Yearly Energetic and Exergetic Performance of Solar Absorption Refrigeration System in the Region of Northern Sudan

Abstract

Utilizing solar energy to drive cooling systems is an attractive idea since the need for cooling is nearly in phase with solar energy availability. It is particularly true in the region of Northern Sudan where solar resources are among the highest in the world. In this study, the cooling production, energetic performance (COP) and exergy efficiency (EE) of a solar-driven absorption refrigeration system in Northern Sudan have been investigated. The proposed system is a 100 kW (cooling capacity) NH₃/H₂O absorption system driven by high efficiency flat-plate solar collectors instead of the evacuated tube collectors in vogue which are much expensive. The results showed that the system yields maximum power during May and it is minimum in December. The system can produce 591.2 kWh in 8 hours during May with daily average COP and EE equal to 0.4481 and 0.2999, respectively. While production is declined to 490 kWh in 7 hours per day with average COP and EE values of 0.446 and 0.3335 in December. These results demonstrated that the NH₃/H₂O absorption refrigeration systems can be driven by flat-plate collectors in Northern Sudan, throughout the year, with relatively good performance. This can effectively decrease the system’s initial cost here and at other places to that possess similar solar resources.