Thermally-driven solar air conditioning (TSAC)

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To deliver compact thermally-driven air conditioning through a totally new innovative route. In this novel air conditioning (A/C) system two metal hydride slurries will be continuously cycled and assessed for its potential as a new solar cooling technology. In order to establish whether this approach has practical and economic viability a prototype system will be constructed and evaluated against recognised performance indicators. In theory two thermochemically coupled metal hydrides can be used to transform sustainable thermal energy sources into sources of cooling. This has been attempted using a batch process involving two large hydride beds but with limited success. It is possible that by suspending the metal hydrides in an inert liquid and circulating them between the heat source and sink that a continuous operation can be achieved. This is advantageous as it would reduce the size of the system, reduce the mass of metal hydride by several orders of magnitude, improve heat transfer and lead to higher operational efficiencies.