MODULE-2

SOLAR THERMAL ENERGY COLLECTORS

Solar energy collectors are special kind of heat exchangers that transform solar
radiation energy into internal energy of the transport medium.
The solar collector absorbs the incoming solar radiation, converts it into heat,
and then transfers this heat to a fluid (usually air, water, or oil) flowing through
the collector.
The solar energy, thus, collected is carried from the circulating fluid either
directly to the hot water or space conditioning equipment or to a thermal energy
storage tank.
A device for collecting solar radiation and transferring the energy to a fluid in
contact with it.

TYPES OF SOLAR COLLECTORS

1. Non-Concentrating Collectors
Flat Plate Collectors
a. Flat Plate Liquid Collectors
b. Flat Plate Air Collectors
2. Concentrating Collectors
a. Stationary Concentrating Collectors
b. Tracking Concentrating Collectors
 3. Comparison of Collectors

1. Dark flat plate absorber of solar energy: The absorber consists of a thin
absorber sheet (of thermally stable polymeric materials such as aluminium,
steel, or copper to which a black or selective coating is applied) because of the
fact that the metal is a good heat conductor. Copper is more expensive, but is
a better conductor and less prone to corrosion than aluminium. In locations
with average availability of solar energy, flat plate collectors are sized
approximately 0.5 to 1 square foot per gallon of daily hot water use.
2. Transparent cover: This allows solar energy to pass through, but reduces
heat losses.
3. Heat-transport fluid (air, antifreeze, or water): To remove heat from the
absorber, fluid is usually circulated through tubing to transfer heat from the
absorber to an insulated water tank.
4. Heat insulation backing: Often backed by a grid or coil of fluid tubing.
5. Insulated casing: It is made of a glass or polycarbonate cover.

Working of flat-plate collectors:

Flat-Plate Air collectors

• It uses air as the heat transport medium.
• Air flat plate collectors are used mainly for solar space heating.
CONCENTRATING COLLECTORS
 • The size of the absorber can be dramatically reduced.
• Reflectors can cost substantially less per unit area than
collectors.
Applications:
• This collector is used for high-temperature applications such as
steam production for the generation of electricity.
• These collectors are best suited to climates that have an
abundance of clear sky days.

