Welcome to the SunEarth Newsletter–bringing you the best in solar thermal, industry news, and the latest SunEarth updates each month.
October is Employee Ownership Month (EOM) - a month long celebration of the undeniable benefits employee ownership provides to employees, companies, local communities, and the nation. However, SunEarth would not be an ESOP today if it were not for the founder Cully Judd, and the road he paved for the Solar Industry. As we celebrate 6 Years as an ESOP, join us in taking a look back at the 'Fontana Factory Tour' with the man that impacted so many of us.
PUMPS & PIPES:
SIZING THE PIPING NETWORK
The sizing of pumps & piping in the Solar Thermal System is determind by the Fluid Velocity within the pipe.
SIZING PUMP AND PIPING
For proper operation, the solar array must be fed with enough fluid to meet the design specifications. If the array is fed with less fluid than specified, performance will suffer. Design flow rates are called out in the tables on the back of the collector specification sheets. One need simply multiply the design flow rate by the number of panels in the array to arrive at the design flow rate for the entire array. This number will then be used to size the piping network and pump as outlined below.
SIZING THE PIPING NETWORK
The next step is to determine the proper pump and pipe size that will be able to circulate fluid through the array. The sizing of pumps and piping in solar thermal systems is determined by fluid velocity within the pipe. At velocities beyond 5 ft/sec for heated fluids, erosion corrosion begins to occur when the turbulent scouring action of the fluid eats away at the pipe wall. For any branch within the loop, determine what the flow requirements are, and using figure 1, follow that flow rate until you intersect the 5 ft/sec line. Any pipe selection to the right of that intersection will yield fluid velocities below 5 ft/sec. After you have selected a pipe size, look for where the line corresponding to that pipe size crosses the design flow rate. Following that intersection to the left of the figure will give you the pressure drop in psi for every 100 ft of tube.
PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: NOHONA HALE
Two Developers partnered to bring much-needed affordable housing to Kaka'ako, Honolulu's hippest neighborhood.
Project Introduction
Project Name: Nohona Hale
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Installer: RM Nakamura Plumbing & Mechanical
Co-Developer: Bronx Pro Group LLC
Co-Developer: EAH Housing
Architect: WCIT Architecture
Distributor: Inter-Island Solar Supply
Completed: 2020
Historically an industrial area, the Kaka’ako district is undergoing a lot of change, transitioning from commercial and industrial to residential, with market-rate condos popping up and a planned rail station nearby. The new 111-unit Nohona Hale was built on a former surface parking lot owned and leased to the developers by the Hawaii Community Development Authority, which sought to promote an affordable housing building that is green and transit-oriented with smart growth principles. California-based EAH Housing and New York–based Bronx Pro Group did just that.
The development includes 110 micro-units and one manager’s unit. The micro-units are 285 square feet, with most including a wall-bed system with a couch that flips down into a queen-size bed. They also feature floor-to-ceiling window walls that slide open to private lanais, galley kitchens, and bathrooms.
Project Summary:
Location: 630 Cooke Street, Honolulu, Hawaii
Application: Multi-Family Commercial
Units: 111 Apartments
Solar Collectors: 50 SunEarth EC-40 Solar Thermal collectors
System Format: Solar pre-heated water
Important Updates regarding the 2021 AHR Expo
- The originally planned Show dates of January 25-27, 2021 are postponed.
- AHR Expo, ASHRAE and AHRI continue to explore the feasibility of hosting the event March 15-17, 2021, however, no final decisions have been made.
- A final decision regarding the in-person hosting of the 2021 AHR Expo will be announced on or before October 15, 2020.
