Optimization of Thermally Driven Building Cooling Systems

空调是世界上增长最快的消费品市场之一。这是由于阳光地带国家日益增长的财富，阳光地带和更高纬度地区创纪录高温的发生率增加，以及单位成本的降低。其结果是，全球范围内减少温室气体排放的努力正在受挫，在一些地方，这一有影响力的市场趋势正在逆转。此外，许多最热的地区没有主电力或断断续续的供应。太阳能空调的出现是未来的答案，它不需要外部电力供应。尽管光伏电池板的成本在逐步下降，但它们仍然是效率较低的设备。这意味着，为了获得某些地方所需的冷却功率，需要比可用面积更大的面板面积。一种完全依靠热太阳能的新型热太阳能制冷系统是解决上述问题的潜在答案。考虑到太阳能集热器在收集理想的太阳能方面明显比商业光伏更有效，太阳能集热器面积的要求相应地较少。避免使用光伏和主电源，提供了减少面积要求和所有相关成本的优势。太阳能热调节提供了一个巨大的目标市场，因为有机会为有需要的人提供零碳制冷技术。鉴于这项任务的规模，需要克服的根本挑战之一是技术的建筑集成方面。这包括确定和了解如何将该技术集成到零或碳负向住宅开发的设计中，以及呼应可以在现有住宅上实施的翻新设计的研究。研究工程师将：-识别和了解与建筑集成太阳能热调节系统相关的挑战。-在现有和新的住宅开发中为新技术设计一系列潜在的解决方案。-以产品演示的形式开发预期的解决方案，以验证概念。-制定一条潜在的市场战略路线。

Air conditioning is one of the fastest growing consumer product markets in the world. This is due to a combination of growing wealth in sun belt countries, increased incidence of record high temperatures in both sun belt and higher latitude, as well as a reduction in unit costs. This has the effect that efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions worldwide are being frustrated, and in places, reversed by this influential market trend. In addition, many of the hottest areas have no mains electricity or intermittent supply. The advent of solar air conditioning is the prospective answer, requiring no external electricity supply. Despite the progressively falling costs of photovoltaic panels, they remain to be low efficiency devices. This means that to achieve the cooling power needed in certain places, a panel area greater than that available is needed. A novel thermal solar cooling system that relies exclusively on thermal solar heat is a potential answer to the problems outlined. Given that solar collectors are significantly more efficient at collecting the desirable solar energy than commercial photovoltaics, the solar collector area requirements are accordingly less. Avoiding the use of photovoltaics, as well as mains power, provides the advantage of the reduced area requirements and all of the costs associated.Solar thermal conditioning affords a large target market, given the opportunity to provide a zero-carbon cooling technology to those in need. Given the magnitude of this task, one of the fundamental challenges to overcome is the building integration aspect of the technology. This involves identifying and understanding how the technology can be integrated into designs for zero or carbon-negative housing development, as well as echoing that research toward retrofit design that can implement onto existing housing.The Research Engineer will:- Identify and understand the challenges associated with building integration of the solar thermal conditioning system.- Design a range of potential solutions for the novel technology within both existing and new housing developments.- Develop prospective solutions at in the form of product demonstrators for proof of concept.- Develop a potential route to market strategy.