Abstract
This paper presents a two-dimensional numerical study to investigate laminar flow in a flat plate solar collector with non-circular duct (regular polygonal, elliptical, and Cassini oval shape) featuring forced convection with constant axial wall heat flux and constant peripheral wall temperature (H1 condition). Applying the velocity profile obtained for the duct laminar flow, the energy equation was solved exactly for the constant wall heat flux using the Boundary Element Method (BEM). Poiseuille and Nusselt numbers were obtained for flows having a different number of geometrical factors. The results are presented and discussed in the form of tables and graphs. The area goodness factor and volume goodness factor are calculated. The predicted correlations for Poiseuille and Nusselt numbers may be a very useful resource for the design and optimization of solar collectors with non-circular ducts.
Highlights
A flat plate solar collector absorbs incoming solar radiation, converting it into thermal energy at the surface of a receiver and heat is transferred to the working fluid through the collector
The aim of this work is to study the effect of riser shape on the Nusselt number, Poiseuille number, area goodness factor, and volume goodness factor for laminar forced convection, using boundary element method (BEM)
In order to compare the thermal performances of riser shapes, it is possible to use the area goodness factor [14], which is the ratio of the Colburn factor j and the Fanning friction factor f, defined as:
Summary
A flat plate solar collector absorbs incoming solar radiation, converting it into thermal energy at the surface of a receiver and heat is transferred to the working fluid through the collector. The collection of solar radiation and its conversion to thermal energy depend on the collector design, including factors such as riser shape, absorber material, and transmissivity of the glass cover [1]. Taherian and Yazdanshenas [3] made an experimental investigation of forced convection in a finned rhombic tube of a flat plate solar collector. Ekramian [1] studied numerically the effect of riser shape on the thermal efficiency, finding a collector with circular tubes, had 38.4%, 11.2%, and 6.6% greater thermal efficiency than collectors with triangular, square, and hexagonal ducts respectively
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