scholarly journals Experimental Performance of Solar Air Heaters for Drying Applications

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (5) ◽  
pp. 4-10
Author(s):  
Gedion Habtay ◽  
Maytham A. Al-Neama ◽  
Janos Buzas ◽  
Istvan Farkas

This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation on an indirect active type of solar dryer, using two distinct solar air collector and their impacts on drying agricultural products. The thermal performance of the proposed collectors has been evaluated using the first and second laws of thermodynamics. Experimental observations were done in climatic conditions Gödöllő, Hungary on the 2nd and 9th of October 2017. The experiments were also carried out to dry 2 kg of sliced apples spread over the drying trays. The mas flow rate of air was maintained as 0.038 kg/s and the dryer was operated from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. When a double-pass solar air collector's results are compared to a single-pass solar air collector's, it's evident that the double-pass solar air collector produces much more energy and efficiency. The experimental results showed that single-pass and double-pass collectors have daily efficiencies of 42.77% and 56.10%, respectively, with average exergy efficiency values ranging from 31% to 49% for single-pass and 51% to 67% for double-pass. The most significant aspect determining the collectors' thermal efficiency was the temperature rise between the collector outlet and inlet. The average drying efficiencies of the solar dryer for the single and double-pass collectors were evaluated as 12.16% and 16.45%, respectively. The maximum temperature rise for double-pass was determined to be 20 °C, whereas single-pass was found to be 6.5 °C. Furthermore, the highest drying rate was achieved when sliced apples were dried with a double-pass collector mode. It reduced 52% of the water content in the apple in the same amount of time as single-pass drying, compared to 35% in the case of single-pass drying.

Author(s):  
Philemon Mutabilwa ◽  
Kevin N. Nwaigwe

Abstract A work on the design, construction and computational fluid dynamics modelling of a solar dryer with a double pass solar air collector is presented. Using fundamental relationships, an indirect solar dying system for drying banana was designed and constructed. The system consists of a drying chamber and a double pass solar collector (DPSC), connected together with a flexible aluminum pipe. The system features a unique arrangement, as the drying chamber is underneath the double pass solar collector, and the solar collector itself can be adjusted to an angle of 0° up to 35° the maintenance or research purpose. The DPSC has five longitudinal fins, lying parallel with air flow. The solar dryer is incorporated with a convective DC fan that sucks hot air from the solar collector on to the drying chamber. The DPSC achieved an optimal peak outlet temperature of 345K with a maximum operational efficiency of 72.5%. A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model is achieved for prediction of the dryer temperature and 3D airflow distribution within the dryer unit using ANSYS 18.2. The CFD model was validated using experimental data. The developed dryer demonstrated improved efficiency over similar dryers, and this is attributable to the unique arrangement of component parts.


Author(s):  
IJAZ UL HAQ ◽  
HUSNAIN AZAM ◽  
NIDA FIRDOUS ◽  
MUHAMMAD MUDDASSIR ◽  
AMNA SAHAR ◽  
...  

OBJECTIVE: The primary objective of this study was to minimize post-harvest damages and improve the handling of agricultural commodities. The secondary objective was to assess the performance of the dryer by varying inlet velocity of air on temperature, final moisture of the product, drying period, and drying rate METHODS: The present research was carried out for the development, fabrication, and testing of a multi-portioned type solar dryer. The multi-portioned dryer consisted of a collector unit, air storage chamber, drying cabins, and a chimney. A fan assembly was also attached at the inlet of the collector and at the outlet of the drying compartment to control the air velocity and to remove the moist air. RESULTS: The data obtained from the experiments revealed that the maximum temperature elevation of 36.5oC was attained during a no-load test. The results obtained after carrying out load tests revealed that the maximum drying rate of 47 g/hr was achieved at the air inlet velocity of 3.2 m/s. The initial moisture content of 80.50% was brought down to 3.31% in five sunshine hours of 150 gram sliced potatoes. Each portion received air at varying speeds, and it was observed that the portion receiving air at the lowest speed had the maximum temperature. CONCLUSION: The lowest temperature elevation was recorded for the portion receiving air at the highest speed. The dryer was also found to be suitable for the on-field practical application for the drying of perishable commodities.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-20
Author(s):  
Yuwana Yuwana

Experiment on catfish drying employing ‘Teko Bersayap’ solar dryer was conducted. The result of the experiment indicated that the dryer was able to increase ambient temperature up to 44% and decrease ambient relative humidity up to 103%. Fish drying process followed equations : KAu = 74,94 e-0,03t for unsplitted fish and KAb = 79,25 e-0,09t for splitted fish, where KAu = moisture content of unsplitted fish (%), KAb = moisture content of splitted fish (%), t = drying time. Drying of unsplitted fish finished in 43.995 hours while drying of split fish completed in 15.29 hours. Splitting the fish increased 2,877 times drying rate.


