Abstract

HIM MOYA, María; HUMPHRIES, Angienely; FUENTES, Pedro  and  CHEN AUSTIN, Miguel. Evaluation of reverse geothermal and solar potential to reduce the energy consumption of a hospital facility in Panama. Novasinergia [online]. 2022, vol.5, n.1, pp.83-99.  Epub Jan 31, 2022. ISSN 2631-2654.  https://doi.org/10.37135/ns.01.09.06.

Abstract: One of the main problems affecting the environment is the high consumption of fossil fuels, which has been mitigated by using renewable energy sources. Hospital buildings stand among the major energy consumers due to their uninterrupted operation. This research seeks to reduce the energy consumption of a hospital facility in Panama City by evaluating the inverse geothermal and solar potential of the area. To achieve this objective, the building was modeled using DesignBuilder software, a heat exchanger was sized based on the simulation, the ground temperature was analyzed theoretically to determine the days of operation of the geothermal system, and the number of photovoltaic panels to be used was calculated. Savings of 47.83% in cooling costs were averaged, which would lead to a reduction of 9.29% of the monthly electricity demand, concluding that this is a significant percentage of savings for this type of building if the hypotheses presented are verified and applied in a practical manner. It also lays the groundwork for bringing hospital buildings to near-zero energy consumption.

Keywords : Energy consumption; energy savings; geothermal energy; hospital; photovoltaic panels.

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