What are the advantages & disadvantages of concentrating

collectors over flat plate collectors?
ADVANTAGES
 1.Reflecting surfaces require less material in concentrating
collectors than in flat plate collectors.
2.Absorber area is smaller in concentrating collectors. So,
insulation intensity is greater in concentrating collectors than flat
plate collectors.
3.Small area of absorber/unit is there in concentrating collectors
than in flat plate collectors.
4.Little or no antifreeze is required in concentrating collectors to
protect absorber in a concentrator system.
5.Because temperature attainable with concentrator collector is
high, amount of heat stored is larger in concentrator collector.
6.Concentrating collector is used for power generation while flat
plate collector is not used for power generation.
7.In solar heating & cooling, application high temperature of
working fluid is attainable.
DISADVANTAGES
1.Non uniform flux on absorber is there in concentrating
collectors than in flat plate collectors. While in flat plate collectors
uniform flux is there.
2.Additional optical losses occur in concentrating collectors than
in flat plate collectors.
3.High initial cost is there for concentrating collectors. Flat plate
collectors are cheaper.
4.Additional requirement for maintenance is required in
concentrating collectors than in flat plate collectors. While in flat
plate collectors, not much maintenance is required.
5.Only beam component is collected in concentrating. While in
flat plate collectors, both diffused & beam radiations are collected
in concentrating collectors.
6.It is necessary to have an absorber to track sun image in
concentrating collectors.
1. STATIONARY CONCENTRATING COLLECTORS
 Stationary concentrating collectors may be liquid-based,
air-based, or even an oven such as a solar cooker.
 This class of collectors includes parabolic trough flat plate
collectors and solar cookers.
 One such popularly known SCC is a PARABOLIC DISH
REFLECTOR.
PARABOLIC DISH REFLECTOR:
 1. TRACKING SOLAR CONCENTRATOR
• Most concentrating collectors require some form of mechanical
equipment that constantly orients the collectors towards the sun
keeping the heat pipe absorber at the correct focal point. This is
achieved by using a Tracking Solar Concentrator
• One such device is “Heliostats”.
Comparison of Collectors
Two important performance parameters are:
1. Temperature range required for various range and
2. Collector concentration ratio (CCR).
A collector is defined as concentrating collector if its absorber (fin) area Ad is
smaller than the aperture area Aa and if reflective surfaces are used to reflect
a portion of the incident sunlight into the absorber [Collector concentration
ratio (CCR) is the ratio of Aa/Ad or Aa/Ar].
A concentrating collector with a low concentration ratio (2 ≤ CCR ≤ 5) can be
designed in such a way so that its absorbers intercept a major portion of the
incident sunlight not only at one fixed attitude but also within certain range of
sun angles. This acceptance range may be as wide as 40 to 60°. Such collectors
can then be operated in a stationary mode (i.e., tracking the sun is not
required). The collector that has high concentration ratios (i.e., CCR >=10),
precise tracking is essentially required.
The following are the list of some popular types of solar collectors currently
used:
1. Flat Plate Collectors
2. Liquid Flat Plate Collectors
3. Air Flat Plate Collectors
The most common air and liquid-based solar thermal collectors are as follows:
1. Glazed flat plate solar thermal collectors
2. Unglazed flat plate solar thermal collectors
3. Unglazed perforated flat plate solar thermal collectors
4. Back-pass flat plate solar thermal collectors
5. Batch flat plate solar thermal collectors
6. Solar cookers
7. Evacuated (vacuum tube) flat plate solar thermal collectors
8. Concentrating (flat plate collectors with flat reflectors).
Glazed Flat Plate Collectors:
• They are very common and are available as liquid-based and air-based
collectors.
 • These collectors are better suited for moderate temperature range is
30°C–70°C.

Unglazed Flat Plate Collectors:

• Unglazed flat plate collectors are usually made of black plastic that has
been stabilized to withstand ultraviolet light.
• These collectors are best suited for low temperature applications where
the temperature demand is below 30°C.
• Unglazed flat plate collectors are usually made of black plastic that has
been stabilized to withstand ultraviolet light.
• Since these collectors have no glazing, a large portion of the sun’s
energy is absorbed. However, because they are not insulated, a large
portion of the heat absorbed is lost, particularly when it is windy and not
warm outside.
• They transfer heat so well to air (and from air) that they can actually
‘capture’ heat during the night when it is hot and windy outside.
Back-pass Solar Collectors:
• Their design is simple and they often weigh less than liquid-based
collectors because they do not have pressurized piping.
• The simplest designs are single-pass open collectors. Collectors that are
coated with a glaze can also be used to heat air for space heating.
Batch Flat Plate ST Collectors:
• Modern batch collectors have a glazing that is similar to the one used on
flat plate collectors and/or a reflector to concentrate the solar energy on
the tank surface.
 • Batch collector systems are less costly than glazed flat plate collectors
but also deliver less energy per year.
Flat Plate Collectors with Flat Reflectors:
• The simple reflector, which in fact a concentrate because the aperture is
larger than the absorber plate.
• Flat-plate collectors can be equipped with flat reflectors, either in the
way shown in figure.

Evacuated Tube Collectors:

