Characteristic analysis and optimisation of seasonal solar thermal storage heating system

This study considers the seasonal solar thermal storage and heating system in the Jilin region of China, and a system model is established by using the TRNSYS software under heat storage and heating modes. The operating characteristics of the system are analysed during the complete heat storage and heating seasons, and the economic cost of the system is minimised by optimising the ratio of the collector area to the water tank volume. The results show that the most heat is stored in the system during May, and the maximum heat loss from the tank occurs during October. The maximum solar fraction is 47.85%, the maximum heat loss rate of the water tank is 29.82% and the energy efficiency ratio of the system is 1.70. The optimised ratio of the heat storage tank volume to solar collector area is 4.5, energy efficiency ratio of the system is 1.67 and the annual cost about ¥440 000 (£52 860).