Small scale thermal solar district units for Mediterranean communities
The project in brief _x000D_
_x000D_
In the Mediterranean area, a large share of energy is consumed by households and in buildings. In addition to the dependence on fossil fuel, oil and natural gas, the primary energy demand is growing at a regular pace. Increasing the share of solar energy sources in the overall energy mix is a crucial goal for the Mediterranean area, as the exploitation of a sustainable renewable energy source would contribute to climate change mitigation - an issue of concern for the region due to its impact on desertification, floods, coastal vulnerability - and to energy security. Although impressive improvements have been made in the recent years concerning the integration of solar energy systems into conventional heating technology and despite the availability of mature technologies, solar thermal energy is still used in a rather small percentage of buildings and generally, only for domestic hot water in private houses. _x000D_
To improve this situation, STS-Med will contribute to the diffusion and development of Concentrated Solar (CS) small scale integrated systems, a high energy efficiency technology with a potential for replication across the Mediterranean area. _x000D_
_x000D_
Specific objectives _x000D_
_x000D_
• To create a flexible toolbox of Concentrated Solar (CS) applications by demonstrating their effectiveness in public buildings and premises _x000D_
• To deploy technologies from research and development results through case studies analysis, impact assessment and creation of demonstration units _x000D_
• To create new opportunities for the commercial and industrial sectors notably by improving technical skills of professionals involved and enabling SMEs to set up a full supply chain in the solar energy sector.