• These solar collectors consist of a heat pipe inside a vacuum-sealed

tube.
• Evacuated tube collectors can achieve extremely high temperatures
(75°C–180°C), making them more appropriate for cooling applications
and for commercial and industrial applications.
• In ETC, the vacuum envelope reduces convection and conduction heat
losses, so the collectors can operate at higher temperatures than flat-
plate collectors.
 MATERIAL ASPECTS OF SOLAR COLLECTORS
1. Absorber
a. Absorptive Coatings
2. Glazing
a. Areas of Practical Applications Attentions
b. Glazing Materials
3. Insulation Shell
1. Absorber:
• all copper plates are with integrated water passage (roll bond type).
These plates can also be made of aluminium.
• all copper (copper tube on copper sheet).
• copper tube or aluminium fin
• iron or steel
• plastic (polymers)
Absorptive coating ranging from flat black paint to baked enamel. Flat black
absorber coatings have high absorptivity.
2. Glazing:
• One or more sheets of glass or other radiation transmitting
material is used as transparent covers.
• Heat tempered glass is absolute necessity for outer collector
glazing. Generally, plastic glazing can easily withstand the
temperature shocks.
• Teflon (high transmittivity) and polyvinyl fluoride (PVF, Tedlar) are
known to withstand UV radiation and is often used to protect
other materials underneath from UV radiations.
3. Insulation Shell:
• A solar flat plate collector must be insulated against excessive heat
losses on its back side and on its edges as follows:
• Back side – 3.5 inch of fiberglass insulation or 2 inch of foam insulation.
• Side – 1 inch of fiberglass or 0.5 to 0.75 inch of foam insulation.

CONCENTRATING COLLECTORS
 Concentrating collectors are available in different configurations:
1. Compound Parabolic Solar Collectors.
2. Fresnel Solar Thermal Collectors
3. Parabolic Trough Solar Thermal Collectors.
4. Cylindrical Trough Solar Collectors
5. Parabolic Dish Systems
6. Heliostat Field Solar Collectors

Compound Parabolic Solar Collectors:

These are non-imaging concentrators.

Fresnel Solar Thermal Collectors:

• Systems with light structures and low-cost technology for process heat
applications up to 400°C could be obtained with parabolic trough
collectors.
 • It can effectively produce heat at temperatures between 50°C and
400°C. They are made by bending a sheet of reflective material into a
parabolic shape.
• A metal black tube, covered with a glass tube to reduce heat losses, is
placed along the focal line of the receiver (see Fig. 3.9a).
• When the parabola is pointed towards the sun, parallel rays incident on
the reflector are reflected onto the receiver tube.
• It is sufficient to use a single-axis tracking of the sun, and thus, long
collector modules are produced.
• It can be imagined as a broken-up parabolic trough reflector (see Fig.
3.9a), but unlike parabolic troughs, it does not have to be of parabolic
shape, large absorbers can be constructed and the absorber does not
have to move.
• A representation of an element of an LFR collector field is shown in
Figure (3.9b).
• Advantages: system is that it uses flat or elastically curved reflectors that
are cheaper when compared to parabolic glass reflectors. Additionally,
these are mounted close to the ground, thus minimizing structural
requirements.
• Disadvantages: LFR technology is that the avoidance of shading and
blocking between adjacent reflectors leads to increased spacing
between reflectors. Blocking can be reduced by increasing the height of
the absorber towers, but this increases the cost.
Parabolic Trough Solar Thermal Collectors:
• Parabolic troughs are devices that are shaped like the letter ‘U’, as
shown in Figure 3.10.
• They are made by bending a sheet of reflective material into a parabolic
shape. A metal black tube, covered with a glass tube to reduce heat
losses, is placed along the focal line of the receiver.
• The troughs concentrate sunlight onto a receiver tube that is positioned
along the focal line of the trough. Sometimes, a transparent glass tube
envelops the receiver tube to reduce heat loss.
• Parabolic troughs often use single-axis or dual-axis tracking. In rare
instances, they may be stationary.
• Temperatures at the receiver can reach 400°C and produce steam for
generating electricity.
Cylindrical Trough Solar Collectors:
• A high-rim angle cylindrical trough would have a focal plane not a focal
line.
• To avoid a dispersed focus, cylindrical troughs would have to be
designed with low rim angles in order to provide an approximate line
focus.
• The advantage of cylindrical mirror geometry is that it need not track the
sun in any direction as long as some means is provided to intercept the
moving focus.
Parabolic Dish Systems:
• A parabolic dish collector is similar in appearance to a large satellite dish
as shown in Figure 3.12,
• but has mirror-like reflectors and an absorber at the focal point. It uses a
dual-axis sun tracker.
• It is a point-focus collector that tracks the sun in two axes
1. Concentrating solar energy onto a receiver located at the focal point
of the dish.
2. The dish structure must track fully the sun to reflect the beam into the
thermal receiver.
• The receiver absorbs the radiant solar energy, converting it into thermal
energy in a circulating fluid.
• The thermal energy can then either be converted into electricity using
an engine–generator coupled directly to the receiver, or it can be
transported through pipes to a central power conversion system.
• Parabolic-dish systems can achieve temperatures in excess of 1,500°C.
Because the receivers are distributed throughout a collector field, like
parabolic troughs, parabolic dishes are often called distributed receiver
systems.
Advantages:
Most efficient of all collector systems as they are always pointing the sun.
Concentration ratio in between 500–2,000, and thus are highly efficient at
thermal energy absorption and power conversion systems.
Heliostat Field Solar Collectors:
• Heliostat is a mirror-based system that is used to continuously reflect
sunlight onto a central receiver as shown in Figure 3.13.
• The collected solar energy is then converted into electrical power.
Generally, it is a two-axis solar tracking flat mirror that reflects sunlight
onto a fixed receiver or target.
• To minimize heat escaping, the plate is located between a glazing (glass
pane or transparent material) and an insulating panel.
• The glazing is chosen so that a maximum amount of sunlight will pass
through it and reach the absorber.
 • A heliostat uses a field of dual-axis sun trackers that direct solar energy
to a large absorber located on a tower.
• The only application for the heliostat collector is power generation in a
system called the power tower.
Working of Practical Solar Heliostat:
• A practical solar heliostat is a mirror that makes movements up or
down and left or right to reflect sunlight onto a fixed point.
• The relative angular position of the receiver is input to the computer
• The computer commands the heliostat motor drive system to
position the mirror exactly midway(angularly) between the sun and
thermal receiver.
• Each heliostat is given a unique command.

