Techno-economic and GHG mitigation analyses based on regional and seasonal variations of non-concentrating solar thermal collectors in textile sector of Pakistan

SDG implementation in the industrial sector of Pakistan is significant for its economic growth, sustainable industrialization, innovation, and sustainable production. Integration of solar thermal collectors in the textile industry will encompass sustainable development goals (SDG 7,9,12,13). Meeting these goals in the thermal sector of Pakistan is becoming increasingly challenging due to the limited resources and harmful emissions from conventional fuels. In this study, the technical feasibility of two non-concentrating collectors, Flat Plate Collector (FPC) and Evacuated Tube Collector (ETC) was investigated for the application of preheating of feedwater of boilers. Choosing the better performing collector for a range of regional and climatic variations across Pakistan, a comparative analysis of three fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) has been carried out by using TRNSYS and RETScreen for economic analysis and GHG emission mitigation, respectively. The overall best results have been observed in Quetta. For this city replacement of coal has shown the highest GHG emission mitigation potential of 182,326 tonnes of CO2 and the highest NPV for oil (1509.4 million PKR) among the three fuels studied. Based on the results, it can be deduced that this work can be further extended to concentrating thermal technologies as well. Since real-time industrial data has been used, the insights will promote solar thermal technology in Pakistan. (C) 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The implementation of SDGs in Pakistan's industrial sector is crucial for its economic growth, sustainable industrialization, innovation, and sustainable production. This study investigates the technical feasibility of two non-concentrating solar thermal collectors and compares the economic analysis and greenhouse gas emission mitigation of three fuels for preheating boilers in Pakistan. The results indicate the potential of solar thermal technology in achieving sustainable development goals and promoting renewable energy in the industrial sector.