Solar energy system performance evaluation: seasonal report for Colt Yosemite, Yosemite National Park, California

The Solar Energy System, Colt Yosemite, was designed to provide 52% of the heating (2500 sq ft area) for the Visitors Center at Yosemite National Park, California. The system consists of 980 sq ft of Colt A-151 series flat-plate liquid collectors, a petroleum-base thermal energy transport fluid, a 2500 gallon water-filled solar energy storage tank, heat exchangers, pumps, controls and associated plumbing. Solar heated water is pumped through a liquid-to-air heat exchanger in the space heating supply duct. Auxiliary hot water is provided from an oil-fired boiler to a second liquid-to-air heat exchanger when the solar energy is not sufficient to meet the space heating demand. There are four modes of system operation