CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION

Solar energy is recognized as one of the viable alternative energy source solutions
for the future's energy needs because it is a pollution-free, environmentally friendly,
renewable source of energy. Solar thermal technology is one of the most efficient and
promising methods for converting solar energy. The earth reflects solar energy in many
different ways, including incident solar radiation that plants use for photosynthesis, heated
air masses that produce wind and water evaporation that results in rain. Thermal and
photovoltaic systems may capture solar radiation in its pure form, and wind, biomass
energy sources, hydel energy, wave energy, and ocean thermal energy can capture it
indirectly. From an environmental perspective, the production of heat energy by solar
collectors can greatly aid in the preservation of traditional fossil fuels. By doing so, this
helps to mitigate the negative environmental effects of global warming and the decrease
of greenhouse gas emissions from conventional power-producing facilities.

1.1. POWER SCENARIO IN INDIA

The nation's per capita energy consumption is used to gauge its level of
development. The availability of electrical energy is a key factor in rapid industrialization.
India's economy, which is rapidly expanding, requires enormous amounts of electrical
energy to continue on its current growth trajectory. India is advantageously situated close
to the equator of the globe, which receives more solar energy from the sun. The equivalent
of 5,000 trillion kilowatt-hours of electrical energy is typically supplied by solar energy to
India each year. This amount of energy is larger than India's entire annual energy
consumption. However, only a small portion of this is converted for practical applications.
The range of the annual solar radiation is 1600 to 2200 kWh/m2. India mostly relies on
fossil fuel-based power generation to fulfill its electricity needs. Only a small percentage
of India's total energy production comes from renewable sources. In India, the production
of wind energy makes up a significant portion of renewable energy sources. Recently,
based on the benefits of solar energy, it has started to expand rapidly.

1
 India, the fifth-largest energy user in the world, uses 3.5% of the total annual
energy consumed worldwide. Because of the constant depletion of fossil resources, the
world's societies are now compelled to harness the abundant solar energy. As a result,
solar energy has the potential to be explored for supplying home and industrial energy
needs. According to the National Sample Survey Organization's (NSSO) 62nd report,
74% of rural Indian families still use firewood for cooking, 9% use dung cake, and only
9% utilize LPG. This obliquely suggests that India's energy security is unbalanced.
The country, which consumes a lot of energy, is compelled to import fuels because
of the supply-demand imbalance.

The country's economy would be significantly impacted by the import of

petroleum. The threat posed by fuel dependence on imports is one the government is
trying to address. The ideal solution would be to use the plentiful solar energy to
combat the threat and maintain independence. India's total energy demand is very high
due to the country's fast-growing economy. The potential for solar collection areas in
India is around 140 million square meters, and the installed capacity of renewable
energy-generated electricity in India is around 18454 MW. Based on the above facts, it is
clearly evident that solar energy systems are turning into one of the most potential
energy solutions to meet the future energy demand of India.

1.2. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF SOLAR

THERMAL CONCENTRATING SYSTEMS

There are numerous solar energy conversion systems are available on the market.
A solar thermal system based on solar collectors has been deemed the most advantageous
of all systems because it converts solar heat energy directly into usable energy. Solar
collectors are used in solar thermal systems to capture incident solar energy from the sun,
and the heat energy produced is then used to meet the requirements. Solar collectors are
heat exchangers in solar thermal systems that capture solar energy as heat through a
working fluid. The thermal energy received by the working medium is then utilized for a
wide range of purposes. The absorbed thermal energy can be used for room heating,
process heating, refrigeration, or energy generation. This usage is largely defined by site-
specific constraints. Solar energy enables the construction of independent systems for

2
diverse uses based on thermal conversion using a simple and appropriate technology that
is adaptable to the terrain of the specific region. It can produce electricity for water
heating, cooling, industrial process heat, and, most crucially, desalination. Traditional solar
thermal collector techniques are prominent in society due to their adaptability.

