GC: n

CT: Solar Cooling.
Solar energy can also be used to generate cool air. There are two kinds of solar cooling systems: desiccant systems and absorption chiller systems. In a desiccant system, air passes over a common desiccant or “drying material” such as silica gel to draw moisture from the air and make the air more comfortable. The desiccant is regenerated by using solar heat to dry it out. Absorption chiller systems, the most common solar cooling systems, use solar water heating collectors and a thermal-chemical absorption process to produce air-conditioning without using electricity. The process is nearly identical to that of a refrigerator, only no compressor is used. Instead, the absorption cycle is driven by a heated fluid from the solar collector.

S: http://www.seia.org/issues-policies-solar-technology-solar-heating-cooling/solar-cooling (lasta access: 3 March 2015)

N: 1. solar (adj): mid-15c., “pertaining to the sun,” from Latin solaris “of the sun,” from sol “sun”. Meaning “living room on an upper story” is from Old English, from Latin solarium. Old English had sunlic “solar.”
Astrological sense from 1620s. Meaning “operated by means of the sun” is from 1740; solar power is attested from 1915, solar cell from 1955, solar panel from 1964. Solar system is attested from c.1704; solar wind is from 1958.
cooling (n): From cool (v.), Old English colian, “to lose warmth,” also figuratively, “to lose ardor,” from the root of cool (adj.). Meaning “to cause to lose warmth” is from late 14c. Related: Cooled; cooling.
2. The application of energy from the sun to effect cooling. The simplest form of so-called solar cooling does not deserve the name, since it involves no more than allowing large ponds of water to cool at night (by evaporation and radiation to a clear sky); the chilled water is covered during the day and used to keep a house cool.
Use of solar radiation to produce cooling by means of thermal processes.
3. True solar cooling involves the use of solar collectors to produce heat which is then used to drive a heat-actuated heat pump. A heat store may be used to enable the heat pump to run when the sun is not shining; alternatively, cold water can be stored and circulated as required. Solar cooling installations have the advantage that the energy is usually most abundant when it is most needed. Combined solar heating/cooling installations are under intensive development in the United States. Typically, solar cooling systems can be driven by flat-plate collectors operating at temperatures below 100°C, feeding hot water to an absorption cycle heat pump. (Other heat pump types can be used, namely those based on the Rankine cycle or desiccant systems). Absorption cycle heat pumps based on the lithium bromide/water cycle and on the water/ammonia cycle have been successfully employed for solar cooling in the USA and Australia. Other chemical pairs are being considered for this purpose, particularly where storage is envisaged in conjunction with the absorption cycle.

S: 1. OED – http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=solar&searchmode=none; http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=cooling&searchmode=none (3 March 2015). 2 & 3. GDT.

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CR: solar energy, solar thermal collector, solar thermal energy.