Performance Analysis of a Residential, Wind-Energy Thermal Storage System

Abstract

Wind-generated electricity is presented as a means to reduce anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and improve a region’s energy security. The variable nature of wind-electricity means that electricity providers face challenges when trying to incorporate it to meet the service requirements of on-demand electricity. In the residential sector in a northern country like Canada, the largest and most important energy demand is in the heating service. In regions where there is a good wind regime, much of their energy needs could be met with wind. Newspaper headlines read that a given new wind farm installation will produce enough electricity to power thousands of homes. The important temporal factor is excluded from these calculations. The moment electricity from wind is available does not always correspond to when energy is required—an energy storage mechanism is needed to address this problem. This thesis addresses the question of the degree to which electricity produced from wind and employing thermal storage using commercially available electric hot water tanks can meet the demand for both space heating and domestic hot water in the residential sector. Maximizing usage of a renewable wind resource will result in both reduced greenhouse gas emissions and improved energy security for that region.