Figure 3.14. Heliostat electric generating plant

Advantages and Disadvantages of the Heliostat Solar Tower Power Plant

• It is more commercially developed than either the parabolic dish–Stirling

engine or linear Fresnel systems.
• The heliostat solar tower system produces steam to generate electricity
with a conventional Rankine steam cycle, this system can be hybridized.
In other words, it can be designed to use a fossil fuel (typically natural
gas) as a supplementary fuel, allowing electricity to be generated when
the sun is not shining.
 • Disadvantage: The heliostat solar tower system produces a fluid
temperature greater than that of the single-axis tracking, parabolic
trough, and linear Fresnel system, but less than that of the two-axis
tracking, parabolic dish–Stirling engine system. Thus, it cannot achieve
efficiency for conversion of electricity from thermal energy as high as that
of the parabolic dish–Stirling engine system.

PARABOLIC DISH–STIRLING ENGINE SYSTEM

The major parts of a parabolic dish–Stirling engine system are as follows:
1. Solar dish concentrator: Parabolic dish systems that generate electricity
from a central power converter collect the absorbed sunlight from
individual receivers and deliver it via a heat-transfer fluid to the power
conversion systems.
2. Power conversion unit: The power conversion unit includes the thermal
receiver and the heat engine. The thermal receiver absorbs the
concentrated beam of solar energy, converts it to heat, and transfers the
 heat to the heat engine. A thermal receiver can be a bank of tubes with a
cooling fluid circulating through it.
3. Tracking system: A parabolic dish system uses a computer to track the
sun and concentrate the sun’s rays onto a receiver located at the focal
point in front of the dish.

SOLAR WATER HEATING SYSTEMS

• Most solar water heating systems have two main parts: a solar collector
and a storage tank.
• Solar water heaters sometimes called solar domestic hot water systems.
• It can be a cost-effective way to generate hot water for your home.
A typical active water heating system that exhibits effectiveness, reliability,
and low maintenance is shown in figure below:

