Solar Trigeneration for Residential Applications, a Feasible Alternative to Traditional Micro-Cogeneration and Trigeneration Plants

Trigeneration stands for the combined production of electricity, heat, and cooling (CHCP). This paper reviews and compares CHCP system based on solar energy with respect to traditional CHCP ones. A further comparison is made among the possible technologies for solar CHCP to assess the technical solutions more suited to residential applications. Beyond photovoltaic based systems, two other solutions are proposed: a concentrated sunlight all-thermoacoustic system and an hybrid thermo-photovoltaic system. In a grid-connected energy market, the adoption of CHCP plants may become profitable with respect to traditional systems, where the single energies are produced or purchased separately. Specifically, the onset of solar trigeneration can lead to a substantial improvement, overcoming many of the traditional drawback associated with micro-cogeneration and trigeneration. The result is a trigeneration system based totally on renewable energy. This is especially attractive for the residential demand, provided that a cost-effective technical solution is available.