Abstract
Indoor heating systems currently used are highly dependent on fossil fuels; hence, it is urgent to develop a new heating system to achieve carbon zero-emission. A solar air heater is eco-friendly because it generates nearly zero greenhouse gases. In this study, a parametric study was conducted for optimizing solar air heater design applicable to indoor heating. Installing the internal structure in the solar heater changes the interior flow characteristic, resulting in the air temperature increased by about 14.2 K on average compared to the heater without the internal structure. An additional case study was carried out to optimize the ideal quantity of phase change materials (PCM) in terms of mass fraction and heat capacity for various operating conditions. An excessive amount of PCM (e.g., 66% of the storage space filled with PCM) deteriorates the performance of the air heater unless the entire PCM could be melted during the daytime. After heating, the air temperature was maintained the longest when only 33% of the internal space was filled with PCM. The solar air heater can fully replace or partly assist a conventional heater for indoor heating, and it could reduce approximately 0.6 tCO2 per year.
Highlights
Indoor heating systems currently used are highly dependent on fossil fuels; it is urgent to develop a new heating system to achieve carbon zero-emission
Solar air heaters are an eco-friendly energy system without worrying about the depletion of resources; it is possible to solve the problem of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) emissions resulting from the combustion of fossil fuels in the existing heating method
Many studies have been performed to improve the performance and efficiency of solar air heaters
Summary
Indoor heating systems currently used are highly dependent on fossil fuels; it is urgent to develop a new heating system to achieve carbon zero-emission. Solar air heaters are an eco-friendly energy system without worrying about the depletion of resources; it is possible to solve the problem of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) emissions resulting from the combustion of fossil fuels in the existing heating method. In Iran, where the supply of solar energy is sufficient, replacing the carbon based fuel for the steam generator with solar heat has gained as much performance as a conventional fossil fuel generator with eco-friendly advantages [7]. Because aluminum with high thermal conductivity is beneficial for heat transfer, aluminum structures were installed inside the heater to improve the transfer rate of solar energy, resulting in an increase in the heated air temperature by 101% of the ambient air [8]. Studies were conducted to store solar heat using phase change materials (PCM) during the daytime and to use the solar air heater for extended periods
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