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Collector Subsystem (Air Collectors) : 3.6 Design
Collector Subsystem (Air Collectors) : 3.6 Design
Collector Subsystem (Air Collectors) : 3.6 Design
The collector subsystem is the most impoRant and usually the most
costly subsystem of any solar energy system. The design objective is to
develop a subsystem that will produce the design thermal performance at
minimum cost. Factors to be considered include:
Array design
3.6.1.1 Collector A survey of available air collectors that are suited to the user's applica-
tion should be made. Collector arrangement studies are then recom-
mended to minimize overall area for mounting collectors and to obtain
the design square footage of the collectors. This is particularly important
where available area may be limited, such as on the building roof. Some
tradeoff between size of collectors and number of coliectors may be
necessary. The recommended procedure is outlined in the sections
below.
3.6.1.2 Collector Size After selection of the specific collector type to be used, the A/E should
and Number select the collector size best suited to the application. Installationcosts
usually can be reduced by using large collectors; i.e., 4- x 8-ft or 4- x 10-
ft (1,219- x 2,438- or 1,219- x 3,048-mm) plates. The number of collec-
tors required is determined by dividing the total collector area calculated
in the feasibility study by the gross area of each collector as provided by
the collector manufacturer's specification sheet.
3.6.1.3 Collector Slope Verly collector field orientation and collector slope angle used for
and Orientation feasibility study in Section 2. The preferred field orientation is facing true
south (in the Northern Hemisphere), but deviations up to &3O0 have
minor impact on solar energy system performance. Deviation from true
south may be necessary for roof-mounted collectors because of building
orientation. The preferred slope angle for winter space heating is equal
to the latitude plus IS0. High collector slope angles maximize solar
3.6.1.4 Collector Field Layout Factors to be considered in the collector arrangement design are similar
to those for liquid collectors (see Section 3.3). Additional factors must be
:onsidered when designing an air collector heating system. The space
available for ducting, both into and out of the building envelope, must be
considered. The space necessary is considerably larger than for liquid
collector heating systems because of the size of the ducting. In addition,
with large and multistory buildings, there is normally more than one
heating zone (thermostat control). If the conventional heating system
design requires independent furnace units, distribution ducts, etc., it is
advisable (and perhaps required by fire codes) to also design separate,
independent solar collector loops to interface with the furnace units.
After the number of collectors, their size, orientation, and slope are
determined, the arrangement of the collector field should be established.
Normal practice is to fay out the collectors in an east-west row with as
many collectors in a row as can be accommodated. The number of
collectors is generally limited by the space required between collectors
for securing the collectors to the support structure. Most collectors have
openings on the back for inlet and outlet air ducts. For collectors with
openings on side frames, adequate space must be provided for cunnec-
tion of ducts to side frames and routing of ducts. a
3.6.1.5 Design of Support Typically, 4- x 8-ft or 4- x 104 (1,219- x 2,438- or 1,219- x 3,048-mm) flat
Structure plate air collectors have the same overall configuration as liquid flat plate
collectors of similar size. Design requirements, factors, and features of
support structures for liquid flat plate collectors described in Sec-
tion 3.3.1.5 are applicable to support structures for flat plate air collec-
tors.
Collector support structures must allow clear access of air ducts to the
openings. Backdraft dampers are sometimes installed in individual air
supply ducts and flow balancing dampers on air outlet ducts. Collector
support structures must allow easy access for damper installation
adjustments, maintenance, and replacement. Attachment of supports for
individual collector ducts and main ducting to the support structure
should also be included in the design.
3.6.2 Ductlng Design Detail designs of ducts, including materials, thickness, duct fabrication
method, and supports, should be in accordance with duct construction
requirements of SMACNA, "Installation Standards for Heating, Air
Conditioning, and Solar Systems," or other HVAC industry standards.
Pressure drop data for ducts, plenums, and fittings contained in the
above standard should be used for determination of duct pressure
losses. Pressure drop data for collectors, filters, air handlers, and
dampers should be obtained from potential manufacturers. From the
above data, total pressure drop through collector subsystem ducting
should be calculated when heated air is being delivered directly to space
heating and also to thermal storage.
3.6.2.1 Ducting Arrangement of the headers and individual inlet and outlet ducts to and
from the collectors in the bank should provide reverse return flow, as
discussed in Section 3.3.2.2 for liquid collectors. The design goal is to
provide the proper air flow through collectors to optimize thermal per-
formance while reducing fan power requirements to a reasonable level.
The total flow rate through collector loops should normally be equal to
the flow rate at which selected collectos were tested for performance
certificationtimes the number of collectors in the loop. The typical collec-
tor test flow rate is 3 cfm/ft2 (15 Usem2)of collector area or 96 cfm (45
Us)for 4- x 8 4 (1,219- x 2,438-mm) and 120 cfm (57 Us)for 4- x 1 0 4
(1,219-x 3,048-mm) collector sizes. Higher flow rates improve collector
performance and increase fan power; whereas, lower flow rates increase
outlet temperatures. Typical pressure drop through each collector
should be between 0.25 and 0.50 in. of water (62 and 124 Pa). Total
pressure drop of the collector subsystem ducting should be limited to 1 to
2 in. of water (249 to 498 Pa) for smaller commercial systems and 2 to 3
in. (498 to 747 Pa) for very large systems to permit use of available
commercial fans with practical power requirements. This includes
pressure losses through collectors, ducting, all dampers, filters, and
thermal storage. Typically, 50% of losses are attributable to collectors
and the balance to duct system and thermal storage. Total duct system
losses (excluding losses through collectors and rock box) should be held
to 0.25 to 0.50 in. of water (62 to 124 Pa) for smaller systems and 0.50 to
0.75 in. of water (124 to 187 Pa) for very large systems.