3
 CHAPTER 2

SOLAR RADIATION

1. EXTRATERRESTRIAL SOLAR RADIATION

Extraterrestrial solar radiation (I) is the solar radiation which falls on a surface
normal to the rays of the sun outside the atmosphere of the earth. This extraterrestrial solar
radiation at the mean earth-sun distance, Do, is called the solar constant, Io. Using the
value obtained by measurements from NASA, the solar constant is said to be 1353 W/m2,
and the mean earth-sun distance is1.496×1011m. Because of the variation in seasonal solar
radiation due to the elliptical orbit of the earth about the sun, the earth-sun distance has a
variance of ±1.7 % . Thus, the extraterrestrial solar radiation, I, varies by the inverse
square law, as shown in equation where D is the distance between the sun and the earth.

I=Io (D/Do)²

D = Mean earth-sun
distance Io = Solar constant

Do = distance between

the sun and the earth

2. TERRESTRIAL
SOLAR RADIATION

As the extraterrestrial solar radiation passes through the atmosphere, part of it is

reflected back into space, part is absorbed by air and water vapor, and some is scattered.
The solar radiation that reaches the surface of the earth is known as beam (direct)
radiation, and the scattered radiation that reaches the surface from the sky is known as
sky diffuse radiation.

Solar collectors are classified into two types: concentrating solar collectors and
non-concentrating solar collectors. Flat-plate (or) non-concentrating solar collectors, as
illustrated in Figure 1.1, work by directly receiving as much global radiation from the sun
as possible without any focusing. Because of their simple structure and inexpensive cost,
they are appropriate for low (40°C-60°C) and intermediate temperature applications
(80°C-120°C). Many government and commercial companies in India make these types of
collectors. The collector is composed of transparent glazing material and has a standard
4
absorber surface of 2 m2. According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, it is tested in an
authorized MNES center.

2.3 SOLAR COLLECTORS

Figure 2.1. Flat plate collector

Figure 2.2. Concentrating collectors

In a concentrating solar collector, the solar thermal energy is concentrated or

reflected towards the working fluid in the absorber. The reflecting surfaces used may be
parabolic, spherical, or flat to focus and concentrate the solar radiation on an absorber. The
non-concentrating type of solar collector uses flat surface absorbers to capture the solar

5
energy directly. The parabolic dish, compound parabolic collector, and parabolic trough
are examples of major concentrating solar collectors that can operate at high temperatures
and are used in solar heating applications in industries; they can also operate at low and
medium temperatures for water heating, space heating, and industrial process applications
(Figure 2.2).

6
 CHAPTER 3

PARABOLIC TROUGH COLLECTOR

1. INTRODUCTION

Among the family of solar collections, parabolic trough collector (PTC] is

currently receiving considerable attention for a wide range of applications. Currently, solar
parabolic trough collector (PTC) is employed for a variety of applications such as power
generation, industrial steam generation, and hot water production. Parabolic trough
collector is preferred for steam generation because high temperatures can be obtained
without any serious degradation of the collector's efficiency. Solar thermal power plants
based on PTC are presently the most successful solar technologies for electricity
generation. A feasibility study for the use of PTC in a hotel for hot water production was
reported by Kalogeria and Lloyd. It was shown that PTC could be more cost effective than
the conventional flat plate collectors. Design and simulation analysis of a PTC hot water
generation system has been done by Valan Arasu and Sornakumar .The simulation
analysis shows good agreement with the test results reported by Valan Arasu and
Sornakumar. The present work focuses on the performance study of a new PTC with hot
water generation system.

2. PRINCIPLES AND COMPONENTS OF THE PTC

A PTC is basically made up of a parabolic trough-shaped mirror or steel sheet that

reflects direct solar radiation, concentrating it onto a receiver tube located in the focal line
of the parabola. Concentration of the direct solar radiation reduces the absorber surface
area with respect to the collector aperture area and thus significantly reduces the overall
thermal losses. The concentrated radiation heats the fluid that circulates through the
receiver tube, thus transforming the solar radiation into thermal energy in the form of the
sensible heat of the fluid. Figure 3.1 shows a typical PTC and its components.

