Solar Absorber Surfaces Research Articles

Impact of a RbF post-deposition treatment on the chemical structure of wide-gap CuIn0.1Ga0.9Se2 thin-film solar cell absorber surfaces

A detailed characterization of the impact of a RbF post-deposition treatment (RbF-PDT) on the chemical structure of a wide-gap Cu(In, Ga)Se2 thin-film solar cell absorber surface with a high Ga/(Ga + In) (GGI) ratio of 0.9 is presented. Using synchrotron- and lab-based x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, as well as x-ray-excited Auger electron spectroscopy, we observe distinct differences to RbF-PDT on absorber surfaces with the common GGI of ∼0.3. In particular, RbF-PDT reduces sodium and oxide content at the surface, while the copper concentration at the surface is not affected. We find no spectral evidence for the formation of a distinct Rb–In–Se surface layer. In addition, we observe that the GGI ratio at the surface is slightly decreased due to a reduction of the Ga and an increase in the In concentration, which may explain the observed improvement in the power conversion efficiency after the PDT (from 6.8% to 7.3%).

Pressure-Induced Assembly of Organic Phase-Change Materials Hybridized with Expanded Graphite and Carbon Nanotubes for Direct Solar Thermal Harvesting and Thermoelectric Conversion.

Direct harvesting of abundant solar thermal energy within organic phase-change materials (PCMs) has emerged as a promising way to overcome the intermittency of renewable solar energy and pursue high-efficiency heating-related applications. Organic PCMs, however, generally suffer from several common shortcomings including melting-induced leakage, poor solar absorption, and low thermal conductivity. Compounding organic PCMs with single-component carbon materials faces the difficulty in achieving optimized comprehensive performance enhancement. Herein, this work reports the employment of hybrid expanded graphite (EG) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to simultaneously realize leakage-proofness, high solar absorptance, high thermal conductivity, and large latent heat storage capacity. The PCM composites were prepared by directly mixing commercial high-temperature paraffin (HPA) powders, EG, and CNTs, followed by subsequent mechanical compression molding. The HPA-EG composites loaded with 20 wt% of EG could effectively suppress melting-induced leakage. After further compounding with 1 wt% of CNTs, the form-stable HPA-EG20-CNT1 composites achieved an axial and in-plane thermal conductivity of 4.15 W/m K and 18.22 W/m K, and a melting enthalpy of 165.4 J/g, respectively. Through increasing the loading of CNTs to 10 wt% in the top thin layer, we further prepared double-layer HPA-EG-CNT composites, which have a high surface solar absorptance of 92.9% for the direct conversion of concentrated solar illumination into storable latent heat. The charged composites could be combined with a thermoelectric generator to release the stored latent heat and generate electricity, which could power up small electric devices such as light-emitting diodes. This work demonstrates the potential for employing hybrid fillers to optimize the thermophysical properties and solar thermal harvesting performances of organic PCMs.

The significant role of Z-scheme band alignment at the heterojunction for the enhanced photocatalytic H2 production in TiO2/BiNbO4/rGO nanocomposite

An efficient ternary TiO2/BiNbO4/rGO nanocomposite was prepared by a simple wet impregnation process. PXRD confirmed the tetragonal and orthorhombic crystalline natures of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and bismuth niobate (BiNbO4) respectively. The loading of BiNbO4 and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) shifted the light absorption of TiO2 to a longer wavelength from 400 to 430 nm. The suitable conduction band position of BiNbO4 facilitated a favourable band alignment to suppress the electron/hole (e−/h+) recombination in TiO2 via the Z scheme mechanism at the heterojunction. The excited electrons at the CB of TiO2 were easily transported via the fast electron accepting and conducting rGO matrix for the surface redox reactions with the improved charge transfer efficiency, which was confirmed by EIS and PL studies respectively. BiNbO4 and rGO synergistically improved the specific surface area and solar light absorption. EPR analysis confirmed the presence of increased oxygen vacancies at the heterojunction. Hence, the ternary TiO2/BiNbO4/rGO nanocomposite demonstrated an enhanced hydrogen evolution (8910 μ mol h−1 gcat−1) than bare TiO2 (4820 μ mol h−1 gcat−1), bare BiNbO4 (950 μ mol h−1 gcat−1) and TiO2/BiNbO4 (6730 μ mol h−1 gcat−1) under direct solar light. The optimum of 1 wt % BiNbO4 and rGO loaded TiO2 nanocomposite produced twice the H2 production than the bare TiO2. This also further confirms that rGO played a major role during the photocatalytic process by highlighting the potential of metal oxides combined with carbon material as an efficient photocatalyst which prominently enhances the H2 evolution.

