Solar thermal has generally been two distinct worlds, rooftop solar hot water systems and utility-scale concentrating solar power plants.
No more.
A new rooftop solar collector can provide thermal energy rather than producing hot water or electricity for space heating and cooling. With inexpensive fresnel reflectors to concentrate sunlight, the Chromasun could prove an interesting way to use distributed solar thermal energy for more than just hot water.
The unit produces temperatures up to 220 Celsius and promises to use less roofspace than comparable systems using solar PV.
Now, what will it cost?