7
 Figure 3.1 Details of Parabolic Trough Collector

The Solar parabolic trough collector (SPTC) is the simplest and most popular one
among the concentrating solar power technologies. The SPTC consists of a parabolic-
shaped reflector, which focuses the solar radiation on a line receiver located at its focal
point. The collector tracks the sun to ensure that the solar radiation exactly focuses onto
the receiver. The working fluid (water) made flow through the receiver, to collect the heat
from the receiver. The parabolic trough can focus the sun at 30 to 100 times its normal
intensity on receiver pipe located along the focal line of the trough and the operating
temperature of the system is about 400°C. The SPTC system performance is mainly
dependent on internal heat gain characteristics, heat loss from the surface, velocity of the
fluid, and geometrical concentration ratio. The solar parabolic trough receiver design
influences the overall performance of the system.

PTCs are dynamic devices because they have to rotate around an axis, the so-
called tracking axis, to follow the apparent daily movement of the sun. Collector rotation
around its axis requires a drive unit. At present, all commercial PTC designs use a single-
axis sun- tracking system. Though PTC designs with two-axis sun-tracking systems
have been designed, manufactured, and tested in the past, evaluation results show that
they are less cost-effective. Though the existence of a two-axis tracking system allows
the PTC to permanently track the sun with an incidence angle equal to 0° (thus reducing
optical losses while increasing the amount of solar radiation available at the PTC
aperture plane) the length of passive piping (i.e., connecting pipes between receiver
pipes of adjacent

8
parabolic troughs on the same collector) and the associated thermal losses are significantly
higher than in single-axis collectors. Furthermore, their maintenance costs are higher and
their availability lower because they require a more complex mechanical design.

3.3 THE RECEIVER

The typical PTC Receiver tube is composed of an inner steel pipe surrounded by
a glass tube to reduce convective heat losses from the hot steel pipe. The steel pipe has a
selective high-absorptivity (greater than 90%), low-emissivity (less than 30%
in the
infrared) coating that reduces radiative thermal losses. Receiver tubes with glass
vacuum tubes and glass pipes with an antireflective coating achieve higher PTC thermal
efficiency and better annual performance, especially at higher operating temperatures.
Receiver tubes with no vacuum are usually for working temperatures below 250°C,
because thermal losses are not so critical at these temperatures. Due to manufacturing
constraints, the maximum length of single receiver pipes is less than 6 in, so the complete
receiver tube of a PTC is composed of a number of single receiver pipes welded in series
up to the total length of the PTC.

9
 Figure 3.2: Typical receiver tube of PTC
Figure 3.2 shows a typical PTC vacuum receiver pipe. The outer glass tube is
attached to the steel pipe by means of flexible metal differential expansion joints which
compensate for the different thermal expansion of glass and steel when the receiver tube
is working at nominal temperature. At present there are only two manufacturers of PTC
vacuum absorber tubes: the German company Schott and the Israeli company SOLEL.
PTC Reflectors have a high specular reflectance (greater than 88%) to reflect as much
solar radiation as possible. Solar reflectors commonly used in PTC are made of back-
silvered glass mirrors, since their durability and solar spectral reflectance are better
than the polished aluminium and metalized acrylic mirrors also available on the
market. Solar spectral reflectance is typically 0.93 for silvered glass mirrors and 0.87
for polished aluminium.

PTCs are usually installed with the rotation axis oriented either north-
south or east
- west, however, any other orientation would be feasible too. The orientation of
this type of solar collector is sometimes imposed by the shape and orientation of the site
where they are installed. Solar collector orientation influences the sun incidence angle on
the aperture plane which, in turn, affects collector performance. Seasonal variations in
north-south- oriented trough collector output can be quite wide. Three to four times
more energy is delivered daily during summer months than in the winter, depending on
the geographical latitude and local weather conditions. Seasonal variations in energy
delivery are much smaller for an east-west orientation, usually less than 50%.
Nevertheless, a north-south sun-tracking axis orientation provides more energy on a yearly
basis. Daily variation in the
10
incidence angle is always greater for the east-west orientation, with maximum values at
sunrise and sunset and a minimum of 0° every day at solar noon.

