The current study concerns the fundamental problems of Legionnaires disease. Four decades after Legionnaires' bacteria was first identified there is still a low level of clinical awareness. Humans are infected by inhalation of aerosolized water and/or soil contaminated with the bacteria. Several control methods are available for water disinfection: biocide, ultraviolet light sterilization, copper-silver ionization, ozonation etc. but only thermal treatment can completely eliminate Legionella, which is killed almost instantly at 70 °C. The current paper describes Legionella disinfection by a solar concentrator combined with a heat recovery system that reduces the heat demand. Though this study is made for a small system (160 l of hot water per day) the system can be enlarged (more hot water and more solar collector area) and the results are thus valid also for such larger systems. Here experiments of water treatment by a solar concentrator are summarized and analyzed where the temperature exceeds 80 °C at the outlet of the heat exchanger.

This paper reports on an experimental realization and field testing of a recently proposed solar fiber optic mini dish light concentrator connected to a hot water accumulator. The prototype dish is 150 cm in diameter. In repeated test the collected and concentrated sunlight was transported in a one millimeter diameter optical fiber to a selective surface in the storage tank. This surface absorbs the radiation which remains trapped inside as it heat exchanges with tank fluid which temperature can reach 70 °C.

The basic issue of this thesis concerns one of the fundamental problems of the future of our society: How to meet the energy requirements for a large and growing world population while preserving our environment? This question is important for the world and the answers are complex and interwoven.Conventional energy sources, fossil and fissile, are polluting in the present and in the future: they erode the environment and their resources are limited. Renewable energy (hydro, wind, solar, geothermal) constitutes a minimum of pollution in the different energy systems. The technologies for using renewable energy are well known though further development and progress are made. This development also requires behavioural change, adaptation, and above all political will. The transition from an economy based on fossil energy to an economy based on renewable energy appears necessary for the protection of the environment. The cost of renewable energy is often represented as an obstacle but remains competitive in the long run.The development and availability of renewable energy, which varies because of its spatial and temporal distribution, require an adaptation of lifestyle, habits, habitat design (passive bioclimatic houses), urban planning and transportation.The focus of this thesis was to apply renewable energy in an area with hot summers and cold winter, a climate like that in the northwest of Algeria. In order to provide improved comfort in the buildings and also economic development in this area, the energy demand for heating and cooling was analyzed in the ancient city of Tlemcen. To supply domestic hot water and space heating, water must be simultaneously available at two different temperature levels. Cold water temperature, close to that of the atmosphere, and hot water between 50 and 60°C. An interesting feature of the preparation of hot water is the small variation of requirements during the year, unlike that to heating. The preparation of hot water is one of the preferred applications of solar energy in the building for several reasons. For this reason an experimental study of the thermal behaviour of a domestic hot water storage tank was undertaken. The phenomena that affect the thermal behaviour of tank especially the coupling between the solar collector and storage tank was studied. This study included concentrating solar collector in which optical fibers were used to transport the energy to the storage tank. Another technology was introduced and developed for the heating and cooling of buildings in the desert involving an existing ancient irrigation system called Fouggara. The novel idea is to use the Fouggara as an air conditioner by pumping ambient air through this underground system. Then air at a temperature of about 21°C would be supplied to the building for heating in the winter and cooling in the summer. This study shows the feasibility of using this ancient irrigation system of Fouggara and contributes to reducing and eliminating the energy demand for heating and cooling buildings in the Sahara desert.

In order to utilise naturally stored heat or cold from the ground, seasonal temperature variations are required. The reason is that the ground temperature is then warmer than the air temperature during winter and colder during summer. The heating and cooling demand in North Africa varies considerably with the greatest cooling demand in the East and the greatest heating demand in the West. In parts of Algeria the mean temperature difference between the coldest and warmest month is greater than 20 °C, which is favourable. In current work it was shown that the ancient Fouggara system, even today would be interesting for heating and cooling of buildings in the Sahara desert.

Many works were carried out on heat storage during the 20-30 last years, particularly on solar heat storage applications. Theoretical and experimental studies on internal behaviour storage were made and carried as well on laboratory installations as on a large scale. In order to understand the stratification phenomena, an experimental study of tank thermal behaviour of charge and discharge of domestic heat water storage is undertaken.

The hourly and monthly middle temperature knowledge is necessary for an adequate dimensionnement of the thermal photo generators, of the agricultural greenhouses and for the air-conditioning of the site. Our work consists in a modelling of these temperatures on the site of TLEMCEN. The treatment of the gradual measure results on several years permitted us the diurnal and nocturnal middle temperature modelling and their variations during the day of the year. This study permits us an optimization of energy captured and the reduction of losses for the storage of energy. This study is necessary for a dimensionnement adapted to cost reduces the generator. The technique of the fittage used permitted us the modelling of these temperatures and the dimensionnement of a generator photo thermal.