Solar Based Combined Heating, Cooling and Power production System Towards Zero Energy Buildings

The extensive use of fossil fuels contributes to the emission of toxic pollutants, including sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and greenhouse gases. Notably, a significant quantity of carbon dioxide is emitted, along with other energy forms. Consequently, transitioning to renewable or clean energy sources is crucial for long-term sustainability of energy development. Climate change has emerged as a major concern for human life in the 21st century, potentially leading to various problems, such as more frequent and intense heatwaves, increased occurrences of floods and droughts, alterations in seasonal patterns, impacts on disaster likelihood, and malnutrition. Achieving carbon neutralityby 2050 through adoption of clean and green energy sources is imperative. To attain net-zero emissions, the implementation of an energy-efficient technology known as a polygeneration energy system is recommended. This system offers high energy efficiency by simultaneously producing multiple energy carriers and services from one or more primary energy sources. Poly-generation systems are versatile, as they can operate using both fossil fuels and renewable energy resources. In this study, a sustainable solar-powered polygeneration energy system was proposed for a residential building located in Bengaluru (12.885138°N, 77.572538°E), Karnataka, India. The energy system integrates three main components: a Photovoltaic-Thermal (PVT) hybrid collector, Reverse Osmosis (RO) water purification unit, and Vapour Absorption chiller to assess the system’s suitability for residential applications. The daily energy demands were estimated on a typical housing cluster comprising seven 1 BHK and five 2 BHK houses totaling approximately 60 dwellings. The system is proposed to meet a comprehensive range of daily energy requirements of electrical demand, amounting to 1185 kWh/day for electricity (general use), freshwater, and space cooling, as well a thermal demand for hot water. Performave evalution revealed that the CHCP (Cooling, Heating and Power) system achieved an electrical efficiency, thermal efficiency and overall efficiency of the proposed CHCP system were found as 18.1%, 50% and 68.1% respectively. These results highlight the system's potential as a viable and sustainable energy solution for integrated residential needs, contributing to both energy efficiency and environmental conservation. Major Findings: Excessive use of fossil fuels contribute significant amount of green house gas emission leads to environmental degradation, thereby underscoring the inevitable shift toward clean and sustainable energy systems. In this context, a solardriven poly-generation configuration, integrating photovoltaic–thermal (PVT) technology with reverse osmosis (RO) and a vapor absorption chiller, was proposed to simultaneously satisfy the electricity, cooling, and freshwater requirements of a residential building. The system achieved an overall efficiency of 68.1%, highlighting its potential as a sustainable pathway for advancing carbon-neutral and energy-efficient residential applications.