Modeling of a hybrid renewable/fossil hot water production system

The production of hot water for use in a Hospital can use solar energy as a main energy source. The hot water production system can also use fossil energy in cases were the demand is too high to be satisfied with solar power. The resulting system is hybrid and its control poses some problems. In this paper the work in progress towards the control of this kind of hybrid system is shown. The model used belongs to a general category of models that can be applied to various types of renewable energy plants. The abstract representation receives the name of RESCUE model. In this paper it is applied to a particular hot water system installed at the Virgen del Rocío hospital in Seville (Spain). The RESCUE model allows to identify niches of inefficiency in the operation. The model is a first step towards the improving of operation by means of adequate controllers.