The feasibility of using solar heating in the Yazd hospital: A case study

The most widespread use of solar energy as an alternative to fossil fuels is for heating. Considering the location of Iran and its location on the global Sunbelt, the aim of the present work is to provide part of the heat needed for the treatment space of Seyed Al-Shohda hospital in Yazd by using a flat plate solar collectors system. A one-year dynamic simulation has been performed using TSOL Pro 5.5 software, and energy-environmental-economic (3E) analyzes have been performed on the proposed system. The difference between the present work and the past works is that the provision of space heating and sanitary spa needed for a treatment space has not been done yet. The results of the investigations showed that about 2MWh of solar heat is produced, which prevents the annual release of about 630kg of CO2 pollutants. Examining the system loss diagram also shows that the bottleneck of energy loss in the system under review is the hot water storage tanks, which have an annual energy loss of about 800 kWh. Financial analysis showed that the price of each kWh of solar heat production and the internal rate of return (IRR) are 0.0021 euros and 2.23%, respectively. The results of the present work indicate the excellent potential of Yazd in the field of using solar water heaters (SWH) for heating treatment spaces. The results of the present work can be used as a roadmap to help energy decision-makers and investors in this sector and accelerate the development of SWHs.