Exergoeconomic analysis of a solar assisted ground-source heat pump greenhouse heating system

EXCEM analysis may prove useful to investigators in engineering and other disciplines due to the methodology are being based on the quantities exergy, cost, energy and mass. The main objective of the present study is to investigate between capital costs and thermodynamic losses for devices in solar assisted ground-source heat pump greenhouse heating system (SAGSHPGHS) with a 50 m vertical 32 mm nominal diameter U-bend ground heat exchanger. This system was designed and installed at the Solar Energy Institute, Ege University, Izmir, Turkey. Thermodynamic loss rate-to-capital cost ratios are used to show that, for components and the overall system, a systematic correlation appears to exist between capital cost and exergy loss (total or internal), but not between capital cost and energy loss or external exergy loss. This correlation may imply that devices in successful air conditioning are configured so as to achieve an overall optimal design, by appropriately balancing the thermodynamic (exergy-based) and economic characteristics of the overall system and its devices. The results may (i) provide useful insights into the relations between thermodynamics and economics, both in general and for SAGSHPGHS, (ii) help demonstrate the merits of second-law analysis. It is observed from the results that the maximum exergy destructions in the system particularly occur due to the electrical, mechanical and isentropic efficiencies and emphasize the need for paying close attention to the selection of this type of equipment, since components of inferior performance can considerably reduce the overall performance of the system. In conjunction with this, the total exergy losses values are obtained to be from 0.010 kW to 0.480 kW for the system. As expected, the largest energy and exergy losses occur in the greenhouse and compressor. The ratio of thermodynamic loss rate to capital cost values are obtained for a range from 0.035 to 1.125. (c) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.