Information
FAQ Solar Powered Air Conditioning
1.The basic working principle of solar hybrid air conditioning
Summary of Operation:
In a Solar Hybrid Air Conditioning System the sun is used as a heat source to reduce the energy needed to drive the cooling process of a typical air conditioning system which in turn reduces the electrical energy required to run the compressor.
The Solar Hybrid Air Conditioning System is similar to a standard a/c in that the refrigeration takes place by evaporating liquid with a very low boiling point. In both cases, when a liquid evaporates or boils, it absorbs energy in the form of heat and can continue to do so either until the liquid is all boiled or until everything has become so cold that the sub-zero boiling point has been reached.
The difference between the two is how the gas is changed back into a liquid so that it can be used again. A standard air conditioning system uses a compressor to increase the pressure on the gas, forcing it into a liquid in the condenser coil. The change of state of the refrigerant starts to take place approximately 2/3rds of the way down the condenser.
The Solar Hybrid Air Conditioning System uses a different method. It uses the heat from the sun to superheat the refrigerant which enables it to begin changing state in the top 2/3rds of the condenser coil.
By using this method it reduces the superheat of compression required to achieve the cooling process in the conventional cooling system as well as utilizing more of the cooling face of the condenser coil.
The conventional cooling system is only able to change a portion of the gas into a liquid state so that as it enters the metering device it is a saturated vapor.
The Solar Hybrid Air Conditioning process allows more of the refrigerant to change state back into a liquid faster as well as allowing the transformation of more liquid into the metering device.
In our solar ac system the low pressure, low temperature refrigerant is compressed before being superheated in the heat exchanger of the solar absorption panel so that we now have both high pressure and superheated vapour.
Then the vapour is condensed into high pressure liquid at ambient temperature by passing through the condenser.
The high pressure liquid is converted into low pressure, low temperature liquid at room temperature when it passes through the capillary in the fan head.
This is achieved by throttling and decompression of the liquid into vapour at low pressure and low temperature.
This phase change absorbs energy out of the room in the condenser inside the fan head.
Air is blown through the condenser to distribute the cooling throughout the room.
Moisture forms on the surface of the condenser where it is piped away to top up the solar thermal heat exchanger.
In the heating cycle the condensers are reversed in sequence so that heat energy is released in the fan head instead of outside.
2. How much energy can be saved by solar hybrid a/c?
Comparison between Normal A/C and Solar Hybrid
Product |
Btu |
Cooling(W) |
Power(W) |
EER |
Saving |
Conventional A/C |
24,000 |
7200 |
3025 |
2.38 |
— |
CSEA TKF72GW |
24,000 |
7200 |
1884 |
3.82 |
37.71% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Conventional A/C |
20,000 |
6000 |
2521 |
2.38 |
— |
CSEA TKF60GW |
20,000 |
6000 |
1546 |
3.88 |
38.67% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Conventional A/C |
12,000 |
3500 |
1470 |
2.38 |
— |
CSEA TKF35GW |
12,000 |
3500 |
899 |
3.89 |
38.84% |
3. Can the Solar Hybrid A/C be installed by Do-it-yourself?
Only qualified tradesmen holding a CSEA Installation Certificate may install the CSEA Solar Hybrid A/C system. This is to ensure that installation is as per the installation manual and to qualify for the warranty.
4. Warranty time and after sales service?
The warranty time for solar hybrid a/c is 3years and the designed service life is 30 years. Most components are readily available locally, however, they are covered by the warranty in the warranty period.
5. Does the solar collector need any special maintenance?
NO special maintenance is required once installed.
6. Is the solar hybrid a/c 100% solar?
No. It still requires electric power to operate the compressor and the fans.It is our powered by electricity and solar power as ancillary for electricity saving purpose. The A/C could save 30%-40% electricity for cooling and 50% for heating. It has no inverter and storage battery to exchange the solar to electricity.
7. How does the solar hybrid a/c work at night and in cloudy weather?
The solar hybrid air conditioner works day and night and in rainy or cloudy weather. The solar panel will absorb and store solar thermal energy during the day. It only requires 4-5hours of sunshine for 15hrs continuous operation.
8. What is the difference between Inverter a/c and solar hybrid a/c?
Inverter technology enables the a/c to operate at the most efficient compressor and fan speed when below full power. At full power it has no advantage over conventional a/c. Typically, an inverter will save up to 15% of the electricity required to operate except when it is on full power.
A solar hybrid a/c will continually save 38-50% over a conventional a/c and eliminate the high demand at peak times.
9. What is Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) of Air Conditioner and how to calculate EER?
The EER is one of the most important indexes to value how well and how energy efficient the Air Conditioner is. EER is the steady-state rate of heat energy removal (i.e. cooling capacity) by the product divided by the steady-state rate of energy input to the product measured in watts. (cooling capacity w/ input power w) The higher the EER, the more efficient the air conditioner is.
Take the TKF-35GW 12,000 btu Solar A/C as example, the cooling capacity of which is 3500 W and input power is 920W. We get EER (3.8) by dividing cooling capacity 3500 W by input power 920w. The EER 3.8 for cooling comparing to the normal A/C’s EER 2.5 means energy saving rate of the MKY solar A/C is 34%.
SEER is used widely to value the energy saving efficiency in some countries, the formula to change EER to SEER is: EER*4.2=SEER
10. What is different between vacuum tube and solar panel?
Distinguished feature of using panel solar collector which is leading tech for solar A/C ,which is much better than conventional vacuum tube in many aspects such as non- liquid frozen in low temperature, bearing larger weight, durable for the usage , hidden installation, higher heat absorption rate and much longer service life(30 years)
11. Can we provide supply power selection for your customers in your country?
We can provide the solar air conditioner of your requested supply power and frequency, for example: 110 volts/60 HZ and 220/380 volts/50 HZ.
12. What is the difference between the refrigeration of CabinetR410
and R22?
The refrigeration of R410 is more environment friendly type, which is required in some countries such as USA, Canada Australia and Europe. R22 is a kind of refrigeration which is widely accepted worldwide for a long time in the countries in Asian, Middle-east and Africa etc.
12. What is the starting current for our solar air conditioner?
The starting current is usually 1.5 times of stable current, so the solar A/C could be powered by electricity generator in case it will be used in some places where electricity generator is used for power supply.
13. What is the different between convertible frequency air conditioner with solar air conditioner?
Convertible frequency air conditioner could save electricity but this saving will only begin after several hours operation of the A/C and its save rate is about 15% in average. The energy saving rate of solar air conditioner is much higher about 35-45% saving for cooling and more than 50% for heating.
14. The electricity bill saving compared with normal air conditioner
If a normal air conditioner of 18000 btu is used for average 8 hours per day, its input power is 2,080w. The electricity consumption would be 16.64 KWH/ day. The MKY solar air conditioner can save about 40% of electricity which means it could save 6.66 KWH per day and the total saving amount is 200 KWH per month. Suppose the price of electricity is $0.5/KWH, then the total saved money would be $100 in one month.