Effects of reduced snowpack due to climate warming on abiotic and biotic soil properties in alpine and boreal forest systems

Reduction in snow cover, depth, onset, and duration of seasonal snow in mid-latitude regions due to climate warming has multiple global and local scale ecosystem impacts. These effects include modulations of the hydrological cycles and increases in land surface solar radiation absorption due to decreased albedo. Changes in snow cover characteristics also affect underlying soils. Snow has an insulating effect on soils by decoupling air and soil temperatures, thus seasonal snow cover reduction leads to overall lower soil temperatures and an increase in freeze-thaw cycles. This is especially prominent during the fall and spring thaw seasons when the snow cover is not as extensive. This in turn has downstream impacts on soil physical, chemical, and biological properties. Among these impacts are soil moisture reduction, temperature, frost regimes, soil pH shifts, and alteration in nutrient flux dynamics during winter, snowmelt period and the following summer growing season. These changes in soil physicochemical properties due to snowpack reduction can then impact the biological soil properties via increased plant root mortality, reduced abundance and diversity of soil arthropods, and shifts in composition, abundance and activity of soil microbial communities. All these soil biotic factors can in turn alter the dynamics of soil nutrient fluxes and future greenhouse gas emissions. Here, we integrate data on the effects of snow cover reduction on abiotic and biotic soil properties, with focus on temperate alpine and forest ecosystems and with an outlook on future impacts.

A novel approach combining satellite and in situ observations to estimate the daytime variation of land surface temperatures for all sky conditions

Land surface temperature (LST) and its diurnal variability are key to understanding the land-atmosphere interactions, hydrological processes and climate change. However, at any given point in time approximately half of the Earth's surface is covered by clouds. This restricts the availability of LST through satellite remote sensing, which works best under clear skies. However, in situ observations continue to monitor atmospheric conditions beneath the clouds that could complement satellite measurements during cloudy conditions. The present study explores a novel approach to estimate hourly LST during the daylight hours using remotely sensed surface solar absorption and in situ observations of daily LST extremes (maximum and minimum) together with an adaptive non-linear fitting approach. A learning algorithm trained against in-situ measurements of LST extrema and diurnal cycle of surface solar absorption together with the associated linear correlation between the two parameters, is used to estimate an optimized set of parameters to approximate hourly LST for each day during the daylight hours between sunrise and sunset. Results show that the method captures the intra-day variability of LST very well under most sky conditions with rms errors below 1.5 K.

Investigation of a Photovoltaic–Thermal Solar Dryer System with Double-Pass Solar Air Collectors and Absorber Surfaces Enhanced with Graphene Nanoparticles