3.4 PUMP

Figure 3.3: Pump

The pump used to transfer the water is with specified flow .The Maximum flow rate of
the pump is 1.7 lit/ min and the Maximum speed of the pump is 1500 RPM. The pump
was coupled with 0.5 HP 1425 RPM single phase Crompton greaves motor with love
joy coupling. The flow of the water is controlled by fixing ball valve at both inlet and
outlet of the pump. The flow rate of water is 0.02 kg/sec in the experiment.

3.5 TRACKING

The output power produced by high-concentration solar thermal collector systems is

directly related to the amount of solar energy acquired by the system, and it is therefore
necessary to track the sun’s position with a high degree of accuracy. PTCs are dynamic
devices because they have to rotate around an axis, the so-called tracking axis, to follow
the apparent daily movement of the sun. Collector rotation around its axis requires a drive
unit. One drive unit is usually sufficient for several parabolic trough modules connected in
series and driven together as a single collector. The type of drive unit assembly depends
on the size and dimensions of the collector. Drive units composed of an electric motor and
a gearbox combination are used for small collectors (aperture area less than 100 m2),
whereas powerful hydraulic drive units are required to rotate large collectors. A drive unit
placed on the central pylon is commanded by a local control unit in order to track the sun.

11
 FIGURE 3.4: Sun tracking mechanism
3.6 PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS AND LOSSES IN A PTC

Three of the design parameters required for a PTC are the geometric concentration
ratio, the acceptance angle, and the rim angle. The concentration ratio is the ratio between
the collector aperture area and the total area of the absorber tube whereas the acceptance
angle is the maximum angle that can be formed by two rays in a plane transversal to the
collector aperture so that they intercept the absorber pipe after being reflected by the
parabolic mirrors. The concentration ratio, C, is given by:

lal la , (3.1)
C
d0l d0
Where d0= is the outer diameter of the receiver pipe,

l = is the collector length,

la= is the parabola width.

12
 Figure 3.5: Concentration ratio and acceptance angle of a PTC

The wider the collector acceptance angle, the less accurate the tracking system has
to be, as the collector will not need to update its position as frequently. Usual values of the
concentration ratio of PTCs are about 20, although the maximum theoretical value is on
the order of 70. High concentration ratios are associated with very small acceptance angles,
which require very accurate sun-tracking systems and consequently, higher costs.

The minimum practical acceptance angle is 32' (0.53°), which is the average solid
angle at which the sun sphere is seen from the earth. This means that any PTC with an
acceptance angle smaller than 32' would always loose a fraction of the direct solar
radiation. In fact, recommended acceptance angles for commercial PTCs are between 1°
and 2°. Smaller angles would demand very accurate sun-tracking system and frequent
updating of the collector position, whereas higher values would lead to small
concentration ratios and, therefore, lower working temperatures. Therefore, acceptance
angle values between 1° and 2° are the most cost-effective. The rim angle 0, is directly
related to the concentrator arc length and its value can be calculated from Equation 3.2 as

a function of the parabola focal distance,l, and aperture width, la:

la
 (3.2)
4 f  tan2
,

13
Usual values for rim angles in a PTC are between 70° and 110°. Smaller rim angles are
not advisable because they reduce the aperture surface. Rim angles over 110° are not
cost- effective because they increase the total reflecting surface without effectively
increasing the aperture width.

3.7 LOSSES IN PTC

When direct solar radiation reaches the surface of a PTC, a significant amount of
it is lost due to several different factors. The total loss can be divided into three types,
which in descending order of importance are:
 Optical losses
 Thermal losses from the absorber pipe to the ambient
 Geometrical losses
The Optical losses are associated with four parameters

Reflectivity (r) of the collector reflecting surface: because the reflectivity of the parabolic
trough concentrator is less than 1, only a fraction of the incident radiation is reflected
towards the receiver tube. Typical reflectivity values of clean silvered glass mirrors are
around 0.93. After washing the mirrors, their reflectivity continuously decreases as dirt
accumulates until the next washing. Commercial parabolic trough mirrors are washed
when their reflectivity is of about 0.9.

