A

Presentation
on

By
Arun Kumar
Research Scholar
Department of Mechanical Engineering
IIT(BHU), Varanasi-221005
 Introduction
Energy is one of the important requirement in domestic,
agriculture & industrial sector.
Application of solar thermal energy is must to full fill energy
increasing requirement.
Incoming solar spectrum energy consist one third of infrared
radiations.
Characteristic of infrared radiation that whenever it falls on any
object , it converts into heat.
Solar collector is used collect that solar radiation & convert it into
heat, & produced heat can be used for certain applications.
 Contd.

Solar collectors are the key component of active solar-

heating systems.

They gather the sun's energy, transform its radiation into

heat, then transfer that heat to a fluid (usually water or air).

The solar thermal energy can be used in solar water-heating

systems, solar pool heaters, and solar space-heating systems.
Solar collector

A device designed to absorb incident solar

radiation and to transfer the energy to a fluid
passing in contact with it, usually liquid or air.

They can be classified in three groups:

- Flat-plate collectors,
- Evacuated-tube collectors
- Focusing collectors.
 Flat Plate Collector
A typical flat-plate collector is
an insulated metal box with a
glass or plastic cover (called the
glazing) and a dark-colored
absorber plate. These collectors
heat liquid or air at temperatures
less than 180F.

Temperature-
Achieved upto 40-1000c.
fig: Flat-plate collectors
 Contd.
However to reach higher temparatures evacuated-tube
collectors and focusing collectors are used.

In evacuated-tube collectors they use vacum to reduce

heat lost and to protect the absorber coating from
deterioration. By this way they can reach temperatures
up to 140 C and they can collect both direct and diffuse
solar radiation.

In focusing collectors, they are not stable and they

follow the sun to get direct radiation; they can not utilize
diffuse radiation. And they are also capable of producing
high temperatures.
Components

Transparent cover
Tubes and fins
Absorber plate
Insulation
The casing
 Contd
1) A transparent cover one or more sheets of glass or
radiation transmitting plastic film or sheet.
2) Tubes, fins , passages or channels- integral with or
connected to the absorber plate & conduct the working
fluid through the collector.
3) The absorber plate- normally metallic or with a black
surface
4) Insulation provided at the back & sides to minimize
heat losses
5) The casing or enclosure - encloses the other components
& protects them from the weather.
Processes at a flat-plate collector

conduction
Selection of Materials for Flat Plate Collectors

(i) Absorber plate:

High absorbtivity
High thermal conductivity
Adequate tensile & compressive strength
Good corrosion resistance
Less specific heat
Easily workable
Easy to handle
Low cost
Eg. Copper , Aluminium, Steel.
 Material specification
Material Density Specific heat Thermal
kg/m3 Kg/KJ conductivity
W/m c
Aluminum 2707 0.896 204
Iron 7897 0.452 73
Steel 7833 0.465 54
Copper 8954 0.385 386
 Here in figure we can see absorber plate and flow passages

Figure: Cross section of a absorber plate&flow passages of a flat plate

solar collector [4] .
 ii) Cover plate:

Minimize convection loss

Minimize radiation loss
Good strength, durability
Non-degradability
Efficient solar energy transmission
Rigidity
Resistant to thermal shock

Eg. Tempered glass (Tempering puts the outer surfaces into

compression and the inner surfaces into tension.)
Specification of transparent cover

Material Thickness Solar Thermal

(mm) transmisivity transmission
(%) (%)
Glass 3-4 91-95 3-5
PVC 0-3 85 32
Here in figure we can see cover part.

Figure: Cross section of a cover part of a flat-plate collector [4].

iii) Insulating Material:

Provide at the back of the absorber & on the side of the

walls to reduce conduction losses and to maximize the
efficiency.
Usually made of polyurethane foam or mineral wool.

Eg.Mineral fiber materials like glass wool, rock wool,

glass fiber or fiberglass.
Properties of insulating materials
Material Density Thermal
Kg/m3 conductivity
W/m c
Timber 720 0.1442
Thermocol 22 0.0314
Saw dust 188 0.0511
Glass wool 65 0.0418
Fiber glass 32 0.0372
 Here in figure we can see insulation part.

Figure: Cross Section of an Insulation Part of a Flat-Plate Collector [4].

 Classification
Based on the type of heat transfer:

1. Liquid heating collector

2. Air heating collector
Liquid flat plate collector
 Absorber plate:
Is basically a flat metal plate, usually made of highly conductive and
corrosion resistant copper or steel or aluminum with a black surface with
high absorptivity for solar radiation.

Is made from metal sheet 1 to 2 mm in thickness.

Generally corrugated galvanized sheet material is widely used. As copper

is expensive, steel is widely used.

The surface of the absorber plate determines how much of the incident
solar radiation is absorbed and how much is emitted at a given
temperature. Flat black paint which is widely used as a coating has an
absorptance of about 95 percent for incident shortwave solar radiation.
 Flow passages:
The tubings made of copper of
diameter 1 to 1.5 cm are soldered in
line or integral with the absorber plate
with the pitch ranging from 5 to 15 cm.

