Improve the performance of a solar air heater by adding aluminum chip, paraffin wax, and nano-SiC

The performance of a double pass solar air heater was experimentally investigated using four different configurations. First configuration contained only absorber plate whereas copper tubes filled with thermal storage medium (paraffin wax) were added on the absorber plate in the second configuration. Aluminum and steel rods as thermal enhancer were inserted in the middle of paraffin wax of each tube for configurations three and four respectively. Second configuration provided useful heat for about 1.5 hours after the sunset compared to first configuration. Configurations three and four provided useful heat for about 2 hours after the sunset. The maximum efficiency of about 96% was achieved using configuration three (i.e. using Aluminum rods in the middle of copper tubes filled with paraffin wax).

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Numerical Simulation of Solar Air Heater using Paraffin Wax-Aluminum Compound as Phase Changing Material

Aptisi Transactions On Technopreneurship (ATT) ◽

10.34306/att.v3i2.199 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 3 (2) ◽

pp. 49-55

Author(s):

Atul Kumar ◽

Prabhakar Bhandari ◽

K.S. Rawat

Keyword(s):

Mass Flow Rate ◽

Mass Flow ◽

Flow Rate ◽

Paraffin Wax ◽

Solar Air Heater ◽

Outlet Temperature ◽

Freezing Time ◽

Aluminum Compound ◽

Air Heater ◽

Aluminium Powder

This paper presents a theoretical investigation of solar air heater using phase change material (PCM). PCM used in present configuration is homogenous mixture of paraffin wax with Aluminium powder. The purpose of using Aluminium powder with paraffin wax is to increase the thermal conductivity. PCM mixtures are encapsulated in cylinders and are used as solar absorbers. Using MATLAB program, the effect of different parameters is studied. It has been observed that with increase in mass flow rate, air outlet temperature decreases and freezing time of cylinder decreases. However, at constant mass flow rate, with increase in cylinder radius, air temperature decreases and while freezing time increase sharply. The different parameters have to be chosen such that performance of solar air heater can be optimized.

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Investigation and Improvement of Thermal Performance of a Solar Air Heater Using Extended Surfaces Through the Phase Change Material

Journal of Solar Energy Engineering ◽

10.1115/1.4044565 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 142 (1) ◽

Author(s):

S. M. Shalaby ◽

A. E. Kabeel ◽

E. El-Bialy ◽

M. K. Elfakharany

Keyword(s):

Air Temperature ◽

Ambient Air ◽

Paraffin Wax ◽

Solar Air Heater ◽

Absorber Plate ◽

Air Heater ◽

Hot Air ◽

Extended Surface ◽

Extended Surfaces ◽

Corrugated Plates

Abstract Low thermal conductivity is the main drawback of using paraffin wax as a latent heat thermal storage material in the solar air heater (SAH). In order to overcome this drawback, an absorber plate with extended surfaces through the paraffin wax was used. Two extended surface absorbers were used: a flat plate attached with downward fins and a V-corrugated plate. For the purpose of comparison, the SAH integrated with paraffin wax was tested using three proposed types of the absorber plate: flat, downward finned, and V-corrugated plates. The results showed superiority of the downward finned plate during the day. But the V-corrugated SAH remains the best choice for the applications in which the hot air is mostly needed during night as it is continuously operated for 7 h after sunset with the outlet air temperature of 8–11 °C more than the ambient air temperature.

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Experimental study on hybrid natural circulation type solar air heater with paraffin wax based thermal storage

Materials Today Proceedings ◽

10.1016/j.matpr.2019.06.381 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 23 ◽

pp. 49-52

Author(s):

B.A. SunilRaj ◽

M. Eswaramoorthy

Keyword(s):

Experimental Study ◽

Natural Circulation ◽

Thermal Storage ◽

Circulation Type ◽

Paraffin Wax ◽

Solar Air Heater ◽

Air Heater

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Enhancement of Integrated Solar Collector with Spherical Capsules PCM Affected by Additive Aluminum Powder

Journal of Thermodynamics ◽

10.1155/2016/1604782 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 2016 ◽

pp. 1-7 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Fatah O. Al Ghuol ◽

K. Sopian ◽

Shahrir Abdullah

Keyword(s):

Mass Flow Rate ◽

Mass Flow ◽

Flow Rate ◽

Solar Collector ◽

Thermal Storage ◽

Paraffin Wax ◽

Solar Air Heater ◽

Storage Efficiency ◽

Aluminum Composite ◽

Air Heater

This research aims to study, analyze, design, and construct a solar air heater combined with an appropriate phase-change material (PCM) unit. This solar air heater is analogous to a collector integrating a thermal storage unit and a solar thermal collector. In this study, such single-pass solar air heater in amalgamation with PCM was constructed, and several tests were conducted on this device. During the experiments for the solar collector with PCM (spherical capsules), the temperature varied between 30°C and 35°C, and the air mass flow rate ranged between 0.03 and 0.09 kg/s. Results confirmed the predicted experimental findings. With the use of paraffin wax-aluminum composite, the thermal storage efficiency of the constructed solar air heater reached a maximum value of 71% at 0.05 kg/s mass flow rate, its charging time decreased by almost 70%, and its cooling rate increased. The thermal storage efficiency of the compound composite was 76.8% at 0.07 kg/s mass flow rate. The results also indicated that the time of charging decreased by almost 60% with the use of paraffin wax-aluminum composite.

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INVESTIGATION OF COMBINATION BETWEEN LATENT AND SENSIBLE HEAT STORAGE MATERIALS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF FLAT PLATE SOLAR AIR HEATER

THE IRAQI JOURNAL FOR MECHANICAL AND MATERIALS ENGINEERING ◽

10.32852/iqjfmme.vol18.iss1.73 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 63-77

Author(s):

Akram H Abed ◽

Abdulmunem R Abdulmunem

Keyword(s):

Flat Plate ◽

Mass Flow Rate ◽

Mass Flow ◽

Flow Rate ◽

Heat Storage ◽

Paraffin Wax ◽

Solar Air Heater ◽

Storage Materials ◽

Air Heater ◽

Heat Storage Materials

In this work, a combination between latent heat storage materials (LHSm) and sensibleheat storage materials (SHSm) as new storage heat material in flat plate solar air heater wastested experimentally. PCM (paraffin wax) at a certain ratios (10%) and (20%) were used asLHSm with a pure cement (base material) as SHSm. The experimental tests was doneindoor at irradiance of (1000W/m2) with forced convection, the mass flow rate of air are(0.5kg/min) and (1.13kg/min). The results indicated that the enhancing thermo-physicalproperties of adding pure cement by a certain ratios of paraffin wax led to enhancement inthermal energy stored. The percentage increasing in storage heat duration time was (29%)for compound cement with (10%PCM), (38.4%) for compound cement with (20%PCM),compared with pure cement at (0.5kg/min) air mass flow rate. And at (1.13kg/min) air massflow rate, it was (33.3%) for compound cement with (10%PCM) and (52.6%) for compoundcement with (20%PCM) compared with pure cement.

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