Intercept factor () is a fraction of the direct solar radiation reflected by the mirrors does
not reach the glass cover of the absorber tube due to either microscopic imperfections of
the reflectors or macroscopic shape errors in the parabolic trough concentrators (e.g.,
imprecision during assembly). These errors cause reflection of some rays at the wrong
angle, and therefore they do not intercept the absorber tube. These losses are quantified by
an optical parameter called the intercept factor  that is typically 0.95 for a collector
properly assembled.

Transmissivity () is the metal absorber tube is placed inside an outer glass tube in order
to increase the amount of absorbed energy and reduce thermal losses. A fraction of the
direct solar radiation reflected by the mirrors and reaching the glass cover of the absorber

14
pipe is not able to pass through it. The ratio between the radiation passing through the
glass tube and the total incident radiation on it, gives transmissivity  = 0.93.

Absorptivity of the absorber selective coating, : this parameter quantifies the amount of
energy absorbed by the steel absorber pipe, compared with the total radiation reaching the
outer wall of the steel pipe. This parameter is typically 0.95 for receiver pipes with a
cermet coating, whereas it is slightly lower for pipes coated with black nickel or
chrome. Multiplication of these four parameters (reflectivity, intercept factor, glass
transmissivity, and absorptivity of the steel pipe) when the incidence angle on the
aperture plane is 0° gives what is called the peak optical efficiency of the PTC.

Figure 3.6: Optical parameters of a parabolic trough collector

The total thermal loss in a PTC, PQ, collector to ambient is due to radiative heat loss from the

absorber pipe to ambient, PQ, collector to ambient and convective and conductive heat losses from the

absorber pipe to its outer glass tube, PQ, collector to glass. Although this heat loss is governed

by the well-known mechanisms of radiation, conduction, and convection, it is a

good practice to calculate them all together using the thermal loss coefficient, UL)abs,

according to

PQ, collector to ambient = (UL)abs d0l (Tabs-Ta) (3.3)

Where Tabs = absorber pipe temperature, Tamb is the ambient air temperature, d0 is the outer diameter
15
of the absorber pipe, and is the absorber pipe length (PTC length). In Equation 3.3, the

thermal loss coefficient is given in (W/mabs2.K) units per square meter of the steel
absorber pipe surface. Equation 3.4 can be used to find the value of the thermal loss

coefficient per square meter of aperture surface of the PTC, UL)col

U U / C[W / m2 K ]
L)col L)abs col
(3.4)

The heat loss coefficient depends on absorber pipe temperature and is found
experimentally by performing specific thermal loss tests with the PTC operating at several
temperatures within its typical working temperature range. The third groups of losses in a
PTC are the Geometrical losses that are due to the incidence angle, of direct solar
radiation on the aperture plane of the collector. The incidence angle is the angle between
the normal to the aperture plane of the collector and the sun's vector, both contained on a
plane perpendicular to the collector axis. This angle depends on the day of the year and
the time of day.

16
 CHAPTER 4

EXPERIMENTAL SETUP, OBSERVATIONS AND MODIFICATION

4.1 EXPERIMENTAL SETUP

PTC collectors having an aperture area 2m2 are considered for the present design.
Speciation of PTC collector are given in table.

17
 Figure 4.1: Experimental setup

The solar receiver tube which act as heat collecting element (HCE) consists of a
copper tube, a glass envelope and rubber cork seals at both ends of class envelope. The
copper tube is coated with a heat resisted black paint and is surrounded by a concentric
glass cover with an annual gap of 0.5cm. The rubber corks are interpreted at both ends of
the receiver tube in the annular gap between the glass cover and the copper tube to
achieve an air tight enclosure. The focused radiant energy from sun is absorbed through
HCE and transformed to a heat transfer fluid (HTF) which is pumped through HCE
tube for connecting concentrated solar thermal energy. The collectors are connected to
an insulated storage tank 50 liters capacity. In order to measure the temperature at
input, output and inside storage tank, the calibrated aluminum – Chromium thermo
couples. Thermo couples are placed for the measurement of inlet, outlet, tank water and
ambient temperature precision pyranometers manufactured by national instrument
limited, India with and without ring are used for measurement of global and diffuse
solar radiation. The temperature and intensities are measured by 15 minutes interval
basis.

