2018 AIChE Annual Meeting

(613a) Photovoltaic/Thermal Energy Addition to Expeditionary Buildings

Authors

Shannon Morse, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
Mike Farrington, Air Force
David Dixon, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
Raymond Petty, Universal Technology Corporation
Joel Bogaert, Universal Technology Corporation
Reza Salavani, Air Force
The US Air Force (USAF) has a goal of reducing field consumption of fossils fuels. One cost-effective solution is to retrofit existing field assets with the ability to harness renewable energy. This paper discusses the adaptation of USAF expeditionary shelters with photovoltaic thermal (PVT) hybrid panels. The resulting power is captured as both electrical energy and thermal energy.

An Air Force Civil Engineering team constructed steel buildings (known as K-Spans) at Tyndall Air Force base (Florida) as test structures for evaluation of the PVT hybrid technology, which is attached to the outside.

The capabilities, operating characteristics, and overall power gain of the configuration were examined, and results will be presented. Varying flowrates were used to investigate the trade-off between heated water and higher electrical efficiency. Similarly, control algorithms were used to control the flow and output water temperatures compared to a non-controlled baseline unit.