Analysis of feasibility on heating single family houses in rural areas by using sun and wind energy

Households in Lithuania consume about 1/3 of total final consumption of fuel energy. In order to reduce imports of fossil fuel and emissions of dangerous pollutants, solar energy could be used for the above-mentioned needs. That would require large collector areas and volumes for seasonal heat storage. In wintertime the wind speed velocity is much higher than in summertime in Lithuania. Therefore, it is advisable to study meeting the thermal needs of single family houses by combining use of wind and solar energy. To this end analytical research has been made by using deterministic method. The analysis has been carried out for the case when 1 m(2) of heated room area requires 0.25 m(2) of solar collector area and 0.5 m(2) working area of wind turbine rotor. Heat storage is planned for 24 h. By using such a hybrid system during the heating season 42.6-56.2% of heating needs for space and domestic hot water are satisfied. However, for individual days (especially from May to October) a surplus of generated heat is formed and it reaches about 53.6% of space heating needs per year. This relative surplus of energy could be used for transmitting wind power-plant energy to the electric network or in a household and thermal energy can be used for drying agricultural produce, heating greenhouses, open swimming pools and satisfying other needs. (C) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.