Browsing by Author "Greenough, Rick"

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    Impact of Locally Available Thermal Insulation Structures on Space Heating Demand of High-altitude Rural Buildings: A Case Study of Kyrgyzstan
    (International Solar Energy Society, 2020-09-01) Mehta, Kedar; Ehrenwirth, Mathias; Trinkl, Christoph; Greenough, Rick
    Kyrgyzstan is a high-altitude mountainous country situated in a cold climatic zone. The age of the residential buildings, poor housing conditions and the absence of proper thermal insulation result in high heat demand and low thermal comfort in Kyrgyz houses. To maintain thermal comfort, the rural residents use traditional heating stoves to burn solid fuels during the winter months. Overconsumption of natural resources is mainly responsible for deforestation, as well as indoor and outdoor air pollution. Implementation of building thermal insulation is considered as one of the potential measures for energy conservation. In regards to this, the presented research proposes the various thermal insulation structures developed from the locally available natural materials. Further to this, it identifies the effectiveness of various thermal insulation structures on the annual space heating demand of a highaltitude single-family house located in rural Kyrgyzstan. The results show that the insulation parameter helps to save a considerable amount of space heating demand by up to 30 % in the case of existing houses and up to 70 % for newly built houses in rural Kyrgyzstan.
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    A Parametric Study on the Feasibility of Solar-thermal Space Heating and Hot Water Preparation under Cold Climates in Central Asian Rural Areas
    (International Solar Energy Society, 2020-09-01) Mehta, Kedar; Ehrenwirth, Mathias; Trinkl, Christoph; Zorner, Wilfred; Greenough, Rick
    A large part of the Kyrgyz territory is covered by mountain ranges which result in extremely cold winter periods. The cold climatic conditions of Kyrgyzstan define heating as an essential need for Kyrgyz people. The majority of the residential buildings are constructed with poor thermal insulation or none at all, which yields high energy consumption in buildings to maintain thermal comfort. Especially in rural households, the heat demand is usually covered by solid fuels (i.e. wood, branches, coal and other solid fuels) burned in traditional stoves / boilers. The intensive use of solid fuels contributes to indoor and outdoor air pollution. Hence, there is a substantial need to provide sustainable and adequate heating services for residential buildings, particularly for the rural population. In response to this, the presented research article describes an investigation of solar resources to support space heating and domestic hot water preparation for single-family homes in rural Kyrgyzstan. Besides that, it identifies the thermal performance of typical single-family houses by considering local boundary conditions such as cold climate, highaltitude and routine behavior of the inhabitants. The determination of fuel savings by implementing solar-thermal domestic heating systems helps to explain the positive impacts on the environment. The investigation shows a significant solar-thermal energy potential available for domestic space heating and hot water preparation in Kyrgyzstan.