Sharif Digital Repository

Flat plate solar collectors lose a massive part of heat accumulated near the contact region because of the poor thermal characteristics of the working fluid. A new cost-effective design is numerically studied to cover up such deficiency by equipping the flat plate collector with revolutionary tubes and magnetic field inducer to affect Fe3O4/water working nanofluid in the collector tubes. Results substantiate that each of the applied rotary tubes and magnetic field inducer improves the convection mechanism in the tubes by circulating the flow inside the tubes and saves more of available solar energy. Results reveal that 27.8% and 10.44% of lost energy are restored in the solar collector... 

The paper studies the optimum panel horizontal orientation angle toward the Sun and the optimum time interval of the panel’s movement. The optimum time intervals or panel movement can change the rate of input energy to the panel surface in Iran. For this purpose, a neural network has been trained to estimate the intensity of solar radiation in Iran. After model validation, the intensity of solar radiation has been estimated by selecting adequate geographical regions. Based on the intensity of sunlight, Iran has been divided into ten regions. In these regions, 40 cities have been randomly selected to study the effect of the panel’s angle variations within appropriate time inter-vals, as well... 

In modern heat transfer systems, thermal storage not only causes the balance between demand and supply, but also improves the heat transfer efficiency in these systems. In the present study, a comprehensive review of the applications of micro- or nano-encapsulated phase change slurries (MPCMs/NPCMs), as well as their effects on thermal storage and heat transfer enhancement, has been conducted. MPCMs/NPCMs have a myriad of applications and various usages such as pipe and channel flows, photovoltaic/thermal, solar heaters, air conditioning systems, storage tanks and heat pipes that have been categorized and studied. It was found that there are many advantageous adding MPCM/NPCM to the base... 

The solar collectors absorb solar irradiation and then produce thermal energy; however, they cannot generate electrical power. Electricity and thermal energy can be produced by the photovoltaic thermal module, simultaneously, while the outlet temperature of the photovoltaic thermal module is not usually high enough to provide thermal requirements of a building such as hot water or space heating. This work proposes a novel compound system created by the connection of a solar collector in series with a photovoltaic thermal module to resolve the issue of low outlet temperature in the photovoltaic thermal module and lack of electrical power in solar collectors. To examine the feasibility of this... 

Surface modification of SnO2 electron transporting layer (ETL) plays a critical role in the performance of SnO2-based planar perovskite solar cells (PSC). Here, we show how long-time NH4F-based water bath treatment of SnO2 layer makes smoothing and morphological improvements and enhances the device performance. Recently it was shown that short-time NH4F treatment (2 sec) with spin coating method reduces interface traps by improving surface chemistry. Here we observe the smoothing of SnO2 films as a result of long-time NH4F treatment, which could be a result of a slight etching-deposition process. Absorption and resistivity measurements indicate that SnO2 etching process is involved in... 

This research work presents a novel integrated structure for the cogeneration of electricity and renewable syngas. The base structure of the process is developed by solid oxide cells in which electricity is generated by the natural gas-fueled fuel cell unit, and renewable syngas is produced by the electrolyzer cell unit. Direct integration between fuel cell and electrolyzer cell units is established for optimal use of fuel cell off-gases. To improve system's sustainability, a solar power cycle, including solar collectors coupled with an organic Rankine cycle (ORC), is designed to provide renewable electricity for steam and CO2 co-electrolysis operation. 1D mathematical approaches are... 

In this study, a latent heat storage unit and built-in condenser were integrated with a solar still. Storage of dissipated latent heat of vapor during the day and using it after sunset prolongs system operation. During the day, the entire solar radiation was consumed to heat the saline water and only the heat coming from the condensation of vapor was stored in the phase change material (PCM). The dissipated heat from the condenser body was transferred to the PCM and stored. Additionally, the existence of PCM on the outer surfaces of the condenser prevented the rise of condenser wall temperature during the day and kept the condenser temperature low. After sunset, the heat stored in the PCM... 

Nowadays, the salinisation of groundwaters causes a substantial reduction in the yield of agricultural lands. To reduce the impact of this problem on the profitability of the lands, farmers tend to use desalination processes. However, this transition is not simple and some technical, economic, and environmental issues should be considered. In this study, we highlight some key factors for the use of desalination processes in the agricultural sector. Also, we conduct a techno-economic evaluation of using reverse osmosis desalination in a pistachio orchard as a high-value crop. Moreover, because of the solar energy potential in the location of the case study, the use of solar panels is assessed... 

The use of solar-powered reverse osmosis desalination systems is a sustainable and environmentally friendly solution in the desalination industry. However, there are some substantial technical and economic challenges due to the intermittency and fluctuation of solar energy. Recent technological improvement and feed-in tariff policies enable these systems to be competitive with conventional grid-connected reverse osmosis systems. In this paper, a feasibility study of the integration of solar panels with the grid to power small-scale reverse osmosis systems (namely up to 2000 m3/day) is conducted in Iran, as a country with a low price of electricity. For this purpose, a city located on the... 

This article contributes to the ongoing debate about whether, how, and under what conditions latecomer countries can become producers of new technology and innovation, thereby catching up with technological leaders. Recent work on sectoral systems of innovation and in the evolutionary economics literature suggests that successful latecomers can move into new technological or industrial domains. They specialise in domains that present more frequent windows of opportunity, shorter technological cycles, flatter learning curves and easier access to relevant knowledge than others. This study investigates the role and significance of two hitherto neglected dimensions of technological regimes that... 

