Microgeneration Flashcards
Define microgeneration
The small scale generation of heat and power
What are the main sources in micro electricity technologies
Solar PV and Wind
What are the main sources in micro heat technologies
Solar thermal, Ground source heat pumps, Biomass
What are the benefits of home micro generating in relation to reduced energy costs
Heat and electricity can both be generated in the same process.
Some microgeneration technologies can provide benefits all year round reducing fuel bills regardless of the weather.
Incentives- Users get paid for the electricity produced through Renewable Obligation Certificates.
What are the benefits of home micro generating in relation to contribution to Environmental targets
Reduce use of imported electric which is produced by fossil fuel. This reduced co2 emissions
Renewable technologies reduce depletion of Earths natural resources.
Energy efficient improved, as source close to consumer, reducing energy losses through long distance transmissions.
What are the benefits of home micro generating in relation to Enhanced security of Supply
There’s a reduced likelihood of disruption of supply due to bad weather, i.e. blacks outs
A smaller % of eclectic imported, which means we are less affected by surges in fossil fuel prices.
What are the benefits of home micro generating in relation to Financial Incentives
Overall energy costs can be vastly reduced.
Grants available for qualifying people through the government schemes for insulating their home and installing heating technologies.
Grants available for generating electricity, through payments utilising Solar PV panels and micro wind turbines. Earn money for producing renewable energy.
Explain the role of the evaporator in a heat pump system
An evaporator is a device in a process used to turn the liquid form of a chemical substance such as water into its gaseous-form/vapor. Heat is absorbed by the evaporator from outside at a lower temperature than the set temperature its looking to reach. It is then pumped to the compressor
Explain the role of the compressor in a heat pump system
The compressor compresses the gas which increases its temperature to the set temperature its looking to reach. It is then pumped to the condenser.
Explain the role of the condenser in a heat pump system
The condenser then distributes the heat into the area. After a certain amount of time the refrigerant is pumped into the expansion valve
Explain the role of the expansion valve in a heat pump system
The gas must leave the system at the same temperature it entered at. So the expansion valve allows the gas flow in and expand reducing the temperature and then it is pumped back out into the atmosphere.
What changes when the system is reversed to a cooling system.
The condenser and evaporator switches place and the expansion valve and compressor stays in the same place.
What is the coefficient of performance stand for and what is the formula
The COP is simply the ratio of thermal energy you get out of the system against the work put in.
COP= Qh/W
Formula to find the QH
QH= Qc+W
What are the common types of closed-loop ground source heat pump systems
Vertical
Horizontal
Pond