As a result of increasing energy demand, seeking eco-friendly and sustainable energy resources increases the interest in renewable energy, specifically solar energy. In this study, a novel photovoltaic–thermal solar dryer system with double-pass solar air collectors and nano-enhanced absorber surface was developed, and its performance was experimentally investigated. Initially, a double-pass solar dryer (DPSD) with an absorber surface of flexible aluminum ducts coated with black matte paint was produced. Then, a double-pass solar dryer (NDPSD) consisting of flexible aluminum ducts coated with graphene and black paint was designed. These two systems were experimentally and simultaneously examined, and parameters such as energy and exergy efficiency, drying rate, and moisture ratio, which are the performance indicators of solar air collectors and the drying process, were analyzed. The sustainability parameters were also considered as a part of the analysis. The mean thermal efficiency of the solar air collectors for DPSD and NDPSD was calculated as 57.23 and 73.36%, respectively, where the airflow rates were measured as 0.024 and 0.017 kg/s. Furthermore, under the same airflow rate conditions, while the mean exergy efficiency of the collector was 27.77% for NDPSD, it was calculated as 16.64% for DPSD. Moreover, exergy efficiencies of the drying chamber varied between 27.35% and 82.20% for NDPSD and between 21.03 and 81.25% for DPSD, under the airflow rates of 0.012–0.016 kg/s conditions, respectively.

Architecture design of TiO2 with Co-doped CdS quantum dots photoelectrode for water splitting.

Photoelectrochemical hydrogen production is a critical key to solving the carbon-zero goal of countries due to renewable sources of solar light and combustion products of hydrogen-only water. Here, an architecture design for an n-type nano rosettes-rod TiO2 (RT) surface using CdS and Co-doped CdS quantum dots (QDs) is carried out utilizing the SILAR (simple ionic layer adsorption and reaction) method. Furthermore, the photocatalytic behaviour of Co-doped CdS QDs SILAR cycles deposition is investigated in various cycles, including 5, 8, 10, and 12. The FESEM, Raman XRD, Uv-Vis spectrometer, and vibration modes are used to evaluate the photoelectrode surface structure, crystal structure, and solar light absorption, respectively. FESEM images and XRD pattern revealed successive CdS QDS and Co-doped CdS QDs deposition on the RT boundary and rising SILAR cycles of Co-doped CdS QDs lead to further coverage of RT surface. UV-vis spectrometer indicated shifting solar light absorption to the visible region by applying more SILAR cycles of Co-doped CdS QDs deposition. The electrochemical parameters obtained from EIS showed total polarization resistance (Rp) of the RT electrode dramatically decreased with 10 SILAR cycle Co-doped CdS QDs deposition (5093 Ω cm2 and 617 Ω cm2). Linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) and chronoamperometric photocatalytic performance measurements indicated Co-doped CdS QDs on RT extremely enhanced photoresponse under solar irradiation and 10 SILAR cycle Co-doped CdS QDs improved photocurrent density about fourfold according to blank RT electrode.

Integrated Janus Evaporator with an Enhanced Donnan Effect and Thermal Localization for Salt-Tolerant Solar Desalination and Thermal-to-Electricity Generation.

Solar-driven interfacial evaporation (SIE) technology has great advantages in seawater desalination. However, during the long-term operation of a solar evaporator, salts can be deposited on the solar absorbing surface, which, in turn, hinders the evaporation process. Therefore, there is an urgent need to propose new antisalt strategies to solve this problem. Here, we present a novel cogeneration system leveraging a salt-tolerant, heterogeneous Janus-structured evaporator (FHJE) for simultaneous solar desalination and thermoelectric generation. The top evaporation layer is composed of a graphene-based photothermal membrane pre-embedded with Fe3+ cations, which enhanced solar absorption and energy conversion abilities. Meanwhile, the Fe3+ cations further contribute to the Donnan effect, effectively repelling salt ions in saltwater. The bottom layer comprises a hydrogel composed of hydrophilic phytic acid (PA) and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), fostering facilitation of water transport. The FHJE was demonstrated to exhibit evaporation rate and efficiency as high as 3.655 kg m-2 h-1 and 94.7% in 10 wt% saltwater, respectively, and superior salt resistance ability without salt accumulation after 8 h of continuous evaporation (15 wt%). Furthermore, a hydropower cogeneration evaporator device was constructed, and it possesses an open-circuit voltage (VOC) and a maximum output power density of up to 143 mV and 1.33 W m-2 under 1 sun, respectively. This study is expected to provide new ideas for comprehensive utilization of solar energy.

