Solar Thermal Collectors

and Application
Thermal Collector Mechanics

Solar energy is
absorbed, transformed,
and concentrated in a
solar thermal collector
over a time or spatial
gradient to produce
usable energy.
Thermal Collector Technologies
 Solar Cookers  Solar Chimney

 Parabolic Troughs  Solar Distillers

 Parabolic Dish
 Solar Water Heaters

 Central Receiver
System
Solar Cookers
 Solar cookers or ovens are primarily used in
developing nations as a primary method for
cooking using passive solar heat to cook primary
meals

 Insulated box that collects solar radiation

enhanced by reflectors attached to each side

 Helps combat deforestation

Solar Oven in Nepal
Parabolic Trough
 A parabolic trough concentrates sunlight along a
spatial gradient into a linear focal point

 A fluid acts as a thermal sink as it passes through

dewar tubes along the focal point

 Parabolic troughs are used to generate electricity

but are susceptible to seasonal changes
Industrial Parabolic Trough
Parabolic Dish
 A parabolic dish or solar furnace is a large
reflector that concentrates thermal energy into a
single focal point

 The focal point can contain a Stirling Engine to

generate electricity or the energy can be focused
and used in industrial processes

 On a small scale, a reactor can be used in the same

way a solar oven is used
Research Solar Furnace in France
Central Receiver System
 Uses a series of sun tracking mirrors called
heliostats to concentrate sunlight onto a focal
point

 Focal point contains salt that when molten

generates electricity in a steam generator for large
scale energy production

 Capable of producing electricity over a 24 hour

cycle due to salt’s ability to retain heat
Central Receiver System
Solar Distiller
 Solar radiation heats up the contaminated water
and allows the water to evaporate, leaving the
contaminant behind

 System design collects distilled water for use

 Technology purifies water and can serve from one

person to a community depending on the size of
system installed
Solar Distiller Technology
Solar Chimney
 Ambient air collected within the chimney rises as
it is heated though solar radiation and drives the
turbine and that generates electricity.

 Base captures heat through absorption of a black

surface and trapped by a greenhouse interface

 Very inexpensive solar collector technology

Solar Chimney
Solar Water Heater - Overview
 A solar water heater concentrates solar energy
over a time gradient

 Common usage ranges from pool heaters to hot

water for showering and domestic use

 The most popular solar collector

 Heavily used in Florida until World War 2

increased the demand for copper
Solar Water Heater - Components
 Conductive thermal collectors (painted
black to aide absorption)
 Transparent cover to capture solar radiation
 Pipes for water flow
 Insulation
 Water body
Solar Water Heater - Passive Design
 Passive design uses thermal convection to
circulate heat in the water system

 The water body needs to be above the solar

collector

 As water heats up it rises into the water body

pushing cold water down
Passive Solar Water Design
Solar Water Heater - Active Design
 Uses pumps to
circulate hot water

 Spends electricity
lowering the energy
savings
Solar Collectors
 Solar collectors transform solar radiation into heat
and transfer that heat to a medium (water, solar
fluid, or air). Then solar heat can be used for
heating water, to heating or cooling systems, or for
heating swimming pools. Solar cooling
technologies demand high temperatures and not all
the type of solar collectors are capable of producing
them. The collectors needed are based on
technologies, which can supply hot water at
relatively high temperature (90-150 C).
Solar Collectors: Classifications
Back-pass solar collectors
Used to heat air
Glazed surface
May be integrated with thermal mass
Concentrating solar collectors
Best suited for clear skies
Steam production
Concentrates light at absorber which can increase efficiency at high
temperature
Four forms: parabolic trough, parabolic dish, power tower, stationary solar
collectors
Trombe Wall
Thermal mass designed to radiate heat during the night
Glass to allow sunlight through
With added salt fillers stored energy changes from 200 cal/day to 80,000
cal/day
Batch Solar Collectors
Water heating
Glazed water collectors
Solar cookers
Liquid Solar Collectors
Vacuum tubing
 Flate Plate Solar Collector
• The absorbing surface is approximately as large as the overall
collector area that intercepts thesun rays .

• The first accurate model of flat plate solar collectors was

developed by Hottel and Whillier in the 1950's.
Flat Plate Solar Collector Cont’d..

A typical flat-plate
collector consists of an
absorber, transparent
cover sheets, and an
insulated box.
Flat Plate Solar Collector Cont’d..

The absorber is usually a sheet of high-thermal-

conductivity metal such as copper or aluminum, with
tubes either integral or attached. Its surface is coated
to maximize radiant energy absorption and to
minimize radiant emission. The insulated box
reduces heat loss from the back or the sides of the
collector. The cover sheets, called glazing, allow
sunlight to pass through the absorber but also
insulate the space above the absorber to prevent cool
air to flow into this space.
Evacuated (or Vacuum) Tubes
Evacuated (or Vacuum) Tubes are solar panel built
to reduce convective and heat conduction loss
(vacuum is a heat insulator). Different construction
types are available:
•Heat pipes or direct flow
•All glass tubes
•With or without concentrator It use when it
necessary high temperature of fluid.
Evacuated Tubes cont’d..
Glass evacuated tubes are the key component of the
Evacuated Tube Heat Pipe solar collectors. Each
evacuated tube consists of two glass tubes. The
outer tube is made of extremely strong transparent
borosilicate glass that is able to resist impact from
hail up to 25mm in diameter. The inner tube is also
made of borosilicate glass, but coated with a special
selective coating, which features excellent solar heat
absorption and minimal heat reflection properties.
Evacuated Tubes cont’d..

The manifold is heavily insulated with a 2" thickness

of pre-formed rock wool to keep the heat in. Unlike
flat plates, these headers are so well insulated that
they should not require antifreeze in normal
operation
- the temperature of the header is unlikely to fall
below 10°C even in very cold weather.
 Concentrating collectors
• Large areas of mirrors or lenses focus the sun light
onto a smaller absorber
• Allows the collection of sunlight from large area and
focusing it on a smaller receiver.
• The cost per unit area of a solar concentrator is
therefore much cheaper than the cost per unit area of a
PVmaterial.
Benefits and drawbacks of usingthe
solar concentrators
Benefits: Drawbacks:
Reduce the dependency Degrade the PV cell
on silicon cell and lifespan.
increase the intensity of
Need to cool down the
solar.
PV to ensure the
Irradiance, hence performance of the PV
increase the cell is optimum.
efficiency. Mechanical tracking
Reduce the total cost of system may required.
the whole system.
Design of SolarConcentrator

parabolic concentrator hyperboloid concentrator

Fresnel Concentrator general design of DTIRC