For a copper plate 0.05 cm thick with

1.25-cm tubes spaced 15 cm apart in
good thermal contact with the copper,
fig:Cross section of a
absorber plate& flow
the fin efficiency is better than 97
passages of a flat plate percent.
collector
 Transparent Cover plate:
One or two sheets of glass of
thickness 3 to 4 mm or radiation
transmitting plastic film or sheet
that is transparent to incoming solar
radiation and opaque to the infrared
re-radiation from the absorber.
Should have a high transmittance
for solar radiation and should not
deteriorate with time.
It reduces convective and radiative
fig : Cross section of a cover part of a
heat losses from the absorber.
flat-plate collector
 Insulation & Enclosure:
Thermal insulation of 5 to 10 cm thickness.

Material is generally mineral wool or glass

wool or a heat resistant fiber glass.

Placed behind absorber plate to prevent heat

losses from the rear surface.

The collector enclosure is usually made

from galvanized steel or aliminium.
fig: Cross Section of an
Insulation Part of a
Flat-Plate Collector Slagwood, polyurethane foam, hay in
polythene bags are other suitable insulation
materials.
 Flat Plate Air Heating Collectors
(Solar Air Heaters)
A conventional air heater is typically a flat passage
between two parallel plates.
One of the plates is blackened to absorb incident solar
radiation.
One or more transparent covers are located above the
absorbing surface.
The air is made to pass through the passage so that it
gets heated. Insulation around the sides and base of the
unit is necessary to keep heat losses to a minimum.
fig: Cross section of a basic air-heating flat-plate solar
collector
Proper Orentaton and Angle of Solar
Collector
Flat plate collectorts are divided in three main groups according
to how they are oriented:
Flat-plate collectors facing south at fixed tilt
One-axis tracking flat-plate collectors with axis
oriented north-south
Two-axis tracking flat-plate collectors

Most favourable orientation of a collector for heating only-

collector facing due south at an inclination angle to the
horizontal equal to the latitude plus 150 (s= + 150).
 Applications
A) Domestic applications
Domestic hot water
Air conditioning
Cooking

B) Commercial applications
Laundromats
Car washes
Military laundry facilities
Space heating
Power generation
Water pumping
 Solar energy applications and type of collectors used
Application System Collector
Solar water heating
Thermosyphon systems Passive FPC
Integrated collector storage Passive CPC
Direct circulation Active FPC, CPC ETC
Indirect water heating systems Active FPC, CPC ETC
Air systems Active FPC

Space heating and cooling

Space heating and service hot water Active FPC, CPC ETC
Air systems Active FPC
Water systems Active FPC, CPC ETC
Heat pump systems Active FPC, CPC ETC
Absorption systems Active FPC, CPC ETC
Adsorption (desiccant) cooling Active FPC, CPC ETC
Mechanical systems Active PDR

Solar refrigeration
Adsorption units Active FPC, CPC ETC
Absorption units Active FPC, CPC ETC
 Application System Collector
Industrial process heat
Industrial air and water systems Active FPC, CPC ETC
Steam generation systems Active PTC, LFR

Solar desalination
Solar stills Passive -
Multi-stage flash (MSF) Active FPC, CPC ETC
Multiple effect boiling (MEB) Active FPC, CPC ETC
Vapour compression (VC) Active FPC, CPC ETC

Solar thermal power systems

Parabolic trough collector systems Active PTC
Parabolic tower systems Active HFC
Parabolic dish systems Active PDR
Solar furnaces Active HFC, PDR
Solar chemistry systems Active CPC, PTC, LFR
fig: Flat plate collectors used for heating buildings
fig: Flat-plate collectors used for heating swimming pools
 Comparison of Liquid and Air Heating
Flat Plate Collectors
S.NO. PARAMETRS LIQUID HEATING AIR HEATING TYPE
TYPE
1. Volume of storage 1/3rd of vol. of rocks Roughly 3 times as
required necessary to store equal much vol. as for water
quantities of heat for air heat-storage
systems (due to low density of
air as working fluid)

2. Noise level Less noisy Higher noise level

3. Energy requirements for Much less Much more(require
pumping working fluid blowers)

4. Energy supply to Easily adapted Has difficulty

absorption air-
conditioners

5. Fluid circulation costs Low high

 Advantages of FPC

Can be use both direct and diffused radiation

Do not require orientation towards sun
Require little maintenance
Mechanically simpler
 EVACUATED TUBE SOLAR THERMAL
COLLECTOR
ETCs are built to reduce convective and heat conduction
loss (vacuum is a heat insulator).
Each evacuated tube consists of two glass tubes.
The outer tube is made of extremely strong transparent glass
that is able to withstand changing climatic conditions.
The inner tube is also made of glass, but coated with a
special selective coating which features excellent solar heat
absorption and minimal heat reflection properties.
The air is evacuated from the space between the two glass
tubes to form a vacuum.
Assumptions
UL = Overall heat loss coefficient
Tpm = Mean absorber plate temperature
Ta = Ambient temperature .
Ac = Collector of area
S = Solar radiation absorbed by a collector per
unit area of absorber
Contd..
Contd.
Contd
Cond
Hence, Top loss coefficient = 6.62 watt per square meter
And Glass cover temperature = 48.5 degree celcius
Concluson
Flat-plate collectors which are used for water heating,
are long lasting, and also in long term they are cheaper
than other water heating systems.However,they requires
large areas if high energy output is a requirement.

Solar energy is free if we do not include the initial

cost for installation and the maintenance.

Finally; besides these we should remember by using

solar energy we can protect nature.