Abstract
ABSTRACT In this work, a CFD analysis is carried out for improving the plane solar air heater performance using a converged air channel in the construction of these types of solar collectors. The inclined position of the glass cover with respect to the black absorber provides the nozzle configuration of the air duct. The accelerated flow along the converged duct prevents the growth of the thermal boundary layer and enhances the rate of convection heat transfer. It is observed from the numerical findings that the nozzle shape of the air duct provides a higher rate of heat transfer. This concept is examined numerically by the solution of the turbulent airflow equations with the conduction equation for solid parts using the finite element method and the COMSOL Multi-physics. The RANS model is employed to capture the turbulent nature of the airflow. The efficiency improvement for the test case with the contraction ratio of 2.5 is obtained by about 10% compared to the base model. The obtained numerical results are compared with experimental and theoretical data published in the literature, and good consistency is found.
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