Solar Engineering Of Thermal Processes

TiO2 photocatalyst for water treatment applications

Treatment of textile wastewater using titanium dioxide (TiO2) photocatalysis has been started from the last decade and reached attention to the researchers because of its versatile application. The variety of applications of TiO2 as a photocatalyst has been taken place because of low operating temperature, biologically inert nature, low energy consumption, water insolubility, ease availability and photoactivity, less toxicity, high chemical stability, suitable flat band potential, narrow band gap and environmentally benign. The successful and efficient application of photocatalysis depends on quality of photocatalyst, nature of pollutants, and source of light, which should be in close contact with each other. The TiO2 photocatalyst is used for the effluent treatment of textile wastewater in the presence of ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. Heterogeneous UV-TiO2 photocatalysis is capable to remove organic pollutants from textile wastewater, which has been widely studied and the technology also being commercialized in many developing countries in the world. This review focuses on the mechanism of UV-TiO2 photocatalysis, modification of TiO2 photocatalyst, and application of doping and co-doping in order to improve the photocatalytic activity in wastewater treatment. In addition, the review conveys comprehensive and fundamental assessments of the photocatalytic activity for the removal of organic dyes and phenolic compounds from textile wastewater.

Photocatalytic Activity Improvement and Application of UV-TiO2 Photocatalysis in Textile Wastewater Treatment: A Review

Phase change materials (PCMs) can be applied to several different solar energy systems for the extended heat energy storage which is quite useful as the solar energy is intermittent in nature and is unavailable during the night period Application of PCMs in solar energy systems allows the solar energy to be used at any time even in the absence of the natural solar radiation Thus, the use of PCMs in the solar energy systems can bridge the demand and supply gap of the normal electrical energy This paper deals with the recent advances in PCMs application in different solar energy systems and presents almost all of the emerging areas where the applications of PCM in solar energy systems are urgently required The novel and most recent developments of PCMs in solar thermal energy systems, such as, solar thermal power plants, solar air heater, solar water heater and solar cooker have been duly covered Furthermore, the application of PCMs in heating and cooling of buildings have been presented as well as the investigation of the PCM application in the solar photovoltaic systems for the performance enhancement of PCMs Intrinsically important, from the study it has been found that PCMs have been in use in almost all of the solar energy systems even though their uses are still limited and commercially not available due to several economic and environmental constraints Thus, the paper attempts to present recent and novel approaches by the authors around the world on PCMs applications in the solar energy in well documented forms Based on the findings, future recommendations have also been given to provide the idea and pragmatic concepts for the researcher to work on the areas of research for further improvements in the systems

Novel approaches and recent developments on potential applications of phase change materials in solar energy

Understanding the development trends of low-carbon energy technologies: A patent analysis

Performance of a new solar air heater with packed-bed latent storage energy for nocturnal use

Energy and exergy analysis of a new solar air heater with latent storage energy

Improvement of the greenhouse climate using a solar air heater with latent storage energy

The use of solar energy for heating greenhouses in the cold period for a Mediterranean climate is an important issue In this paper, the thermal performance of a new solar air heater using a packed bed of spherical capsules with the latent heat storage system in east–west oriented greenhouse, is analyzed and discussed The excess heat in the greenhouse was stored in the packed bed through the diurnal period and extracted at night An experimental comparative study was conducted in two greenhouses installed in the Research and Technologies Centre of Energy (CRTEn) in Tunisia The greenhouse heat balance in different components of the greenhouse with a heating system (cover, canopy, soil, inside air and packed bed solar collector), has been used to investigate the impact of the phase change material (PCM) on the greenhouse temperature and humidity Results show that the nocturnal temperature inside the greenhouse equipped by a heating system exceeds the temperature inside the conventional greenhouse by 5 °C The relative humidity was found to be of an average 10–20% lower at night time inside the heated greenhouse The nighttime recovered heat of the solar system attained 31% of the total requirements of heating An economic evaluation was made to find the payback period of the new solar air heater, the potential in saving fuel energy and the reducing carbon dioxide emissions

Mariem Lazaar

Papers

Performance of a new solar air heater with packed-bed latent storage energy for nocturnal use

Energy and exergy analysis of a new solar air heater with latent storage energy

Improvement of the greenhouse climate using a solar air heater with latent storage energy

Assessment of the greenhouse climate with a new packed-bed solar air heater at night, in Tunisia

The effect of nocturnal shutter on insulated greenhouse using a solar air heater with latent storage energy