Quantifying the Shading Effects of a Small-Scale Rooftop-Installed Linear Fresnel Reflector in Cyprus

Alaric Christian Montenon (), Giorgos Papakokkinos and Kostantinos Ilia
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Alaric Christian Montenon: Energy, Environment and Water Research Center, The Cyprus Institute, 20 Konstantinou Kavafi Street, Aglantzia, 2121 Nicosia, Cyprus
Giorgos Papakokkinos: Energy, Environment and Water Research Center, The Cyprus Institute, 20 Konstantinou Kavafi Street, Aglantzia, 2121 Nicosia, Cyprus
Kostantinos Ilia: Energy, Environment and Water Research Center, The Cyprus Institute, 20 Konstantinou Kavafi Street, Aglantzia, 2121 Nicosia, Cyprus

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-14

Abstract: Linear Fresnel reflectors are a versatile solar concentration technology, suitable for a wide range of industrial processes and thermal conditioning applications. Such collectors entail a certain footprint, generating shading on the surface where they are installed. This effect is rarely quantified but may play an indirect role on the surface below. When installed on a roof, the solar radiation heats the building less. In places where the annual heating demand is higher than the cooling demand, this constitutes an asset. However, this becomes a disadvantage when the cooling demand is higher annually than the heating demand. Essentially, the reduced solar radiation allows for the growth of plants that would not grow without the shade provided by the collector. The present paper is a quantitative analysis of such shading based on the linear Fresnel reflector of the Cyprus Institute. The work was conducted using the Tonatiuh++ ray-tracing software to determine the annual radiation blocking. A total of four years of actual meteorological measurements were applied directly to the ray-tracing model.

Keywords: linear Fresnel reflector; ray-tracing; optics; radiation; optical losses; solar cooling (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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