Experimental Investigation of a Pilot Sloped Solar Updraft Power Plant Prototype Performance Throughout a Year

Abstract

The solar updraft power plant is a promising technology for harnessing the solar energy and many researchers developed the plant design to improve its low efficiency. Using a sloped solar collector is one of the novel techniques that improves the plant efficiency in higher latitudes and reduce its capital cost. In this paper, a pilot Sloped Solar Updraft Power Plant (SSUPP) is constructed in the campus of mechanical engineering department of Damascus University in Syria. Thermometers were installed in the sloped solar collector to measure glass, air, and absorption layer temperatures along the collector. Solar radiation, ambient air temperature as well as air velocity inside the chimney were also recorded. These data were taken every 10minutes throughout the year 2012 to investigate the performance of the SSUPP. In this paper, the effect of the average monthly recorded values of solar radiation and ambient temperature on the prototype performance were analyzed in all weather conditions and the changes in sloped solar collector outlet temperatures were investigated. The results show that the difference between the ambient temperature and the chimney inlet temperature is almost the same in winter and summer seasons leading to a conclusion of the advantage of having an inclined solar collector in the SSUPP.