A design for a photovoltaic-thermal (PVT) assembly with a water-cooled heat sink was planned, constructed, and experimentally evaluated in the climatic conditions of the southern region of Iraq during the summertime. The water-cooled heat sink was applied to thermally manage the PV cells, in order to boost the electrical output of the PVT system. A set of temperature sensors was installed to monitor the water intake, exit, and cell temperatures. The climatic parameters including the wind velocity, atmospheric pressure, and solar irradiation were also monitored on a daily basis. The effects of solar irradiation on the average PV temperature, electrical power, and overall electrical-thermal efficiency were investigated. The findings indicate that the PV temperature would increase from 65 to 73 °C, when the solar irradiation increases from 500 to 960 W/m2, with and without cooling, respectively. Meanwhile, the output power increased from 35 to 55 W when the solar irradiation increased from 500 to 960 W/m2 during the daytime. The impact of varying the mass flow rate of cooling water in the range of 4 to 16 L/min was also examined, and it was found that the cell temperature declines as the water flow increases in intensity throughout the daytime. The maximum cell temperature recorded for PV modules without cooling was in the middle of the day. The lowest cell temperature was also recorded in the middle of the day for a PVT solar system with 16 L/min of cooling water.
In this work an experimental study is performed to evaluate the thermal performance
of locally made closed loop solar hot water system using a shell and helical coiled tube
heat exchanger as a storage tank. Several measurements are taken include inlet and outlet
temperatures of both collectors and supply water and temperature distribution within the
storage tank. This is beside the water flow rate in both collectors and load cycle. The
main parameters of the system are obtained.
This article deals with the impact of including transverse ribs within the absorber tube of the concentrated linear Fresnel collector (CLFRC) system with a secondary compound parabolic collector (CPC) on thermal and flow performance coefficients. The enhancement rates of heat transfer due to varying governing parameters were compared and analyzed parametrically at Reynolds numbers in the range 5,000–13,000, employing water as the heat transfer fluid. Simulations were performed to solve the governing equations using the finite volume method (FVM) under various boundary conditions. For all Reynolds numbers, the average Nusselt number in the circular tube in the CLFRC system with ribs was found to be larger than that of the plain abs
... Show MoreIn this work, a flat-plate solar air heater (FSAH) and a tubular solar air heater (TSAH) were designed and tested numerically. The work investigates the effect of increasing the contact area between the flowing air and the absorber surface of each heater and predicts the expected results before the fabrication of the experimental rig. Three-dimensional two models were designed and simulated by the ANSYS-FLUENT 16 Program. The solar irradiation and ambient air temperature were measured experimentally on December 1st 2022, at the weather conditions of Baghdad City- Iraq, at three air mass flow rates, 0.012 kg/s, 0.032 kg/s, and 0.052 kg/s. The numerical results showed the advantage in the thermal performance of
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In this work, a test room was built in Baghdad city, with (2*1.5*1.5) m3 in dimensions, while the solar chimneys (SC) were designed with aspect ratio (ar) bigger than 12. Test room was supplied by many solar collectors; vertical single side of air pass with ar equals 25, and tilted 45o double side of air passes with ar equals 50 for each pass, both collectors consist of flat thermal energy storage box collector (TESB) that covered by transparent clear acrylic sheet, third type of collector is array of evacuated tubular collectors with thermosyphon in 45o instelled in the bottom of TESB of vertical SC. The TESB was
... Show MoreAn experimental study was performed to estimate the forced convection heat transfer performance and the pressure drop of a single layer graphene (GNPs) based DI-water nanofluid in a circular tube under a laminar flow and a uniform heat flux boundary conditions. The viscosity and thermal conductivity of nanofluid at weight concentrations of (0.1 to 1 wt%) were measured. The effects of the velocity of flow, heat flux and nanoparticle weight concentrations on the enhancement of the heat transfer are examined. The Nusselt number of the GNPs nanofluid was enhanced as the heat flux and the velocity of flow rate increased, and the maximum Nusselt number ratio (Nu nanofluid/ Nu base fluid) and thermal performance factor
... Show MoreIn this study, a different design of passive air Solar Chimney(SC)was tested by installing it in the south wall of insulated test room in Baghdad city. The SC was designed from vertical and inclined parts connected serially together, the vertical SC (first part) has a single pass and Thermal Energy Storage Box Collector (TESB (refined paraffin wax as Phase Change Material(PCM)-Copper Foam Matrix(CFM))), while the inclined SC was designed in single pass, double passes and double pass with TESB (semi refined paraffin wax with copper foam matrix) with selective working angle ((30o, 45o and 60o). A computational model was employed and solved by Finite Volume Method (FVM) to simulate the air i
... Show MoreThe performance of photovoltaic (PV) panel having staggered metal foam fins was examined experimentally in Baghdad, Iraq. Three staggered metal foam fin configurations attached to the backside of the PV panel were studied. The measured parameters were front and back surfaces temperature, open voltage and current circuits, maximum power, and PV efficiency. It was noted that the maximum electrical efficiency enhancement was 4.7% for staggered metal foam fins (case III) than the reference PV panel. The operating temperature of the cell was increased when the value of solar intensity was high. Thereby, the electrical efficiency was decreased. It was found that the metal foam fins decreased the PV temperature by 2-3 o
... Show MorePhase change materials (PCMs) such as paraffin wax can be used to store or release large amount of energy at certain temperature at which their solid-liquid phase changes occurs. Paraffin wax that used in latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) has low thermal conductivity. In this study, the thermal conductivity of paraffin wax has been enhanced by adding different mass concentration (1wt.%, 3wt.%, 5wt.%) of (TiO2) nano-particles with about (10nm) diameter. It is found that the phase change temperature varies with adding (TiO2) nanoparticles in to the paraffin wax. The thermal conductivity of the composites is found to decrease with increasing temperature. The increase in thermal conductivity ha
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