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 3061 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shazia Noor ◽  
Hadeed Ashraf ◽  
Muhammad Sultan ◽  
Zahid Mahmood Khan

This study provides comprehensive details of evaporative cooling options for building air-conditioning (AC) in Multan (Pakistan). Standalone evaporative cooling and standalone vapor compression AC (VCAC) systems are commonly used in Pakistan. Therefore, seven AC system configurations comprising of direct evaporative cooling (DEC), indirect evaporative cooling (IEC), VCAC, and their possible combinations, are explored for the climatic conditions of Multan. The study aims to explore the optimum AC system configuration for the building AC from the viewpoints of cooling capacity, system performance, energy consumption, and CO2 emissions. A simulation model was designed in DesignBuilder and simulated using EnergyPlus in order to optimize the applicability of the proposed systems. The standalone VCAC and hybrid IEC-VCAC & IEC-DEC-VCAC system configurations could achieve the desired human thermal comfort. The standalone DEC resulted in a maximum COP of 4.5, whereas, it was 2.1 in case of the hybrid IEC-DEC-VCAC system. The hybrid IEC-DEC-VCAC system achieved maximum temperature gradient (21 °C) and relatively less CO2 emissions as compared to standalone VCAC. In addition, it provided maximum cooling capacity (184 kW for work input of 100 kW), which is 85% higher than the standalone DEC system. Furthermore, it achieved neutral to slightly cool human thermal comfort i.e., 0 to −1 predicted mean vote and 30% of predicted percentage dissatisfied. Thus, the study concludes the hybrid IEC-DEC-VCAC as an optimum configuration for building AC in Multan.


Author(s):  
Thierry A Blanchet

As in various manufacturing processes, in sliding tests with scanning motions to extend the sliding distance over fresh countersurface, temperature rise during any pass is bolstered by heating during prior passes over neighboring tracks, providing a “heat accumulation effect” with persisting temperature rises contributing to an overall temperature rise of the current pass. Conduction modeling is developed for surface temperature rise as a function of numerous inputs: power and size of heat source; speed and stroke length, and track increment of scanning motion; and countersurface thermal properties. Analysis focused on mid-stroke location for passes of a square uniform heat flux sufficiently far into the rectangular patch being scanned from the first pass at its edge that steady heat accumulation effect response is adopted, focusing on maximum temperature rise experienced across the pass' track. The model is non-dimensionalized to broaden the applicability of the output of its runs. Focusing on practical “high” scanning speeds, represented non-dimensionally by Peclet number (in excess of 40), applicability is further broadened by multiplying non-dimensional maximum temperature rise by the square root of Peclet number as model output. Additionally, investigating model runs at various non-dimensional speed (Peclet number) and reciprocation period values, it appears these do not act as independent inputs, but instead with their product (non-dimensional stroke length) as a single independent input. Modified maximum temperature rise output appears to be a function of only two inputs, increasing with decreasing non-dimensional values of stroke length and scanning increment, with outputs of models runs summarized compactly in a simple chart.


Author(s):  
Qahtan Adnan Abed ◽  
Viorel Badescu ◽  
Adrian Ciocanea ◽  
Iuliana Soriga ◽  
Dorin Bureţea

AbstractMathematical models have been developed to evaluate the dynamic behavior of two solar air collectors: the first one is equipped with a V-porous absorber and the second one with a U-corrugated absorber. The collectors have the same geometry, cross-section surface area and are built from the same materials, the only difference between them being the absorbers. V-corrugated absorbers have been treated in literature but the V-porous absorbers modeled here have not been very often considered. The models are based on first-order differential equations which describe the heat exchange between the main components of the two types of solar air heaters. Both collectors were exposed to the sun in the same meteorological conditions, at identical tilt angle and they operated at the same air mass flow rate. The tests were carried out in the climatic conditions of Bucharest (Romania, South Eastern Europe). There is good agreement between the theoretical results and experiments. The average bias error was about 7.75 % and 10.55 % for the solar air collector with “V”-porous absorber and with “U”-corrugated absorber, respectively. The collector based on V-porous absorber has higher efficiency than the collector with U-corrugated absorber around the noon of clear days. Around sunrise and sunset, the collector with U-corrugated absorber is more effective.


Author(s):  
Yan Yin ◽  
Jiusheng Bao ◽  
Jinge Liu ◽  
Chaoxun Guo ◽  
Tonggang Liu ◽  
...  

Disc brakes have been applied in various automobiles widely and their braking performance has vitally important effects on the safe operation of automobiles. Although numerous researches have been conducted to find out the influential law and mechanism of working condition parameters like braking pressure, initial braking speed, and interface temperature on braking performance of disc brakes, the influence of magnetic field is seldom taken into consideration. In this paper, based on the novel automotive frictional-magnetic compound disc brake, the influential law of magnetic field on braking performance was investigated deeply. First, braking simulation tests of disc brakes were carried out, and then dynamic variation laws and mechanisms of braking torque and interface temperature were discussed. Furthermore, some parameters including average braking torque, trend coefficient and fluctuation coefficient of braking torque, average temperature, maximum temperature rise, and the time corresponding to the maximum temperature rise were extracted to characterize the braking performance of disc brakes. Finally, the influential law and mechanism of excitation voltage on braking performance were analyzed through braking simulation tests and surface topography analysis of friction material. It is concluded that the performance of frictional-magnetic compound disc brake is prior to common brake. Magnetic field is greatly beneficial for improving the braking performance of frictional-magnetic compound disc brake.


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