Reducing the Cold Bias of the WRF Model Over the Tibetan Plateau by Implementing a Snow Coverage‐Topography Relationship and a Fresh Snow Albedo Scheme

AbstractMost climate models show systematic cold biases during snow‐covered period over the Tibetan Plateau (TP), which is associated with snow and surface albedo overestimations. In this work, a snow cover fraction (SCF) scheme and a recently developed albedo scheme for shallow snow are implemented in the Noah‐MP land surface model coupled with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. The SCF scheme introduces subgrid orographic variability to reduce the SCF, and the shallow‐snow albedo scheme parameterizes the fresh‐snow albedo as a function of the snow depth (SD). Evaluations by remote sensing data show that both schemes can effectively alleviate the overestimation of the simulated surface albedo, SCF, snow water equivalent, and SD over the TP. The reductions in the modeled SCF and snow albedo directly lead to lower surface albedo values and thus more surface solar radiation absorption, which accelerates snow melting and causes surface warming effects. Further comparisons with Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer data and station observations show that both schemes can significantly reduce the cold biases in the surface skin temperature (from −4.39°C to 0.19°C for the TP mean) and 2‐m air temperature (from −4.48°C to −1.05°C for the station mean) during the cold season (October to May of next year) in the study region. This work provides guidance for advancing the snow‐related physics in climate models and the improved WRF model could facilitate weather forecasting and climate prediction for the plateau region.

Characterizing the indicator-based, day-and-night, and climate-based variations in response of surface urban heat island during heat wave across global 561 cities

Increasing surface urban heat island (SUHI) has been reported to be closely associated with a large number of environmental issues. The response of SUHI during heat wave was important for further mitigation proposal. However, it remained unknown whether the response of SUHI during heat wave varies with different SUHI indicators (intensity, frequency and maximum duration), day-and-night contrast, and climate zones, and how to characterize and explain these response variations. Therefore, this paper quantified and explained for these variations in response of SUHI during heat wave across global 561 cities. There were three major findings. (1) The average percentage of response in intensity, frequency and maximum duration at daytime was -20%, -12% and -47%, while it was 10%, 11% and -10% at nighttime. During heat wave, daytime SUHI decreased in the equatorial and arid climates, while nighttime SUHI increased. (2) The attenuated daytime SUHI during heat wave in the equatorial and arid climates resulted from a decrease in latent heat flux and vegetation cooling effect. (3) Increased solar radiation during heat wave contributed to intensified nighttime SUHI, of which energy sources were determined on surface solar absorption. Additionally, differences in evaporation, vegetation, and albedo during heat wave were discussed.

Polyimide degradation under atomic oxygen attack

Procedures are developed for accelerated laboratory tests of spacecraft polymers for resistance to long-term exposure to hyperthermal atomic oxygen (AO) with the use of high-energy AO ions of a rarefied plasma and Kapton-H polyimide as the reference material. The parameters that characterize physico-chemical, thermo-optical, and aerodynamic AO – Kapton-H interaction (surface roughness, solar absorptance, and normal infrared emittance) are determined at different values of the AO fluence. To do this, use was made of the data of tests onboard spacecraft in the Earth's atmosphere and the authors and others' laboratory tests. The normal and the tangential momentum transfer coefficient and the energy transfer coefficient are reported as a function of the AO bombardment angle. The obtained data on the AO-induced degradation of the parameters that characterize AO–polyimide dynamic interaction allow one to predict the behavior of the polyimide thermo-optical and aerodynamic properties during a long-term service in the Earth's upper atmosphere and ionosphere.

