Parametric study of solar heating and cooling systems in different climates of Algeria – A comparison between conventional and high-energy-performance buildings

Parametric optimization using dynamic simulation of a solar thermal system for producing hot water, space heating and cooling was developed. The system layouts include a single-effect absorption chiller activated by heat generated by flat plate solar collectors and stored in a solar storage tank. Two construction types were compared; the first is the typical construction in Algeria (low thermal mass with U-values of 1.25 W/m2K, single glazing), which represents the majority in the country, while the second is a High-Energy-Performance building (with U-values of 0.35 W/m2K, double glazing), representing the pilot project called ECO-BAT. Three of Algeria's regions were considered to evaluate the climatic effect of solar systems integration. Algiers represents the coastal region; Djelfa, the highlands region; Tamanrasset, the Sahara region. In parametric study, two solar collectors' field parameters were analysed, including the surface area and the tilt angle. The results indicated that building loads are significantly reduced (12%, 44% and 22% for Algiers, Djelfa and Tamanrasset, respectively). The solar energy contribution is more than 60% for all cases, a significant contribution for an efficient building. In all cases, we observed that the solar fraction reaches more than 45% when the optimum parameters of the solar system are selected.