18
 Table 4.1: Parabolic trough collector system specifications

Items Value

Collector length 2m

Collector width 1m

Rim angle 𝜃 90O

Focal distance 0.3m

Receiver diameter [do & di] 22mm & 19mm

Glass envelope dia [Do & Di] 30mm & 25mm

Length of glass envelope 2m

Motor pump 0.5 HP 1425 rpm 1.7 l /min

4.2 DRIVE TRACKING AND CONTROL SYSTEM

The PTSC is aligned along a true north line and employs a single axis tracking,
the tracking hardware consists of a Siemens 0.25 kw, 685 rev/min, 8-pole AC motor
with electromechanical brake and a 463:1 high-reduction helical gearbox. A Siemens
VSD enables the system to operate at trough rotational speeds of between 1.5 rev/min
and 0 rev/min .The control hardware consists of a 2500 pulse rotary encoder mounted on
a shaft of PTSC to provide angular feedback information, and a Siemens S7
programmable logic controller (PLC).

19
 Figure 4.2: Tracking mechanism

4.3 Block diagram of tracking system

tracking of the collector is exercised via PLC control of the VSD.Three tracking mode
were available during this study: manual jogging of the collector, fixed rate angular
corrections based on the sun’s apparent motion (0.25 /min) and vitual tracking using solar
angle information from the implementation of PSA algorithm .

20
 CHAPTER 5

PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS AND SPECIMEN CALCULATION

5.1 PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS

The performance of the new PTC hot water generation, storage medium system is
determined by obtaining values of collector efficiency for different combinations of
incident radiation (global), ambient temperature, water inlet and outlet temperature,
receiver tube temperature, enveloping glass cover temperature and water storage tank
temperature. All the temperatures were recorded with the help of 12 point Temperature
monitor – Resistance temperatures Device (RTD) sensors. The solar beam radiation
intensity (Global) was measured by a pyranometer and the mass flow rate of water by a
rotameter (or flow meter). The wind speed was measured by an anemometer. All
parameters were measured and a function of time over a 15 minutes period and under
steady-state or quasi-steady-state conditions. The time response of the parabolic trough
solar collector has been determined in order to evaluate the transient behavior of the
collector, and to select the proper time intervals for the quasi – state or steady – state
condition.
The experiments was conducted from 26.04.2025 to 30.04.2025 from
11.45am to
1.00 pm Indian Standard Time (IST) with a means solar beam radiation in the
range of 2000-2900 KJ/ hrm2 and a mean ambient temperature in the range of 27-34ºC.
Flow rate of water is maintained at constant rate of 1.314 lit / min (or) (0.02 kg /sec)
The average maximum water storage tank temperature has been measured as 52 ºC, when
no energy is withdrawn from the tank to the load during the collection period.
5.2 EXPERIMENTAL TABULATION

The following data’s for newly developed PTC system were measured and
tabulated as in the given table – 4 below (26.04.2025 - 30.04.2025)

21
Table – 2: Different parameter of the Experimental Set-up
Day-1 (12-04-25)

Beam Wind Ambient Temp of fluid

Speed Temp. Receiver Tube
radiation I (water)
Time of Temp.
the Day
beam Vw Tamb T
Inlet Outlet
(kJ/hrm ) 2 Tfi Tfo ( C)
o
(m/s) (oC)
(oC) (oC)

11:45 am 2817.31 2.1 27 40 52 58

12:00
2889.91 2.1 28 41 53.5 62
noon

12:15 pm 2835.08 3.2 32 40 51.5 64

12:30 pm 2807.68 1.7 34 41 52.5 68

12:45 pm 2798.99 1.9 34 41.5 52.5 69

1:00 pm 2798.99 2.3 32 41 52.5 73

22
Day-2 (13-04-25)

Temp of fluid Receiver

Time Beam Wind Ambient
(water) Tube
of radiation I beam Speed Vw Temp. Tamb
Temp.
the Inlet Outlet
(kJ/hrm2) (m/s) (oC) T
Day Tfi Tfo (oC)
( C)
o (oC)