Figure 3.17 A typical hot water system

• An insulated storage tank holds the hot water. It is similar to water
heater, but larger in size.
• In the case of systems that use fluids, heat is passed from hot fluid to
the water stored in the tank through a coil of tubes. Solar water
heating systems can be either active or passive systems.
• The active systems, which are most common, rely on pumps to move
the liquid between the collector and the storage tank.
 • The passive systems rely on gravity and the tendency for water to
naturally circulate as it is heated.
Active Solar Water Heating Systems:
There are five major components in active solar water heating systems:
1. Collector(s) to capture solar energy.
2. Circulation system to move a fluid between the collectors to a
storage tank
3. Storage tank
4. Backup heating system
5. Control system to regulate the overall system operation.
Uses the same components as the active solar water heating system
along with a heating distribution system. The heated water is used as
the heat source for air heating.
The distribution system can be either of the three types
a. Air distribution System
b. Hydronic system with radiators
c. Hydronic system with in slab heat.

Active solar water heating systems:

The active systems which are common, rely on pumps to move the liquid
between the collector and the storage tank.
There are two types of active solar water heating systems:
• Direct circulation systems
 -Pumps circulate household water through the collectors and into
the home.
-They work well in climates where it rarely freezes.
• Indirect circulation systems
-Pumps circulate a non-freezing, heat-transfer fluid through the collectors
and a heat exchanger.
-They are popular in climates prone to freezing temperatures.

Parts of water heating systems:

There are five major components in active solar water heating
systems:
1. Collector(s) to capture solar energy.
2. Circulation system to move a fluid between the collectors to a
storage tank
3. Storage tank
4. Backup heating system
5. Control system to regulate the overall system operation.
Passive solar water heating systems:
• A passive solar water heating system uses natural convection or
household water pressure to circulate water through a solar collector to
a storage tank or to the point of use. Active systems employ pumps and
controllers to regulate and circulate water.
• Passive solar water heating systems are typically less expensive than
active systems, but they're usually not as efficient. However, passive
systems can be more reliable and may last longer.

Types of passive water heaters are:

1. Batch System
2. Thermosiphon systems

1.Batch System:
 In a "batch" heater, household water is stored in a series of
metal tubes enclosed in glass tubes. The sun shines on the
tubes and warms the water inside.
 The batch system is the simplest of all solar water heating
systems, as depicted in figure
  It consists of one or more metal water tanks painted with a
heat absorbing black coating and placed in an insulating box
or container with a glass or plastic cover that admits sunlight
to strike the tank directly.
 The batch system’s storage tank is the collector as well. These
systems will use the existing house pressure to move water
through the system.
 Each time a hot water tap is opened, heated water from the
batch system tank is removed and replaced by incoming cold
water.
 The piping that connects to and from the batch heater needs
to be highly insulated.
 On a cold night, when no one is drawing hot water, the water
in the pipes is standing still and vulnerable to freezing.
 In many applications, insulated polybutylene piping is used
because the pipe can expand if frozen. The water in the batch
heater itself will not freeze because there is adequate mass to
keep it from freezing.

2.Thermosiphon systems:
 A thermosyphon-type solar water heater has an insulated water
storage tank mounted above flat plate solar collectors. The
collectors transfer heat from the sun to an antifreeze collector
fluid.
 A thermosyphon-type solar water heater has an insulated
water storage tank mounted above flat plate solar collectors.
  The collectors transfer heat from the sun to an antifreeze
collector fluid.
 The hot collector fluid flows though a heat exchanger wrapped
around the water storage tank, heating the household water
inside the tank.
 The collector fluid then flows back down into the collectors.
Whenever hot water is used, solar heated water is drawn from
the storage tank into the electric water heater.

APPLICATIONS OF SOLAR WATER HEATING SYSTEMS

1. Hotels: bathing, kitchen, washing, laundry applications.
2. Dairies: ghee (clarified butter) production, cleaning and sterilizing,
pasteurization.
3. Textiles: bleaching, boiling, printing, dyeing, curing, ageing, and finishing.
4. Breweries and distilleries: bottle washing, work preparation, boiler feed
heating.
5. Chemical/bulk drugs units: fermentation of mixes, boiler feed applications.
6. Electroplating or galvanizing units: heating of plating baths, cleaning,
degreasing applications.
7. Pulp and paper industries: boiler feed applications, soaking of pulp.

