THE USE OF PV/T SOLAR COLLECTORS FOR DOMESTIC HOT WATER PREPARATION WITHIN A RESIDENTIAL HOUSE IN THE CITY OF KRAGUJEVAC (SERBIA)

Abstract

In this paper, the possibility of using PV/T solar collectors for DHW preparation within a residential house in the city of Kragujevac (Serbia) was investigated. Based on the consumption profile of domestic hot water of a single family the PV/T solar system is sized to meet the electricity demand consumed for the DHW heating during the summer season (15th of April-15th of October). The thermal behavior of the PV/T system was simulated only for the summer season since the working medium is water. The electrical behavior of the analyzed PV/T solar system was simulated for the entire year. All simulations were performed in the EnergyPlus simulation software. Four scenarios of the payback period of using PV/T solar systems were investigated. All of them are defined according to the price of electricity that is saved and/or sold to the utility company: the average electricity selling price for residential houses (5.089 c€/kWh) and the electricity selling price for privileged electricity producers (20.66 c€/kWh). The first two scenarios are related to the system without solar batteries and the other two to the system with solar batteries. The most favorable scenario is the scenario in which the total produced electricity is sold to the utility company for the selling price for privileged electricity producers. The payback period for this scenario is 13.7 years.