OPTIMIZATION OF A SOLAR WATER HEATING SYSTEM FOR A NEGEV KIBBUTZ.

The paper gives a technical and economic analysis of the costs and benefits of adding solar energy to the centralized hot water system already existing at a Negev Kibbutz. Detailed estimates were received from five Israeli manufacturers. Taking into account the technical capabilities of the collectors, the local climatological data and the domestic hot water requirements, it was possible to estimate for each proposed system the amount of useful energy it could provide and hence, the momey to be saved in reduced fuel oil costs. The analysis was developed in such a way as to determine if a proposed system can repay its initial cost and to estimate a net savings over the anticipated life of the system. In a majority of the scenarios considered, all of which neglect the possibility of increases in the real price of fuel, of the five systems considered only two exhibited attractive economic and technical capabilities.