11:45
2800.72 2.1 27 39 50.5 58
am

12:00
2892.57 2.1 27 39 51.5 67
noon

12:15
2883.13 3.2 32 39 51.5 73
pm

12:30
2814.27 1.7 33 39 51 72
pm

12:45
2800.33 1.9 34 40 51 71
pm

1:00
2794.33 2.3 32 39 50.5 69
pm

23
Day-3 (14-04-25)

Beam Wind Ambient

Time radiation Speed Temp. Temp of fluid (water) Receiver
of Tube Temp.
the I beam Vw Tamb T
Day Inlet Tfi Outlet Tfo ( C)
o
(kJ/hrm2) (m/s) (oC) (oC) (oC)

11:45
2797.28 2 28 40 51 58
am

12:00
2864.46 2 28 40 52.5 62
noon

12:15
2862.05 2.4 32 39 51 64
pm

12:30
2833.64 1.7 34 39 50.5 68
pm

12:45
2812.45 1.9 33 40 51 69
pm

1:00
2802.45 2.3 33 40 51 70
pm

24
Day-4 (15-04-25)

Beam Wind Ambient Temp of

Time radiation Speed Temp. fluid (water) Receiver Tube Temp.
of
I beam Vw Tamb T
the Inlet Outlet (oC)
Day Tfi Tfo
(kJ/hrm2) (m/s) (oC)
(oC) (oC)

11:45
2817.49 2.1 27 39 51 58
am

12:00
2842.08 2.1 28 39 51.5 62
noon

12:15
2813.27 3.2 32 39 50.5 64
pm

12:30
2876.86 1.7 31 39 51.5 66
pm

12:45
2846.08 1.9 31 39 51 69
pm

1:00
2800.81 2.3 32 39 50.5 68
pm

25
Day-5 (16-04-25)

Beam Wind Ambient

radiation Speed Temp. Temp of fluid (water) Receiver Tube
Time of Temp.
the Day I beam Vw Tamb T
Inlet Tfi Outlet Tfo (oC)
(kJ/hrm2) (m/s) (oC) ( C)
o (oC)

11:45
2896.45 2.1 27 40 52 56
am

12:00
2900.00 2.1 27 40 53 59
noon

12:15
2888.23 3.2 32 40 52.5 63
pm

12:30
2858.08 1.7 31 40 52 64
pm

12:45
2800.01 1.9 32 40 52 69
pm

1:00 pm 2812.12 2.3 32 40 50.5 70

26
 5.3 SPECIMEN CALCULATION

(Time at 12.15 pm)

1. TOTAL HEAT AVAILABLE

solar
Q t=
intensity∗60∗4.18∗10^4
pyranometer
constant∗1000

pyranometer Constant= 5.56 mv/cal min-

1
cm-2

6.39∗60∗4.187∗10^4
Q t= kJ/hr

m2
5.56∗1000

Qt = 2888.23 kJ/hr m2
2. HEAT AVAILABLE IN
CONCENTRATOR

QC  Total heat available x

Total area of concentrator

Total area of concentrator  2x1

 2m 2

Heat available QC = 2888.23x2 =

5776.46 kJ/hr

3. HEAT GAINED BY WATER IN

kJ/hr

Qw = m cp (Tout-Tin)

= 72x 4.186x12.5=3767.4
kJ/hr

Calculation of Experimental Thermal

27
Efficiency, (ηexp) of the parabolic trough

collector:
Thermal efficiency at 12.15 pm

3767.4
η = 5776.4 × 100
6
=65.21%
5.4 RESULT TABULATION
The parameters were calculated and tabulated for every 15 minutes interval.
Day 1

