Train the Trainers Workshop at Harare Institute of Technology

The National University of Science and Technology (NUST), country partner in the SOLTRAIN 4 project in cooperation with AEE Intec, continued to support solar thermal uptake by conducting a Train-the-Trainer workshop at the Harare Institute of Technology in early February.

Among those trained were technicians, installers and artisans from the following organisations:

• Sunnex
• Impact Solar
• Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT),
• Harare Institute of Technology (HIT)
• Nhjizana investment
• Lower Nooks Enterprises P/L
• Standards Association of Zimbabwe (SAZ)
• Hanseal Plumbering
• University of Zimbabwe (UZ)
• Ministry of Energy and Power Development
• Msasa Industrial Training Centre

There were three female and thirteen male participants, comprising a total of sixteen altogether. The facilitators for the training were Rudi Moschoeck (AEE Intec, Austria), Samson Mhlanga (NUST) and Blessed Sarema (NUST).

The training session focused on the following topics:

• Solar Heat Worldwide, an overview of the worldwide developments and applications
• The solar resource
• An overview of solar thermal collectors,
• Solar thermal system designs for pumped and thermosyphon to water systems,
• Performance of solar collectors
• Collector field hydraulics
• Flow conditions and pressure drop in parallel and serial collector connections,
• Pumped solar thermal systems
• System configuration
• Components
• Monitoring and energy savings based on systems monitored in SOLTRAIN 3
• Simulation software
• An introduction into Retscreen and TSOL

The training also included a 'how-to' on preparing an application for demonstration systems which are financially supported up to 50% by the SOLTRAIN project in two flagship districts within a 50km radius of Harare and Bulawayo, as well as a session where local companies could showcase their installations.

The training was concluded with a visit to the solar pumped system at the Harare Institute of Technology, and a visit to the solar trailer demonstrating a thermosyphon and pumped system at the University of Zimbabwe.