Solar energy utilisation

Solar energy can be used by man in a planned direct way. There are two fundamental methods of solar energy conversion: photothermal and photoelectric. The paper is dealing with the analysis of photothermal conversion in the high latitude countries. Different types of solar active and passive systems are considered. The more reliable the solar system and the higher the temperature requirements, the required technology is more modern and sophisticated, and the construction of the system, together with the automatic control, is more complicated. The degree of complexity depends on the function of the system and required mode of its operation. In the case of solar space heating in high latitude countries, it is evident that thermal performance of solar source is not coherent with the heat demand. Therefore the use of solar energy requires a special upgrading, e.g. in a form of a heat pump or seasonal storage. However, the best idea for efficient use of solar energy is to design a building in a proper way, including the passive systems. The architecture is crucial for the energy balance of a building and it should assure proper use of environment, improving solar energy gains in winter and protecting inside of the building against solar overheating in summer.