Time of the day (Tfi-Ta)/I Cm2/W exp %

11:45 am 0.0112 64.18
12:00 noon 0.0124 65.15
12:15 pm 0.0131 61.12
12:30 pm 0.0146 61.72
12:45 pm 0.0153 59.22
1:00 pm 0.0160 61.91

Day-2
Time of the day (Tfi-Ta)/I Cm2/W exp %
11:45 am 0.012 61.87
12:00 noon 0.0121 65.12
12:15 pm 0.0129 65.33
12:30 pm 0.0138 65.25
12:45 pm 0.0148 59.19
1:00 pm 0.0156 62.01

Day-3
Time of the day (Tfi-Ta)/I Cm2/W exp %

11:45 am 0.0113 59.25

12:00 noon 0.0126 65.76
12:15 pm 0.0136 63.18
12:30 pm 0.0141 61.15
12:45 pm 0.0156 59.93
1:00 pm 0.0161 59.15

Day-4
Time of the day (Tfi-Ta)/I Cm2/W exp %
11:45 am 0.0111 64.18
12:00 noon 0.0123 66.27
12:15 pm 0.0139 61.6

28
12:30 pm 0.0142 65.47
12:45 pm 0.0151 63.53
1:00 pm 0.0162 61.87

Day-5
Time of the day (Tfi-Ta)/I Cm2/W exp %
11:45 am 0.0115 62.43
12:00 noon 0.0121 67.55
12:15 pm 0.0135 65.29
12:30 pm 0.0146 63.25
12:45 pm 0.0152 64.58
1:00 pm 0.0168 56.26

29
 CHAPTER 6

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Experimental works were performed on the newly modified experimental setup

under transient flow conditions. Initially, the experiments were carried out in plain tube
absorber under laminar flow conditions . It is well proved that the constructed experimental
set up and its working performances are good. The corrugated tube changed the direction
of fluid flow which in turn increased the convective heat transfer. The corrugated tube with

I3 has the maximum value of the Nusselt number due to additional swirl effect by the

geometry of corrugation. The plain tube absorber temperature was high compared to
combination of different pitches of inserts with the corrugated tube. It showed that water
absorbed less quantity of heat from the wall. The plain tube has less instantaneous
efficiency due to the minimum utilization of solar energy, whereas the corrugated tubes
have increased efficiency. It is caused by the turbulence created by the geometry. The
efficiency was increased further by use of inserts in the corrugated tube.

30
Thermal efficiency curve

31
 CHAPTER 7

CONCLUSIONS

The experimental analysis was carried out on the solar PTC using modified tube absorber
with conical strip inserts and the following conclusions are made.

The highest thermal performance, friction factor value, convective heat transfer and

Nusselt number value are achieved by the combination of CT with I3. The friction factor value of

CT with I3 increased to maximum of 23% compared to plain tube and 16% compared to CT

and Nusselt value increased to maximum of 104% compared to plain tube and 143%
compared to CT.

The instantaneous efficiency of 65% was achieved while using CT with I3 and 52% was achieved

while using the plain tube.

The maximum thermal efficiency of 59% was achieved while using CT with I3 and 55% was

achieved while using the plain tube.

The best results are achieved using the combination of corrugated tube CT (hc=2mm,

pi=8mm) with conical strip insert I3 (20mm).

32
Nomenclature
Ao - Outer surface area

(m2) Ai - Inner surface area

(m2)

Cp - Specific heat of water

(J/kgK)

di - Absorber tube inner diameter (m) do

- Absorber tube outer diameter (m) f-

Friction factor

h - Convective heat transfer coefficient (W/m2

K) K - Thermal conductivity (W/m K)

ρ
l. - Lengthofoffluid
Density the absorber
(kg/m3) tube (m)

Δp m.-
- Mass flow
Pressure droprate
(N/mof2)fluid

(kg/s) Nu- -
Q Nusselt
Heat number
transfer rate (W)

Re - Reynolds number

Ti - Fluid inlet temperature (⸰K)

To - Fluid outlet temperature (⸰K)

U - Overall heat transfer coefficient (W/m2 K)

V - Velocity (m/s)

Y - Twist ratio

33
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