Proceedings of the Solar Thermal Energy Design Course

MECH9720
13 May, 2016, Sydney, NSW, Australia

SOLAR ABSORPTION COOLING

UNSW
Sydney, NSW, Australia

Out of several reasons, few reasons are listed below

which causes high demand for cooling in urban
buildings.

Abstract
Energy, over the past few decades has become the
backbone of economic development and technology.
Energynowbecamethefourthfactorofproduction
alongwithmen,machinesandmoney.Soproduction
of energy efficient products to conserve energy and
making use of renewable source for energy has
becomethetrend.Researcherspredictthatthefuture
energyisgoingtobecompletelydependedonsolarbe
itSolarthermalorphotovoltaic.

Urban microclimate. Buildings in cities are densely

built which reduce the wind velocities that traps hot
gases and thus reducing natural cooling. (Oxizidis and
Papadopoulos 2008)
Urban heat island effect. Air temperature is usually
high in cities than in rural areas due to high human
activity. This is a major factor for increase in demand
for cooling. (Oxizidis and Papadopoulos 2008)

Solar cooling system like its counterpart serves as

cooling solution for both buildings and preservation of
foods. Peak demand for cooling and solar radiation are
in perfect phase match, which makes it more desirable
renewable resource than any other. Furthermore, on
environmental grounds, solar cooling arises as a
promising alternative to conventional, electrically
driven air conditioning since it results in decreased
carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions other ozone gas
depletion refrigerants. In todays world solar
absorption chillers replaced almost 50% of
conventional chillers worldwide.

Global warming. High temperature are generally

observed everywhere in the world. This climate change
is due to global warming and it is expected that heat
waves will intensify in future.
Architectural aspects. After the first oil crisis in 1970,
building designs were more oriented towards solar
gain which reduced the energy consumption of the
building for heating. This resulted in more demand for
cooling in summer which was even maximized by
following the trend of high usage of transparent
surfaces (glass) in buildings. (Oxizidis and
Papadopoulos 2008)

Introduction
There has been a rapid increase in size and density of
cities in world in the second half of 20th century which
is due to rapid industrialization and urbanization
corresponding upsurge in energy consumption. This
has caused a major concern in the decision maker and
researchers as how to change the urban environment
that causes microclimate which can reduce the
increasing demand for comfort cooling of buildings.

Electric and Electronic equipment. Since Industrial

revolution the usage of electronic and electrical
equipment increased considerably, this is proportional
to effect on internal energy gains. (Oxizidis and
Papadopoulos 2008)
Living standards. Demand for thermal comfort
increased. Thermal comfort is achieved by good

UNSW MECH 9720 Report

ventilation which in turn increased cooling load for

cooling fresh air.(Oxizidis and Papadopoulos 2008)

another process Solar energy is converted in form of

hot water, steam or other heat transfer fluids using
parabolic trough or flat plate collector which can be
used for cooling, domestic water heating, space
heating and power generation.

Work Schedules. Traditionally, during hot summers in

areas such as the Middle east there used to be a break
during noon due to heat. In recent days, even in these
regions the working hours changed, which is similar to
Western and Northern European. (Oxizidis and
Papadopoulos 2008)

Solar-assisted cooling is a promising substitute for

electrically driven cooling units from an environmental
view point as it reduces CO2 emissions by not burning
any fossil fuel, reduction in emission of CFCs and
HCFCs from refrigerants.

Present scenario
Cooling a space for air-conditioning purpose or for
preservation of goods is always energy intensive.
During summer seasons consumption of energy is very
immense. In countries like India where the production
of energy is less which couldnt match the peoples
need, there is a power shed during the summer season
to reduce the energy consumption.

The heat-driven cooling units have an excellent

potential which seems more likely to replace
conventional units run by VCC system but havent
been competitive enough so far in the market.

Nomenclature

The European Union (EU) energy policys ultimate

objective is the security of energy supply complying
with environmental principles. Main goal is to supply
energy with less impact on global warming with
emphasis on usage of renewable energy sources.
(Z.Crepinsek 2009)

CFC - Chlorofluorocarbon
HCFC Hydro chlorofluorocarbon

AC- Air conditioning

R- Refrigeration
D- Dehumidification
FP- Flat Plate
VT- Vacuum Tube
CC- Concentrating collectors
AFC- Air Flat collector
COP - Coefficient of performance
VCC- Vapor compression cooling
C- Commercial
L- Laboratory

