RENEWABLE ENERGY
THERMAL SOLAR ENERGY
This is the name given to the use of solar resources to heat a liquid. This caloric energy that raises the temperature can be used for applications such as: heating of sanitary water, heating of environments, air conditioning of pools, industrial processes and cooking of food. The objective of the chair is to design a virtual simulator that allows testing and comparing the behavior of a solar thermal collector at different latitudes.
About Solar Thermal energy
Solar thermal energy is one of the most efficient and sustainable ways of harnessing solar radiation to generate heat, and its importance in the global energy landscape is continually growing. By using the sun's heat instead of relying on fossil fuels, solar thermal energy contributes to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, while taking advantage of a clean and abundant source of energy.
One of the most common applications of solar thermal energy is the use of solar thermal collectors, which transform solar radiation into heat to heat water or air. These systems are widely used in homes and commercial buildings to meet domestic hot water and heating needs. By reducing dependence on conventional systems based on electricity or gas, solar thermal collectors allow for a reduction in non-renewable energy consumption and operating costs, improving the energy efficiency of homes and businesses.
Deployment and applications
Another important application of solar thermal energy is in bioclimatic homes, designed to maintain an acceptable level of thermal comfort inside, regardless of the temperature outside the home. In this type of construction, passive and active solar technologies are integrated to heat interior spaces by capturing solar heat. In addition to using solar collectors to heat water, bioclimatic homes use materials and structures designed to store and distribute natural heat efficiently, reducing the need for conventional heating systems and improving thermal comfort. This makes them a model of sustainability and efficiency in construction.
At the industrial and power generation levels, solar thermal energy is also used in large-scale energy projects such as solar thermal power plants. These power plants concentrate solar radiation using mirrors or lenses to generate water vapor, which drives turbines to produce electricity. Unlike solar photovoltaic plants, which generate electricity directly from sunlight, solar thermal plants convert the sun's heat into electricity, allowing them to store thermal energy and generate electricity even when the sun is not present. This storage capacity makes solar thermal energy a viable solution for clean energy generation, with the ability to operate for more hours of the day and reduce intermittency, one of the limitations of other renewable sources.
In short, solar thermal energy is a fundamental pillar in the transition towards a more sustainable energy model. From domestic applications such as solar thermal collectors, to larger-scale solutions in bioclimatic homes and large-scale generation plants, its versatility and efficiency make it a key tool to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and mitigate the environmental impact of global energy consumption.
