Thermal energy demand decarbonization for the industrial sector via an innovative solar combined technology
Meisam Sadi, Ali Sulaiman Alsagri, Hamid Reza Rahbari, Soheil Khosravi, Ahmad Arabkoohsar
Abstract
The main motivation of this study is to offer, develop, and optimize a novel solar combined technology to bring sustainability to the industrial sector via supplying 100 % green and cost-effective heating and cooling. The combination of a special type of parabolic trough collector designed to be inexpensive with low-concentration yet high-optical efficiency and a specially developed bio-driven boiler to compensate for the fluctuations of the solar energy is the heart of the proposed system. The article presents a thorough complex optimization and techno-economic-environmental analysis of the proposed solution and conducts a benchmarking analysis against cheap but unsustainable technologies of today's industries for a large case study in Northern Europe. The results prove the strong impacts of the technology in emission reduction and lower cost production of industrial heating and cooling. The solar component of the system fulfills nearly 50 % of the total demand, with the biomass heater, burning sugarcane bagasse, covering the additional demand. For the proposed system, a levelized cost of energy of 69.9 USD/MWh and an emission index of 267.7 tons/GWh are achieved, while the identical and alternative systems would necessitate 9,660, 11,600, and 3860 tons of coal, wood, or LPG, respectively, to fulfill the park's thermal requirements.