After the EU energy policy many government has

taken initiative in exploration and research for
sustainable and renewable source of energy to suffice
the worlds insatiable need of energy. Solar energy is
inevitable option for source because, sun being a huge
fusion reactor produces total energy of 3.8 x 10 11 MW,
of which Earth only receives a tiny fraction of the
emitted energy, equal to 1.74 x 1011 MW. Estimated
fact is that, 84 minutes of solar radiations falling on
earth is sufficient enough for one year of Worlds
energy needs. (V.K.Bajpai 2012)

Discussion

Availability of solar energy for any particular region

depends on three factors:

Time of the day

Location (latitude and longitude)

Date
Figure 1: Principle of cooling (Mohammad Ali 2011)

By using different technologies, received energy from

the sun can be converted into different energy forms
like chemical, electrical or thermal. Photo-voltaic
converts solar energy into electricity, whereas in

There are various cooling methods of which two wellknown ones are mechanically driven and thermally
driven.

UNSW MECH 9720 Report

Figure 2: Types of solar cooling (Mohammad Ali 2011)

In VCC system mechanical energy is used to drive the

heat pump to deliver the heat from source to sink but in
vapor absorption system, thermal energy like steam or
hot water drives the heat pump to deliver the heat from
source to sink. The principle of cooling is depicted in
the Error: Reference source not found
Even though there are many types of thermally driven
cooling system vapor absorption is popular among those
because of its versatility and efficiency which is clearly
evident in terms of COP in Figure 2. This paper
discusses more about vapor absorption, it working,
efficiency and cost effectiveness. Basically both Vapor
compression and vapor absorption has same
components in the system like the condenser, expansion
valve and evaporator. Only difference is VC system has
compressor which compresses the refrigerant and
increases it temperature whereas Vapor absorption
system has generator which heats the refrigerant or
other fluids and changes its face to store solar energy.
Vapor absorption system can either have one fluid or
two different fluids namely absorbent and refrigerant in
a system. Absorbent will absorb the heat energy from
the Sun whereas refrigerant utilizes the energy from
absorber and delivers cooling effect. Choose of
refrigerant depends on the customer needs and viability.
Even though VC system has better COP than the highly
efficient Vapor absorption system, it has its own
inherent drawbacks like the leakage of refrigerants into
atmosphere during installation and servicing which

leads to global warming, and it also worsens as it

consumes energy leading to higher emissions of global
warming gases (CO2) from power plants. So resorting to
Vapor absorption cooling system wouldnt harm the
environment and also be a solution for energy crisis.
History
This Technology dates back to 1858, which was
invented by a French scientist named Ferdinand Carr
using water and sulphuric acid. This system was further
improved by Baltzar Platen and Carl Munters during
1922, by making it 3-fluid configuration. "PlatenMunters" design version was capable of operating even
without a pump.
During 1926-1933 Einstein and Szilrd together tried to
improve the technology for domestic refrigeration who
were inspired by a report in newspaper on the death of a
family in Berlin due to failure of seal which caused the
leakage of toxic refrigerants in their home. Einstein and
Szilrd came up with a device that doesnt have any
movable parts which would completely eliminate the
potential issue of seal failure. They also worked on its
practical applications for various refrigeration cycles. In
the due course they were granted 45 patents for the three
refrigerators they built. (K.Karthik 2014)
Solar absorption cooling system is basically vapor
absorption unit which takes the heat from the solar
energy using collectors to run the process. Solar
absorption cooling system can be broadly categorized
into following options:

Using solar energy and auxiliary heater as

primary and secondary heat source.
Using solar energy as primary source and waste
heat or fossil fuel as secondary heat source.
Using two absorption units; one with solar and
other direct fossil fired.
Onsite power with cogeneration.

Libr-water unit
Efficiency of an absorption cooling system is majorly
dependent on two factors namely chemical and
thermodynamic properties of the working fluid.
Evaluation of potential working fluid is difficult because
of lack of thermodynamic properties, so therefore ideal
absorbent-refrigerant pair doesnt exist. (Z.Crepinsek
2009). LiBr/H2O and NH3/H2O are the two commonly
known solar absorption system.
As these systems contain water, they are limited to
application temperatures above 4C, so mostly this
combination will be used in Air-conditioning
applications. H2O/NH3 solution has been widely used
for both heating and cooling since the invention of
Absorption cycle, but after the emergence of LiBr/H 2O
solution, it is limited to industrial applications alone.
(Oxizidis and Papadopoulos 2008)
LiBr/H2O systems are basically categorized by the
number of times the solution is heated to produce
vapors. In single-effect system, refrigerant use heat
input only once whereas double-effect system use the
first heat input for desorption and as second source
warm refrigerant vapors are used. Triple-effect system is
under research and not yet available for commercial
purpose. The ideal heat requirements of these methods
are listed in the Error: Reference source not found. If
the heat requirements are not met, then performance of
the system would go down. Coming to advantages of
this system, LiBr/H2O mixture is non-volatile like
ammonia and water. So usage of analyzer and rectifier
can be eliminated. Also water being a refrigerant has
high latent heat of vaporization and need lesser
generator temperature to produce cooling when
compared to the equivalent ammonia unit. So LiBr/
water unit can be a viable option for solar airconditioning unit.
Two rather minor disadvantage of LiBr/water solution is
crystallization problem which can be tackled by

