Due to its renewable and nonpolluting nature, solar energy is often used in applications such as electricity generation, thermal heating, and chemical processing. The most cost-effective solar heaters are of the “flat-plate” type, but these suffer from relatively low efficiency and outlet temperatures. The present study theoretically investigates the feasibility of using a nonconcentrating direct absorption solar collector (DAC) and compares its performance with that of a typical flat-plate collector. Here a nanofluid—a mixture of water and aluminum nanoparticles—is used as the absorbing medium. A two-dimensional heat transfer analysis was developed in which direct sunlight was incident on a thin flowing film of nanofluid. The effects of absorption and scattering within the nanofluid were accounted for. In order to evaluate the temperature profile and intensity distribution within the nanofluid, the energy balance equation and heat transport equation were solved numerically. It was observed that the presence of nanoparticles increases the absorption of incident radiation by more than nine times over that of pure water. According to the results obtained from this study, under similar operating conditions, the efficiency of a DAC using nanofluid as the working fluid is found to be up to 10% higher (on an absolute basis) than that of a flat-plate collector. Generally a DAC using nanofluids as the working fluid performs better than a flat-plate collector, however, much better designed flat-plate collectors might be able to match or outperform a nanofluids based DAC under certain conditions.
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e-mail: phelan@asu.edu
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November 2009
Research Papers
Predicted Efficiency of a Low-Temperature Nanofluid-Based Direct Absorption Solar Collector
Himanshu Tyagi,
Himanshu Tyagi
School of Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical and Materials Engineering,
Arizona State University
, Tempe, AZ 85287-6106
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Patrick Phelan,
Patrick Phelan
School of Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical and Materials Engineering, National Center of Excellence on SMART Innovations,
e-mail: phelan@asu.edu
Arizona State University
, Tempe, AZ 85287-6106
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Ravi Prasher
Ravi Prasher
Adjunct Professor
School of Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical and Materials Engineering,
Arizona State University
, Tempe, AZ 85287-6106
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Himanshu Tyagi
School of Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical and Materials Engineering,
Arizona State University
, Tempe, AZ 85287-6106
Patrick Phelan
School of Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical and Materials Engineering, National Center of Excellence on SMART Innovations,
Arizona State University
, Tempe, AZ 85287-6106e-mail: phelan@asu.edu
Ravi Prasher
Adjunct Professor
School of Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical and Materials Engineering,
Arizona State University
, Tempe, AZ 85287-6106J. Sol. Energy Eng. Nov 2009, 131(4): 041004 (7 pages)
Published Online: September 17, 2009
Article history
Received:
July 11, 2007
Revised:
September 24, 2008
Published:
September 17, 2009
Citation
Tyagi, H., Phelan, P., and Prasher, R. (September 17, 2009). "Predicted Efficiency of a Low-Temperature Nanofluid-Based Direct Absorption Solar Collector." ASME. J. Sol. Energy Eng. November 2009; 131(4): 041004. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.3197562
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