserval Engineering Inc of Canada)

In summer, there is a bypass damper which allows outside air to pass directly into the ventilation system if required, not through the TSAH. The cladding does not significantly overheat in summer because the stack effect causes outside air to enter the cladding along the bottom and rise to the top where it exits through holes in the outer skin. The net result is that any unwanted solar gain will be transferred to the air and not to the interior of the wall. In addition the sun is also higher in the sky in summer, therefore shining primarily on the roof, not on the wall. The bypass damper can also be used for night purging of heat.
> Reference 5

The solar collector is expected to have a lifetime of over 20 years > Reference 5 . The only moving parts of the system, the fans and dampers, are the same as in a conventional system and can last 15 years with regular maintenance.

Sizing
Establishing appropriate collector sizing or available capacity is critical. The Federal Technology Alert > Reference 5 on TSAH provides a good method for sizing. It also provides a good method for estimating potential energy savings. There is also a calculator produced by Natural Resources Canada called RetScreen, which can help calculate sizing and savings (www.retscreen.net). Solar data for estimating energy savings can be obtained from the Australian Climatic Database or the ANZSES Solar Radiation database. The best way to design a TSAH is with a dynamic thermal simulation software package such as TRNSYS, TAS or IES Virtual Environment. The majority of these software packages can model the TSAH technology specifically or with the solar air heater being treated as a separate zone on the outside of the building. Generally, given incident solar radiation on the north wall for clear winter day of 400700 W/m2 and 3565% collector efficiency > Reference 3 the following performances can be achieved: > Air temperature rise 15C > Reference 5 > Heat output: 140455 W/m2 This will vary depending on the design of the system.

> Figure 6 Typical installation of a TSAH

Example of the methodology for sizing TSAH

The following example is based on the method provided in > Reference 5 and > Figure 7 .
45

Air Temperature Rise DegC

40 35 30 25 20 15 10 05 00 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000

B C

Solar Radiation Watt/m2 of SolarWall > Figure 7 Air-temperature rise vs. Solar radiation for various flow rates: A= 5 l/s/m_, B= 20 l/s/m_, C= 35.5 l/s/m_ (Source: Conserval Engineering Inc of Canada)

A gymnasium requires an outside air flow rate of 5,000 l/s and has 200 m2 of available north facing wall. Given the typical range of airflow through a TSAH of 20 to 40 l/s/m2 > Reference 5 , then the collector area required is between 125 and 250 m2. Therefore, for maximum efficiency, the TSAH can be sized to fill the entire wall (200m2). This means the flow rate through the collector is 25 l/s. This will provide an 8 to 14C temperature rise in typical daytime winter conditions, thus reducing the daytime winter heating needs from traditional HVAC plant and equipment.

Rules of Thumb
Based on references, the following rules of thumb for the system have been determined for Victorian conditions: > Cladding porosity: 12% > Reference 3 > Holes: 12 mm diameter > Reference 5 > Gap between collector and wall: 100200 mm
> Reference 3 > Reference 5

> Parasitic fan power required to pull air through collector: 11 W/m2 approximately > Reference 5 or a pressure drop of approximately 0.025 kPa > Optimum air flow through TSAH: 2040 l/s/m2
> Reference 5

Case Study
Many hundreds of TSAH have been installed internationally. For example, a Battery Plant in Canada has an installation covering 420 m2 of wall area. This caters for 19,000 l/s of outside air supply. The system has demonstrated heating energy savings of approximately 1,000 GJ/year or around $10,000/year. The retrofit installation cost of less than $70,000 ($160/m2) in total, including duct modifications and had a payback period of less than 7 years > Reference 5 . Note that these figures have been directly converted from Canadian dollars to Australian Dollars in 2006 and were considered representative at the time of writing. All costs will be site and application dependent.

Transpired collectors provide the most reliable, best performing, and lowest cost solar heating for commercial and industrial buildings available on the market today.
Quote: U.S. Department of Energy

> Figure 2 Large TSAH on a residential building in the USA (Source: Minister of Natural Resources, Canada 2001-2004 (Retscreen) Conserval Engineering Inc of Canada)

Manufacturers / Suppliers
There are currently no Australian suppliers/manufacturers of TSAH. However, transpired solar air heaters can be constructed of standard profile cladding with perforations and standard ventilation system components. Having said this, a great deal of R&D has gone into the optimisation of patented systems. Solarwall by Conserval Engineering the inventors of the TSAH are happy to provide information and purchasing options. Contact information: T> 416 661 7057 E> info@solarwall.com www.solarwall.com

References and Tools

> Reference 1 Solar Preheated Ventilation Air Systems, Advanced Building Technologies Website Produced by Natural Resources Canada & Public Works and Government Services Canada www.advancedbuildings.org/_frames/fr_t_ vent_solar.htm > Reference 2 RETScreen (Freeware), Solar Air Heating Project Analysis Module, Natural Resources Canada, www.retscreen.net > Reference 3 Use Of Perforated Metal Sheets As Solar Collectors For Building Space Heating by Avinda Weerakoon, Peter Richards, Joe Deans from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Auckland and Ian McClew from Dimond, New Zealand (EcoLibrium - AIRAH Magazine, August 2004) > Reference 4 Solar Air Systems A Design Handbook. Editors Robert Hastings & Ove Morck. James and James December 2000 (280 pages) (refer Section IV.3)

It simply works The simplest, most efficient and least expensive way to preheat outside air for industrial and commercial applications is through the use of a perforated plate absorber
Natural Resources Canada - Federal Government Department Specialising in Sustainable Development

> Reference 5 Federal Technology Alert: Transpired Collectors (Solar Pre-heaters for Outdoor Ventilation Air) from the U.S. Department of Energy (24 pages) www.eere.energy.gov/femp/pdfs/FTA_trans_coll.pdf

Solar Air Heating presentation by US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) for Federal Energy management Program (FEMP) (23 slides) www.nrel.gov/femp/ppt/solar_air_heating.ppt
> Reference 7 A CFD Heat Transfer Analysis of The Transpired Solar Collector Under No-Wind Conditions by S. J. Arulanandam from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB., Canada & K. G. Terry Hollands and E. Brundrett Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada

> Reference 6

National Renewable Energy Lab Uses CFD to Develop Low-Cost, Solar Collector by Keith Gawlik, Staff Research Engineer, National Renewable Energy Laboratory Golden, Colorado, published in Journal Articles by Fluent Software Users (JA087) (3 pages) Design of Experiments Heats Up Solar Energy Research. by Richard Burnham based on Interview with Keith Gawlik, Ph.D. Senior Engineer National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) (6 pages)
> Reference 10 Emerging technologies and practice 04 ACEEE H17 Solar Preheated ventilation systems (SolarWall TM) www.aceee.org/pubs/a042_h17.pdf (2 pages) > Reference 11 Excellent website with calculation tools, images, specifications and product details www.cagroup.ltd.uk/products_solarwall.html > Reference 12 > Reference 13 > Reference 9

> Reference 8

Horsham Library, Transpired Solar Air Heater

St Leonards College, Sustainable Technologies Centre, Solar Wall

Sustainability Victoria Level 28, Urban Workshop 50 Lonsdale Street Melbourne 3000 T > 03 8626 8700 E > info@sustainability.vic.gov.au W > www.sustainability.vic.gov.au