80
Views
3
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Research Article

Closed collector –storage solar air heating system thermal performance: an experimental study

, ORCID Icon &
Pages 10006-10023 | Received 12 Aug 2022, Accepted 02 Nov 2022, Published online: 10 Nov 2022
 

ABSTRACT

A novel solar air heater design is proposed in the present study. The new design is a closed collector – storage solar air heater system (CCSSAHS) integrated with an internal finned heat exchanger filled with PCM. Two identical solar air heaters were manufactured for the sake of comparison. The first one was filled with RT42, and the second one was filled with RT50. The thermal performance of the solar air heaters was studied for RT42 and RT50, utilizing reflecting mirror; air mass flow rate, that is, 0.25, 0.045, and 0.065 kg/s; series and separation arrangements. For RT42, the experiments showed at 0.025 kg, with mirror, and series arrangement that the stored power, charging efficiency, discharged power, and discharging efficiency were 1255 W, 90.7%, 420 W, and 93.9%, respectively, while for RT50 were 1203 W, 87%, 332 W, and 88.1%, respectively. The highest air temperature difference between the exit and entrance of the solar air heater was found for RT42 at 0.025 kg/s with mirror for the separation arrangement, that is, 16.8°C. In addition, an economic evaluation was presented. CCSSAHS can satisfy tremendous industrial and domestic needs. The internal finned heat exchanger, the core component of the solar air heater, can be recycled from damaged air condition devices. The present proposed design combines the principle of recycling and clean energy to preserve the environment.

Nomenclature

Aabs=

absorber aperture area (m2)wuncertainty

AC=

annual cost ($)

ACC=

annual collector cost ($)

Acs=

pipe cross sectional area (m2)

ASV=

annual salvage value ($)

CO=

capital cost ($)

CRF=

capital recovery factor ($)

cp=

specific heat capacity (kJ/kg.°C)

hc=

convection heat transfer coefficient (W/m2)

hf=

latent heat of PCM (J/kg)

hr=

radiation heat transfer coefficient (W/m2)

I=

incident solar radiation (W/m2)

I=

annual interest rate

MC=

annual maintenance cost ($)

M=

mass (kg)

m˙=

mass flow rate (kg/s)

N=

lifetime years

Qabs=

absorbed power (W)

Qlos=

heat losses (W)

Qstr=

stored thermal power (W)

Qdisch=

discharged thermal power (W)

T=

temperature (°C)

R=

Thermal resistance (°C/W)

SFF=

salvage fund factor

SV=

salvage value ($)

Tm=

melting temperature (°C)

V=

velocity (m/s)

w=

uncertainty

Greek Symbols=
α=

glass absorptivity

ηch=

charging efficiency (%)

ηdisch=

discharging efficiency (%)

ρ=

density (kg/m3)

τ=

glass transitivity

Subscripts=
amb=

ambient

av=

average

bp=

backplane of solar air heater

cs=

cylindrical surface

gc=

glass cover

in=

inlet

l=

liquid, left

low=

lower

out=

outlet

r=

right

s=

solid

s.s.t.=

side storage tank

up=

upper

Abbreviations=
CCSSAHS=

closed collector – storage solar air heater system

CSSAHS=

collector-storage solar air heating system

OCSSAH=

Sopened collector-storage solar air heating system

PCM=

phase change material

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Log in via your institution

Log in to Taylor & Francis Online

PDF download + Online access

  • 48 hours access to article PDF & online version
  • Article PDF can be downloaded
  • Article PDF can be printed
USD 61.00 Add to cart

* Local tax will be added as applicable

Related Research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.