A new single-effect hot-water absorption chiller air conditioner using solar energy

There has been an increasing interest in the development of energy-efficient and environmentally-sustainable systems using green automation technologies. This study presents the analysis and performance evaluation of a newly-developed solar-powered, hot-water single-effect absorption chiller air conditioning system. The system is, to our knowledge, the first vapor-absorption cooling plant fully powered by a renewable energy source with solar radiation, in which no water storage and auxiliary heat exchanger are used. The 6 kW Li-Br water system has been designed and tested to predict its performance. The influence of chilled water, cooling tower water and solar collector hot water temperatures on the system performance is investigated. Our experimental results demonstrate the technical viability of the proposed system in meeting the air-conditioning demand while addressing directly critical issues of electricity consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.