Performance analysis of Prism shaped solar still using Black phosphorus quantum dot material and Lauric acid in composite climate: An experimental investigation

The present article takes the challenge to improve solar still performance by surface coating for better energy conversion. An experimental investigation has been conducted on two solar still (SS), namely conventional solar still (CSS) facing the south direction and prism-shaped solar still (PSS) facing the east–west direction in the metrological condition of Varanasi (25.31° N), India. SS's surface solar absorptance and heat storage capacity has been modified by black phosphorus quantum dot material (BPQD) and Lauric acid. The experiments were conducted in three phases, namely SS without BPQD and PCM; SS with PCM only; and SS with BPQD and PCM on different days in nearly the same climatic conditions that showed prism-shaped solar still coated with BPQD material performed better due to its good heat retention capacity than CSS. The results showed that CSS and PSS without PCM and BPQD yield up to 1660 ml/m2 and 1830 ml/m2 with a heating efficiency of 19.72 % and 0.36 % and exergy efficiency of 25.59 %, and 1.08 %, respectively. While using PCM only, CSS and PSS yield up to 2360 ml/m2 and 2530 ml/m2 with heating efficiency of 27.84 % and 0.87 % and exergy efficiency of 35.12 % and 1.01 %, respectively. Whereas, with PCM and BPQD, SSs can produce 3040 ml/m2 and 3685 ml/m2 with exergy and heating of 1.79 % and 37.23 % for CSS, 2.20 %, and 49.30 % for PSS. Moreover, the economic analysis showed that the monetary and energy cost of distilled water incurs only INR 1.9, and INR 1.6 for each liter and INR 2.84 and 2.48 for each kWh with a payback period of 3.2 yr. and 2.8 yr. for CSS and PSS respectively.

Overheating vulnerability assessment of energy retrofit actions in a multi-apartment building in Podgorica, Montenegro

The study aimed to assess the overheating vulnerability of an existing multi-apartment building built in 1971 in Podgorica, Montenegro. The building consists of 80 apartments and is mostly still in its original state. Firstly, the building was modelled in EneryPlus, and a parametric study was performed with jEPlus. The energy need for heating and cooling was simulated using parameters such as thermal insulation level, window properties, external surface solar absorptivity, shading activation set-point, and natural ventilation cooling intensity. Moreover, the energy need was determined for four different climate periods, namely for the current and three future periods up to the end of the 21st century under the RCP8.5 climate change scenario. The total number of building models equalled 648 for each of the four climate scenarios, resulting in 2,592 simulated cases. After that, the overheating vulnerability score was determined using the minimax regret method and cooling energy need as a performance indicator. The best retrofit action was determined by identifying the most favourable combination of the overheating vulnerability and total energy need. The results deliver the appropriate energy retrofit actions to limit the increase in overheating risk and provide for climate change adaptation of the multi-apartment building stock in Montenegro.

Novel fractal-textured solar absorber surfaces for concentrated solar power

The solar absorptance of a thermal receiver surface significantly affects the photothermal conversion efficiency of concentrated solar power (CSP) plants. The development of low-cost Gen3 CSP systems calls for increasing the solar absorptance of the thermal receivers at operating temperatures above 750 °C. This study presents an innovative approach of fractal, multiscale texturing of absorber surfaces to significantly enhance solar energy absorption for Gen3 CSP applications. The absorber surface is described in terms of its fractal parameters that are uniquely determined from surface profile measurements. The interaction of solar radiation with the fractal surface is numerically simulated by solving the governing Maxwell's equations for electromagnetic wave propagation to investigate the effect of texturing on the absorptance of the surfaces. It is shown that absorption of the solar spectrum increases with an increase in the fractal dimension and the multiscale asperity height of the surface texturing. The theoretical model is demonstrated to be in close agreement with experimental measurements of spectral absorptance of electrodeposited copper (Cu), copper mono-oxide (CuO), and copper-manganese oxide (CuMnO) surfaces that are textured to produce a range of fractal parameters by tailoring the deposition parameters. Fractal surface texturing is shown to reduce reflectance by over one order of magnitude, yielding an absorptance of greater than 0.98 for CuMnO. For the first time, the study presents an effective means of significantly increasing solar absorptance and a fundamental theoretical description of the underlying physics.