ACTIVE SOLAR SPACE COOLING

• Space heating and/or water heating can be accomplished with the same
equipment used for the solar cooling system. Active solar absorption
cooling system.
• Heat from solar collectors separates a low boiling refrigerant in a
generator that receives the pressurized refrigerant from an absorber.
Solar heat can also be used in the evaporation stage of the cycle.
• lithium bromide (LiBr) absorption cooler. In the absorption cooler, heat is
supplied to the generator in which a fragrant is driven from a strong
solution.
SOLAR AIR HEATING
• Solar-heated air can be used for drying most crops that require warm air.
• Solar heated air is ideal for drying delicate foods since it will not burn or
risk potential damage from high temperature steam heat.
• In new building, metal roofs and walls are integrated with the building’s
structure. By trapping air into a confined space which has sunlight hitting
it, the trapped air is heated up naturally by the solar power of the sun.
This type of natural heat transfer is also used for solar water heating.

SOLAR DRYERS
DEFINITION: Solar Dryers are the devices that use Solar Energy to dry
substances, especially food. These are known as Solar Dryers.

PRINCIPLE OF SOLAR DRYER:

 Tunnel Solar Dryer works on the principle of greenhouse effect, in which
solar radiation gets trapped inside the closed chamber.
 It has two sections: collector area and drying area.
CHARACTERISTICS AND ITS TYPES
 Solar Dryers can be utilized for various domestic purposes.
 They can also find numerous applications in Industries such as :
 Textiles, wood, fruit, food processing, paper, pharmaceutical
and agro–industries.
 Types of Solar Dryers:
 Direct Drying (Solar Box Dryer), Indirect Drying (Solar Cabinet
Dryer),
 Mixed Mode Drying (Solar Tunnel Dryer)

ADVANTAGES:
 Less Energy Consumption.
 It has Long-term Storage.
 Least Expensive.
 These have the Low operation and Low Maintenance cost.
 A Typical dryer can last 15-20 years with minimum maintenance.

DISADVANTAGES
 High Energy Consumption.
 This has Short-term Storage.
 Highly Expensive.
 These can be utilized only for drying only between 40-50 degree Celsius.
 UV radiation can damage the food.

CROP DRYING
 Crop Drying is required for various crops and products, such as grain,
coffee, tobacco, fruits, vegetables etc.
 Their Quality can be enhanced only if the drying is properly carried out.
 Solar Thermal technology can be used to assist with the drying of such
products.
 The Main Principle of operation is to raise the heat of the product, which
is usually held within a compartment or a box.
 The Size and Shape of the compartment varies depending on the product
and the scale of the drying system.
 Solar Crop Drying technologies can help in reducing the environmental
degradation caused by the use of Fuel wood or Fossil Fuels for Crop
Drying.
 Improving and Protecting crops also will have beneficial effects on Health.
 SPACE COOLING
 Space Cooling represents a significant use of energy in buildings
nationwide. The majority of the developing countries lies within the
tropics and have little need of space heating.
 However, there is a demand for Space Cooling.
 Mostly the world warm climate often using effects promoted by passive
solar phenomenon.
 There are many methods for minimizing the heat gain. These include
situating a building in shade or near water, using vegetation or
landscaping to direct wind into the building to optimize the prevailing
wind and available shade.
 Buildings can be designed for a given climate.

SPACE COOLING – ITS TYPES

TYPE 1 :
It is a very simple construction where ambient air passes from a glazed
or unglazed collector directly into the room to provide ventilation and
heating.
TYPE 2:-
In this it circulates room air to the collector. The heated air rises to a
thermal storage ceiling from which it is conveyed back into the room.
TYPE 3:-
It is particularly suited for retrofitting poorly insulated buildings.
Collector heated air passes through a cavity between an outer insulated wall
and an inner facade.
TYPE 4:-
It is the classical solar air heating system and is commonly used.
Collector heated air is circulated through channels in the floor.
TYPE 5:-
It is advanced version for the Type 4, room air is circulated through
separate channels of the storage. This type is rarely used as investment costs
are rather high.

