Browsing by Author "Touqan, Basim"

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    Establishing a Guideline and Decision-Making Approach for UAE Solar Assets Waste Management by Utilizing PVsyst
    (SpringerLink, 2024) Al−Ali, Amel Khalid Ali; Abdul-Ameer, Alaa; Touqan, Basim
    This research studies the PV solar panels waste with respect to their end-of-life EOL management for PV assets installed in a solar park in the UAE. The lack of thorough worldwide rules and frameworks that direct decision-making in connection to the disposal of photovoltaic (PV) panel waste, as well as the insufficient research on the management of such waste, are the driving forces behind this study. The study aims to address this gap by identifying the factors affecting the performance and efficiency of PV systems, specifically in UAE, a country known for its extremely hot and dry climate, and establish an evaluation approach and guidelines. PVsyst simulation software was utilized for the purpose of system performance analysis and to provide support in the decision-making process by adhering to specifically designed technical flowcharts. The fundamental performance-related parameters of the PV panels, coupled with meteorological information, were determined as important elements for assessing the general performance. The study also identified the main instruments used to make end-of-life (EOL) decisions. The results reveal that the photovoltaic (PV) system at the UAE solar park completed its end of life coupled with an 80% PR ratio sooner than anticipated, with 22 years as compared to the manufacturer's expected 25 years. This leads to the conclusion that installing photovoltaic (PV) panels in hot climates regions accelerates the degradation of the PV panels. The study provides a clear understanding of the circumstances that cause PV systems to fail earlier than expected and consequently introduce more waste to the environment.
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    Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Multivariable Control System with Least Energy Dissipation
    (The British University in Dubai (BUiD), 2019-03) Touqan, Basim
    The highest energy consumption in building sector is caused by building's services such as lighting units and thermal comfort systems. Heated Ventilated Air Conditioning (HVAC) system consumes approximately 50% of the total building energy bill. Many measures have been proposed to achieve energy efficient buildings. Accurate HVAC mathematical models, as well as suitable HVAC control system that leads to optimised energy consumption and improved system performance are part of the engineering efforts to achieve greater efficiency. This study is part of such engineering efforts. It concentrates on employing a ready developed reliable HVAC system mathematical model, namely hybrid distributed-lumped parameter model which handles HVAC as spatially and dimensional dispersed systems for specific HVAC components such as ventilated volume. Other components, such as fan motors, inlet and exit impedances, have physical properties that treated as concentrated lumped mass elements without compromising on the accuracy. Applying an appropriate automatic control strategy to achieve improved HVAC system performance associated with least control energy consumption is one of the major research objectives. This objective has been achieved by adopting and applying a multivariable Least Effort (LE) control technique to regulate a multivariable three inputs-three outputs HVAC system model that employs output feedback, passive compensators and proportional gains, avoiding employment of active integrators. Direct Nyquist Array (DNA), as an alternative multivariable control technique, was employed to compare with the LE performance in terms of system performance and proportional control energy cost. Contrasting the straightforward procedure used to decouple the interaction between the outputs in the LE controller, the identification of decoupling matrix in the DNA controller was based on a trial and error approach, which was very time consuming. After decoupling the plant transfer function matrix, the DNA controller was able to regulate and control the HVAC multivariable system based on using PID loop control, but on the price of consuming higher proportional control energy cost which contravenes with global efforts to minimize energy consumption inside buildings. The ratios of proportional control energy cost between LE and DNA at the time 900 seconds following disturbance unity changes on the system outputs are , and for three different disturbance scenarios. LE controller has shown also better system performance than DNA which at the end makes it superior to the DNA control solution based on the consideration of the simplicity of each controller, the system behaviour under closed loop control and the control energy dissipation.