Femtosecond laser‐produced optical absorbers for solar‐thermal energy harvesting

AbstractOptical absorbers are a key component in all solar‐thermal energy technologies. Cermet‐based solar absorbers are commonly used in solar‐thermal applications. However, due to their multilayered structures, these absorbers have limited thermal conductivity and mechanical stability at the interfaces. Femtosecond laser processing is a single‐step, environmentally friendly, and monolithic approach that can directly transform a metal surface to a solar absorber through surface patterning without adding additional weight, hazard, or complexity. In this review, we will focus on femtosecond‐laser induced broadband and selective solar absorbers and their utilizations in solar thermoelectric generators and solar‐thermal water purification. We will discuss the laser surface patterning and the procedure to control the size, distribution, and composition of the surface structures that are responsible for optical absorbance/emittance. Several multifunctional solar absorber surfaces produced by femtosecond‐laser processing and their possible energy applications are also discussed.image

A Systematic Indoor and Outdoor Study of the Effect of Particle Size and Concentration of TiO2 in Improving Solar Absorption for Solar Still Application

Solar light absorber surface is probably one of the most important components in solar still that dictates the distillate yield. In this work, a systematic study is conducted to investigate the effect of particle size and concentration of titanium oxide (TiO2) in black paint in increasing the solar still absorber surface temperature. The various available particle sizes, i.e., 20, 150, and 400 nm, are mixed in black paint with varying concentrations and are applied on the absorber plate. XRD is used for phase identification of as-received powders. UV-Vis spectroscopy is used to examine light absorption properties. Finally, extensive indoor testing (using an improvised solar simulator) and outdoor testing are conducted to optimize the concentration. An increase in surface temperature is observed with the introduction of TiO2 nanoparticles in black paint. Furthermore, the increase in particle size leads to an increase in temperature. The highest surface temperatures of 104.86°C, 105.42°C, and 106.32°C are recorded for specimens with particles sizes 20 nm (at 15 wt% concentration), 150 nm (at 10 wt% concentration), and 400 nm (at 7 wt% concentration), respectively. Furthermore, the highest temperature of 69.69°C is recorded for TiO2-400 nm specimens under outdoor conditions, which is 15.97% higher than that of the bare aluminum plate. The increase in surface temperature may be due to high UV absorption. Moreover, an increase in particle size leads to high light-scattering ability, further improving the light-harvesting ability.

A prototypal high-vacuum integrated collector storage solar water heater: Experimentation, design, and optimization through a new in-house 3D dynamic simulation model

Integrated collector storage units are typically affected by convective and radiative heat losses which significantly reduce their energy performance. To enhance solar collection and heat retention, innovative techniques and novel design of such units are being more and more developed. In this framework, this paper focuses on the design and optimization of a prototypal high-vacuum integrated collector storage solar water heater. The proposed unit allows for reaching high temperatures of the stored water and for reducing the temperature drop during non-collection periods. This goal is achieved by suppressing the convective heat losses into the system by keeping the pressure into the related enclosure below 0.01 Pa and by applying a special selective coating to the solar absorber surface to drastically reduce radiative losses as well.In this paper, details about the system design and the conducted experimental tests are reported. In addition, a new mathematical model able to assess the energy performance of the innovative prototype is presented. This tool, based on a detailed 3-D transient finite-difference thermal network, was validated against the gathered experimental data. By such a tool the optical properties of the adopted selective coating are optimized for maximizing the system thermal efficiency. Finally, with the twofold aim of showing the potentiality of the developed code, as well as the effectiveness of the presented innovative solar collector prototype, a comprehensive case study referred to three different European weather zone is presented. Promising results in terms of energy savings (0.73 MWh/y) and CO2 emission reduction (149 kgCO2/y) are achieved.

