Are solar cooling and air-conditioning systems suitable for building applications?

Solar energy has been introduced as a crucial alternative for many applications, including cooling and air-conditioning, which has been proven to be a reliable and excellent energy source. This paper presents and discusses a general overview of solar cooling and air-conditioning systems (SCACSs) used for building applications.

Is solar energy a good option for cooling & air-conditioning?

This is also associated with a vast amount of CO 2 emissions and other environmental concerns. Solar energy has been introduced as a crucial alternative for many applications, including cooling and air-conditioning, which has been proven to be a reliable and excellent energy source.

How can solar energy be used to power cooling and air-conditioning systems?

Solar energy can be utilised to power cooling and air-conditioning systems by two methods: electrically and thermally. In the electrical form, photovoltaic (PV) panels convert the sunlight directly into electricity to run conventional cooling systems.

Why do buildings need cooling and air-conditioning systems?

Cooling and air-conditioning systems are the primary consumers of building energy in hot and mixed climate locations. The reliance on traditional systems, driven electrically, is the main reason behind the deterioration and ever-increasing demand for energy in buildings.

Which countries will have air-conditioning systems by 2050?

IEA also reported that around 2/3 of the world’s buildings would have air-conditioning (AC) systems by 2050, and as shown in Fig. 1, China, India, and Indonesia will account for half of the world demand (IEA, 2018). Building energy performance can be achieved by thermally enhancing the building envelop elements or developing the HVAC systems.

Are solar scacss progressing?

IEA has reported that SCACSs among solar technologies are forecasted to progress rapidly in the future, compared with other thermally driven applications (IEA, 2018). A brief comparison has been conducted in this section to shed light on the progress level of each SCACSs type discussed in the previous section (Section 3).