Gary Lunn, Canada's minister of natural resources, recently announced $1.1 million in funding for demonstration projects promoting hybrid photovoltaic/solar thermal technologies for commercial and residential use.
The technology being demonstrated was developed by Conserval Engineering Inc. and combines two solar technologies to produce both electricity and heat energy from the same surface area. Pairing a photovoltaic component with the SolarWall air collector creates a multi-functional renewable energy system with a payback period that is substantially shorter than conventional PV, Conserval Engineering says.
The four demonstration projects are in Ontario and Quebec. In addition to support from the government of Canada, the initiative is being led by the Solar Buildings Research Network out of Concordia University, and project partners include Conserval Engineering Inc., Day4Energy Inc., Sustainable Energy Technologies Ltd., Sevag Pogharian Design, Les Maisons Alouette Homes, Regulvar Inc., Hydro-Québec, lAgence de lefficacité énergétique du Québec and the City of Toronto.