Strategy for achieving long-term energy efficiency of European single-family buildings through passive climate adaptation

The presented study aims to clarify the implications of passive design measures on heating and cooling energy use of single-family residential buildings under European representative climates. In order to address this matter, different values of thermal transmittance (opaque and transparent), window to floor ratio, window distribution, shape factor, diurnal heat storage capacity, external opaque surface solar absorptivity and natural ventilation cooling rates were combined in 496,800 building energy models, which were simulated at eight locations. Because buildings are in use for many decades, the energy use simulations were made considering the projected climate change up to the end of the 21st century. The results delivered a set of the most effective passive design measures for achieving low energy use in buildings regarding climate type and period. A lower window to floor ratio was identified as the most universally applicable design measure to counterbalance the projected effect of a warming climate. In contrast, other measures vary according to climate type and studied period. Furthermore, it was concluded that it is difficult to neutralise the projected climate change effects on buildings' energy use, even when applying the best performing combination of passive design measures. However, reasonably low energy use can still be assured solely by passive building design, especially in oceanic, warm, and some temperate climate locations. Therefore, the identified trends in energy use and passive design measures represent the foundation for strategies and guidelines aimed at future-proof energy-efficient buildings.

Testing of commercial black painted for flat plate solar collector applications

Hight absorption of absorber makes improve the performance of the collector. Solar coating should be safe from chemically, and structurally stable for the variable range of the temperatures. The high cost of coating collectors made an option to utilize commercial black paint to be a coating absorber. Commercial black painted for solar collector absorber surface was discussed. These are four commercial coatings was laboratory tested and compare to get the performance. Identify of properties commercial black painting was used to explore the utility of the coating surface. To improve the absorptance solar commercial coating have been used by the researchers. This would allow the use of the low-cost coating in the solar collectors.

Thermovision study on Alumina’s Ra v/s Ts for AIDHVACS to control COVID-19

The current study is the authors’ next work from the thermo vision perspective of real time single sun solar field performance infrared thermography (IRT) on commercial grade Alumina solar absorber surface coatings (SASCs) to recognize surface roughness (Ra) as one of the important production process parameters. In a previous study, it was investigated with IRT, and found that Ra<1.8 is favorable and hard anodized Alumina (HAAO) coatings exhibits better surface temperature (Ts) gain as compared to organic dyed non-HAAO coatings on Aluminum substrate, and are more stable in solar field for many years in open air environment without degrading their performance. It may be useful in better optimization of SASCs specifically for personal protective equipments (PPEs) sanitization and artificial intelligence (AI) driven heating ventilation air conditioning (HVAC) systems (AIDHVACS) design to control Covid-19 in current situations.The influence of Ra of few microns ∼ <15 µm on Alumina SASCs’ Ts gain is examined. The presented study shows that more than 1.05 mm thickness of substrate flat is necessary to develop good quality of alumina coating; Ra<1.8 µm is favorably expected to the extent of Ra value approaching as close as to nanoscale ∼ 5-500 nm; local surface temperature gained is depending upon local Ra profile as well as upon surface morphology in addition to the anodizing process parameters and other environmental factors. It suggests that the optimal surface profile should be designed as an integral to the production line processes. The substrate surface chemical composition may also change while processing due to surface contact with the processing tools, which may also result in altered solar field performance due to substrate altered material composition prior to hard anodizing process, as examined with X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) and ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometry (UV-VIS). The novelty is that other studies of surface roughness parameter is focused upon convective heat transfer inside tunnel or duct solar heat absorbers e.g. air heaters, whereas the authors have focused upon surface roughness of solar radiation receiving outer surface as an important commercial production process variable having effect upon conductive heat transfer in solar thermal power systems. The AIDHVACS needs machine learning and big data analysis as the need of the hour.