installation of microprocessor and direct digital control

and its corrosive behavior to certain metals. Adding
additives will inhibit the corrosiveness of the mixture
and also increases the thermal efficiency of the solution.

Figure 3: Heat source requirement (Mohammad Ali 2011)

Ammonia-Water unit
Z. Crepinsek, et al made an effort in his work to explain
about the working of Single effect absorption
refrigeration cycle. Schematic diagram of the single
stage cycle is in the Error: Reference source not found.
High-pressure liquid refrigerant (2) from the condenser
goes to the evaporator (4) through the throttle valve (3)
which reduces the pressure of the refrigerant to the
existing pressure in the evaporator. The liquid
refrigerant in the line vaporizes in the evaporator by
absorbing heat from the space which is to be cooled.
Then low-pressure vapor (4) passes to the absorber,
where it is absorbed by the strong solution (usually
H2O) coming from the expansion valve (10). The
mixture then becomes weak solution which is pumped
into the heat exchanger where it gets heated up the hot
strong solution in the other circuit. Heated weak
solution (7) reaches the generator (Solar collector) and
gets more heated. Refrigerant in the weak solution gets
boiled and turn into vapor in generator while the
remaining strong solution (H2O) (8) reaches the
absorber through heat exchanger and completes the
cycle. Since this cycle operates using volatile mixture,
analyzer and a rectifier should be present between the
generator and condenser to remove water vapor from
the mixture.

Figure 4: Single stage refrigeration cycle (Z.Crepinsek

2009)

Efficiency of this system will be more as it utilizes

ammonia which has high latent heat, which means it
will absorb more heat before changing its phase. This
setup can be used for applications which calls for low
temperature (as low as 50C) because the freezing
point of NH3 is 77C. If the system doesnt have a
rectifier, water vapor in the mixture get accumulated in
the evaporator where it condenses and freezes due to
low operating temperatures which eventually reduce the
systems performance. Apart from this due to toxic
behavior of ammonia there are restrictions on inbuilding applications of such cooling unit (Oxizidis and
Papadopoulos 2008).
Z.Crepinsek, et al did a comparison study on the various
aspects of a cooling system with different refrigerants
namely NH3-LiNO3, NH3-NaSCN and NH3-H2O for
refrigeration application.

Figure 5: COP vs Generator temp (Z.Crepinsek 2009)

Figure 6: Circulation ratio vs Generator temp

(Z.Crepinsek 2009)

Figure 5 shows the performance for the NH 3-NaSCN

and NH3-LiNO3 cycles outperformed NH3-H2O cycle,
but not very remarkable improvement. In addition to
that NH3-NaSCN and NH3-LiNO3 cycles, does not need
analyzer or rectifier to separate two fluids like in the
case of NH3-H2O. Because of the above reasons we can
conclude that these two cycles are better alternatives for
NH3-H2O cycle. But NH3-NaSCN cycle has a limitation
for evaporator temperature (not below -10C) due to
possibility of crystallization.
From Figure 6 it is clear that NH 3-H2O is not
performing well compared to other mixture, but as the
temperature increases circulation ratio increases which
will impact the performance.

Figure 7: Different collectors and capabilities (Mohammad Ali 2011)

The preferable working fluids are the ones which has

the highest COP at lowest possible generator
temperature and circulation ratio. It is also evident that
COP strongly depends on working conditions such as
evaporator
temperature,
generator,
condensing
temperature and absorber with respect to the pressure it
is operated. Sometimes due to constrains posed by
application it is better to choose NH 3-H20 with
preferable collector type to enhance the performance.
It is not advice able to operate a cycle at generator
temperatures lower than its limits. If the lowtemperature heat source is available, the best possible
option is half-effect absorption cycle which gives better
performance. Figure 7 has the properties of all different
collectors which should be selected with respect to the
application needs and heating source available.
A case study was done by Mohammed Ali, PE to find
how effectively a solar absorption cooling system can
replace a commercial air-conditioning unit during
summer. Suitability of LiBr/H2O absorption chiller
operating in a building in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia having
cooling load of 240 TR is studied. Hot water is
generated by Evacuated tube collectors (ETC) and it is
the only source for single effect absorption chillers.