Stirling engines operate in a variety of temperatures and the electric power production via dish Stirling systems could be considered as an appropriate alternative for high-temperature solar concentrator energy harvesting systems. To this end, by performing various studies and analyses on the engine, Stirling cycle, and heat exchangers while utilizing the solar energy as the input thermal energy of the Stirling engine, parameters with the highest effect on the output power and engine stability are detected and considered as optimization variables. In this case, output power, thermal efficiency, and economic evaluation are taken to be the three suitable objective functions for multi-objective... 

In the last decade, the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of solution-processed perovskite solar cells (PSCs) in the lab-scale has reached an incredible level of 25.5%. Generally, PSCs are composed of a stack consisting of a perovskite thin-film sandwiched between an electron transporting layer (ETL) and a hole transporting layer (HTL). Although the quality of the ETL and HTL interfaces with the perovskite thin-film is important, the quality of the perovskite thin-film is also critical to achieving high-performance PSCs. Low-temperature deposition of organic-inorganic perovskite thin-films by simple solution processes is one of the significant advantages of PSCs compared to other... 

As one of the cleanest energies, hydrogen has attracted much attention over the past decade. Hydrogen can be produced using water electrolysis in a Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolysis Cell (PEMEC). In the present study, the performance of the PEMEC, powered by the Photovoltaic-Thermal (PVT) system, is scrutinized. It is considered that the PVT system provides the required electrical power of the PEMEC and preheats the feedwater. A comprehensive numerical model of the coupled PVT-PEMEC system is developed. The model is used to investigate the effect of various operating parameters, including solar radiation intensity, inlet feedwater temperature, and feedwater mass flow rate, on the... 

Increasing energy demand has led to a substantial growth in the use of wind energy across the world, which can be attributed to the low initial and running costs and rapid and easy deployment of this technology. The development of hydrogen from wind energy is an excellent way to store the excess wind power produced, as the produced hydrogen can be used not only as clean fuel but also as input for various industries. Considering the good wind potentials of Yazd province, the variety of industries that are active in this area, and the central location of this province in Iran, which gives it ample access to major transport routes and other industrial hubs, hydrogen production from wind power... 

Observing the growing energy demand of modern societies, many countries have rec-ognized energy security as a looming problem and renewable energies as a solution to this issue. Renewable hydrogen production is an excellent method for the storage and transfer of energy generated by intermittent renewable sources such as wind and solar so that they can be used at a place and time of our choosing. In this study, the suitability of 15 cities in Fars province, Iran, for renewable hydrogen production was investigated and compared by the use of multiple multi-criteria decision-making methods including ARAS, SAW, CODAS, and TOPSIS. The obtained rankings were aggregated by rank averaging, Borda... 

This paper proposes a robust investment and operation model to attend the power and heat needs of a microgrid (MG) connected to the distribution system. The optimization algorithm decides on the best investment and operation of combined heat and power (CHP), boilers, PV power generation and battery energy storage systems (BESS). For the BESS, the algorithm estimates the optimal energy storage capacity (MWh) as well as the maximum hourly delivery capacity (MW). The non-linear and non-concave heat rate chart is recast by a mix-integer linear model to have a tractable and precise model. The model considers the uncertain in some parameters using probability density function (pdf) to portrait its... 

Solar Chimney (SC) can play a significant role in energy consumption reduction of ventilation applications. The primary purpose of this study is to ameliorate the performance of an inclined rooftop SC integrated with the Phase Change Material (PCM) and Photovoltaic (PV) module, called the SC-PCM-PV system. To this aim, the effects of using finned absorbers and composite PCMs on the performance of the SC-PCM-PV system are investigated for the first time. A 3D-CFD model is developed via the finite volume method to examine the impact of various design parameters, including fin number, fin thickness, PCM type, and PCM mass on natural ventilation duration, ventilation capacity, and power output.... 

Herein, we report a new strategy for improving the efficiency and reducing the fabrication cost of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) by elimination of the three- or four-fold layer deposition of TiO2. This is performed by replacing a single layer deposition of mesoporous TiO2 beads, with sub-micrometer size, high surface area and tunable pore size, synthesized by a combination of sol-gel and solvothermal methods. Furthermore, superior electronic properties gained by a reduction in electronic trap states are achieved through doping of pristine TiO2 beads with lithium. The beads have a spherical shape with monodispersed texture consisting of anatase-TiO2 nanocrystals and ultra-fine pores. The... 

This study represents the investigation of In2S3 thin films, which have been deposited with different Indium salts (Chloride, Acetate, and Nitrate) using the Chemical Spray Pyrolysis (CSP) method. The Mott-Schottky analysis has been used in case of studying the electrical properties of films such as conduction and valence band, carrier densities, Fermi level (Efn), flat band potential, and semiconductor type. In the next step, the Rb1MAFA perovskite solar cell has been simulated, and the results have been validated by the experimental data (with the least parameters for fitting). Finally, In2S3 layers have been inserted on the SnO2 layer to decrease the recombination rate and enhance the... 

Solar systems are the most promising technologies to reduce building energy consumption. In recent years, one of the popular solar technologies is building integrated photovoltaic-thermal collectors, because of profitability and no need for separate architectural space. In this study, a new combination of glazed building integrated photovoltaic thermal solar collectors and an absorption cooling system, as a trigeneration system, to provide thermal and electrical energy demands of a case study residential building, is proposed. Dynamic simulation of the proposed system is performed using the TRNSYS-MATLAB co-simulator. Because there is no model for the glazed photovoltaic thermal solar...