Concern for air leakage from collector subsystem ducting is much greater
than for conventional W A C systems because of higher internal air
Section 3 - Detailed Design Collector Subsystem Design(A/C) - Page 3-113
I
Duct routing should be designed for minimum run lengths consistent with
space available. Most air collectors are designed with individual air inlet
and outlet openings on the back side with inlets at lower ends and outlets
at upper ends. If selected collectors have provision for side-by-side
stacking for parallel air flow through coltectors, such configurations
reduce the number of air inlet and outlet ducts from main ducts and
should be utilized within the limits of any overall pressure drop increase.
Manufacturers of proposed collectors should be consulted on the type of
flow balancing dampers to be installed at collector air outlet openings
and also on whether backdraft dampers should be installed on inlets.
3.6.3 Collector Subsystem The main components of the collector subsystems of an air collector
Component Requirements solar heating system are:
Solar collector
Fan assembly
Manual dampers
Backdraft dampers
a Insulation.
3.6.3.1 Solar Collector Collectors for air heating systems perform the same important function
as those for liquid heating systems. Coliector configurations are similar
for both systems. Differences relate mainly to the specific heat and
density of air compared with liquid heat transfer fluids. The lower specific
heat of air, 0.24 versus f .O Btu/(lbm°F) [I
.0versus 4 kJ/(kg**C)], requires
higher mass flow rates to remove the energy being converted by the
collector absorbers, and the lower density requires that a much larger
volume be handled. In most commercial air collectors, air is circulated
from one end to the opposite end through one or more channels between
the absorber plate and the back insulation. A spacing of about 1 in. (25.4
mm) is commonly used. In other types of collectors, air is passed
between the absorber plate and cover glazing, or air is circulated in
contact with both top and bottom surfaces of the absorber plate. Collec-
tors are designed to mount on support structures very similar to liquid
collectors. (Some air collectors designed to be mounted integrally on
walls or on steep roofs are generally less than 24 in. (610 mm) wide, but
have lengths varying from 2 to 12 ft (610 to 3,658 mm). These collectors
are designed primarily for residential applications.)
3.6.3.2f a n Assembly Fan assemblies for collector subsystems must provide the design flow
rate to the collector under operating conditions with minimum power
consumption. The pressure drops to deliver design flow either directly to
space heating or to thermal storage were determined during collector
system duct design in Section 3.6.2.1. Where pressure drops for the two
Use of two fans, one for collector loop and another for space heating
load loop, allows performance of both fans to be optimized.
Where fans are located in heated air return ducts from collectors, tem-
perature adjustment to both flow and pressure requirements for fans
must be made. The correction factor, F, for both flow and head require-
ments is:
where:
Specification requirements for fans include, but are not limited to, those
indicated in Section 4.3.3, Engineering judgment should be used to
determine values or inputs for parameters not discussed.
3.6.3.3 Remotely Actuated Remotely operated (by control system) dampers either allow or stop flow
Damper Assembly along the designated flow path. Ideally, dampers should cause minimum
flow resistance when open and positive flow isolation when closed.
Damper blade@) should have sealing edges of felt, rubber, or of other
durable and flexible material. Dampers must be installed so that any
3.6.3.4 Manually Operated Manually operated dampers are used to isolate or divert flow path
Damper Assembly manually, such as diverting flow away from thermal storage during
nonheating seasons. Basically, they are similar to remotely operated
dampers except that blades must be manually positioned and locked in
place. Thus, manual operators must have positive locking mechanisms
in both the open and closed positions.
3.6.3.5 Backdraft Damper Backdraft dampers act as check valves to permit flow only in one direc-
Assembly tion. Ideally, they should provide positive flow isolation in the closed
direction and minimum flow restriction in the open direction. To achieve
this goal, sealing action of blades or flaps to backflow and opening action
of blades or flaps should be self-actuated, either by back pressure or flow
velocity.
3.6.3.6Air Handler Units An air handier unit may integrate fans, damper, heat exchanger, and filter
into a single unit. The units are normally designed for a specific system.
Detail drawings for an air handler unit must completely define the final
configuration and other requirements to enable solar energy system in-
stallers to fabricate, or have fabricated, an economical, acceptable, and
reliable unit.
3.6.3.7Insulation The requirements for insulation are similar to those discussed for liquid
colector solar energy systems in Section 3.3.3.8.
3.6.4 Design Drawlngs and Design drawings and construction requirements generated during this
Construction Requirements phase must physically define and indicate detail design, construction,
and installation requirements of collector subsystems. Requirements of
applicable standards, codes, and practices should be cited wherever
possible. The following are the minimum information and details to be
.includedin these documents:
. Collector Arrangement
3.6.5 Design Reviews of Air Preliminary design reviews should be conducted in accordance with
Collector Subsystems procedures of Section 3.1 0 when the following efforts are completed:
0
System schematic diagram
* Collector arrangements
b
Collector support structure overall configuration layout