1. New built facilities
Solar PV analysis Kinlochleven is located in the West coast of Scotland which has a limited solar resource of about 850 kWh/m2/year. Moreover, as it is already stated and explained in the Solar Thermal Analysis there is a shadow from the mountains which further reduces the solar irradiation by 15%. Taking into consideration the current prices of solar PV panels (£1,200 per kW installed) and a payback period of 15 years with an interest of 3%, the price of the electricity generated by the system would be 15.5 p/kWh. This price would be reduced by the corresponding Feed in Tariff at that time. |
UK solar map, Source: European Commission
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Renewable Energy Integration
Integrating energy coming from renewable sources into a system is not an easy task. The power output is stochastic and variable. Therefore, the key to maximise the use of renewable electricity is to implement optimal thermal storage. This means that when there is plenty of electricity available then this can be used to power the heat pump and to store the heated water in the storage tank even if there is not currently demand to cover. This stored energy can be used later on when needed. Implementing this concept can lead to lower CO2 emissions. The size of the storage plays a fundamental role in accommodating renewable energy. Increasing the size leads to larger amounts of renewable energy being used. On the other hand, bigger size means increased thermal losses and capital costs. |
Schematic operation of thermal storage
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