ETC is installed in area approximately 4000 m 2

producing temperature between 75 C and 120 C.

Figure 8: AC loading (Mohammad Ali 2011)

In Figure 8, Positive sign in solar cooling shows that

energy is being discharged while negative shows excess
solar energy after cooling.

Below is TEWI calculation done by Mohammed Ali that

compares a typical HFC 134a system and single effect
absorption system.

Figure 9: Availability of building air conditioning load vs

solar cooling (Mohammad Ali 2011)

From Figure 8 & Figure 9 that surplus amount of

thermal energy is generated when the sun is shining
high which can be stored for later usage which also
depicts that solar absorption cooling unit can completely
replace a conventional cooling unit if the system is
designed as per cooling load of a building.

Global Warming Impact estimation:

Method of estimating the direct and indirect global
warming potential is called as Total equivalent warming
impact. Release of ozone depleting refrigerants to the
atmosphere is direct effect and production of CO 2 in
powering this equipment is indirect effect. GWP
concept was developed to compare the capacity of any
gas to entrap heat in the atmosphere relative to the effect
of CO2. (Mohammad Ali 2011)

Figure

Equivalent

warming

impact

Even though it has these essential advantages which are

most needed in the present age there quite a few
disadvantages in this technology which makes it harder
to enter the market of cooling.

Barriers

Direct global warming potential = [GWP x L x n] +

[GWP x m x (1-)]

Where, L = leakage rate per years (kg), n = system

operating time (years), m = refrigerant charge in the
system (kg) and = recycling factor

Where, n = system operating time (years), E annual =

energy consumption per year, = CO2 emission per
kWh energy production (kg)

Total

From the case study done by Mohammed Ali (Figure 8)

it is clear that solar absorption cooling solves both
major problems i.e. energy crisis during the summer for
cooling and the emission of harmful global warming
gases into the atmosphere.

TEWI = Direct global warming potential + Indirect

global warming potential

Indirect global warming potential = n x Eannual x

10:

(Mohammad Ali 2011)

Availability of solar energy varying with time.

Need of storage tank. Energy collected when
the sun is shining must be stored for use during
periods when it is not available which adds to
the cost of the system.
Easy availability of low cost fossil fuels.
Lack of small units (package solutions) for
residential and small commercial usage
(V.K.Bajpai 2012)
Low COP compared to VCC.
High initial cost for the system. Mohammed Ali
in their work compared the initial investment
cost between the solar cooling systems with
conventional cooling unit. It is about 2-2.5
times the cost of electric driven cooling units.

Conclusion

Above mentioned barriers are not barriers but the

stepping stone most the points mentioned above can be
solved by two things. One is awareness among the
people about this green technology and payback period.
Payback of solar air-conditioning system depends on
solar irradiance, electricity peak charges. The payback
time for these systems will significantly reduce in future
because of expected high electricity and fuel charges.
With mass production and more research on this
technology will make solar cooling a cheaper solution.
Second is Governments in the nation should provide
incentives while people install such units for household
or commercial purpose due to its high initial
investments which will act as a way of promotion. It is
seen that Solar absorption cooling system has the
potential of 100% cooling a building but only when is
coupled with thermal storage tanks i.e. excess cooling
available in day can be stored to utilize in the evening,
night or even in the morning. If the government give
away such incentives this technology would make a
greener tomorrow.
In order to reduce the payback period of these units, its
better to link the generator of the cooling system to the
hot water circuit in the homes or in the commercial
buildings. Because the excess thermal energy stored
during the day in the tanks can be used in kitchen or in
bathroom in early morning.

Acknowledgments

Firstly, I would like to thank my professor for giving me

such an opportunity to share my views on this topic.
Secondly, I would like to thank the University for
providing me access to all technical papers which
helped mw in acquiring the knowledge on Solar
Absorption cooling system and preparing report on the
same.

References
1. K.Karthik (2014). "Design, Fabrication and
analysis of solar vapour absorption refrigeration
system.".
2. Mohammad Ali, P. (2011). "Solar Absorption
Air-Conditioning Systems.".
3. Oxizidis, S. and A. M. Papadopoulos (2008).
"Solar Air Conditioning: A Review of
Technological and Market Perspectives."
Advances in Building Energy Research 2(1):
123-157.
4. V.K.Bajpai (2012). "Design of solar powered
vapor absoprtion system."

5. Z.Crepinsek,

D. G., J. Krope (2009).

"Comparison on performance of refrigeration
cycle."