SOLAR COOKER
 A solar cooker, or solar oven, is a device which uses the energy
of sunlight to heat food or drink to cook it or sterilize it.
  High-tech versions, for example electric ovens powered by solar
cells, are possible, and have some advantages such as being able
to work in diffuse light.

Types of solar cooker are:

1. Box Type Solar Cooker (sometimes called box ovens)
2. Panel Cooker
3. Parabolic Cooker
4. Tube Cooker

Box-Type Solar Cooker:

The most commonly used form of solar cooker is the box-type solar cooker.
A box-type solar cooker consists of the following components:
● Black Box – The box is an insulated metal or wooden box which is
painted black from the inside to absorb more heat.
● Glass Cover – A cover made of two sheets of toughened glass held
together in an aluminum frame is used as a cover for box .
● Plane Mirror reflector – The plane mirror reflector is fixed to the
box with the help of hinges.
The mirror reflector can be positioned at any desired angle to the
box. The mirror is positioned so as to allow the reflected sunlight to
fall on the glass cover of the box.
● Cooking Containers – A set of aluminum containers blackened
from the outside are kept in box.
Working principle:
● The solar cooker placed in sunlight and a plane mirror reflector
is adjusted in a way such that the strong beam of sunlight
enters the box through the glass sheet.
● The blackened metal surfaces in the wooden box absorb
infrared radiations from the beam of sunlight and heat
produced raises the temperature of a blackened metal surface
to about 100° C.
 ● The food absorbs heat from the black surface and gets cooked.
The thick glass sheet does not allow the heat to escape and
thus, helps in raising the temperature in the box to a
sufficiently high degree to cook the food.
Panel Solar Cooker:
● Panel Cookers have a flat panel which reflects and focuses sunlight for
cooking and heating.
● Panel cookers incorporate elements of box and curved concentrator
cookers.
● The panel cooker is quite similar in operation to the solar box cooker.
The same principles are employed but instead of an insulated box,
● Panel cookers typically rely on a large reflective panel. Panel cookers are
unable to collect and store sunlight for later use and they are unstable in
high winds. Also, it cannot retain much heat when the sun is hidden
behind the clouds.

Parabolic Solar Cooker:

● Parabolic solar cookers use a parabolic-shaped reflector to direct sunlight
to a small area in order to generate heat for cooking.
● They are able to reach high temperatures, 350 °C (662 °F) or higher, which
allows them to be used for grilling and frying. These temperatures are
significantly higher than what can be reached by a solar box cookers or
solar panel cookers and allow the cooking times on a parabolic cooker to
be comparable to a conventional stove, such as an electrical or gas
burner.

ADVANTAGES OF SOLAR COOKER

● Solar cookers use no fuel. This saves cost as well as the environment by
not contributing to pollution.
● Reduces carbon footprint by cooking without carbon dioxide-based fuels.
● Retains the nutrition value of food.
DISADVANTAGES OF SOLAR COOKER
● Solar cookers are less useful in cloudy weather.
● Some solar cookers take longer to cook food than a conventional stove or
an oven.
● Some solar cookers are affected by strong winds which can slow the
cooking process.
● It might get difficult to cook some thick foods such as large roasts and
loaves of bread.

SOLAR COLLECTOR SYSTEMS

 People use solar thermal energy for many purposes, including heating
water, air, and the interior of buildings and generating electricity.
 There are two general types of solar heating systems: passive systems
and active systems.
Passive solar space heating happens when the sun shines through the
windows of a building and warms the interior. Building designs that optimize
passive solar heating (in the northern hemisphere) usually have south-facing
windows that allow the sun to shine on solar heat-absorbing walls or floors in
the building during the winter. The solar energy is absorbed by the building
materials and heats the interior of buildings by natural radiation and
convection. Window overhangs or shades block the sun from entering the
windows during the summer to keep the building cool.

Active solar heating systems have collectors for heating a fluid (air or a liquid)
and fans or pumps to move the fluid through the collectors, where it is heated,
to the interior of a building or to a heat storage system, where the heat is
released, and back to the collector to be reheated. Active solar water heating
systems usually have a tank for storing solar heated water.