Performance Study of a Cylindrical Parabolic Concentrating Solar Water Heater with Nail Type Twisted Tape Inserts in the Copper Absorber Tube

• Main Authors: Amit K. Bhakta, Nitesh K. Panday, Shailendra N. Singh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2018-01-01
• Series: Energies
• Subjects: cylindrical parabolic reflector; nail twist pitch ratio; water storage tank; thermal efficiency; solar energy collected
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/11/1/204

This paper reports the overall thermal performance of a cylindrical parabolic concentrating solar water heater (CPCSWH) with inserting nail type twisted tape (NTT) in the copper absorber tube for the nail twist pitch ratios, 4.787, 6.914 and 9.042, respectively. The experiments are conducted for a constant volumetric water flow rate and during the time period 9:00 a.m. to 15:00 p.m. The useful heat gain, hourly solar energy collected and hourly solar energy stored in this solar water heater were found to be higher for the nail twist pitch ratio 4.787. The above said parameters were found to be at a peak at noon and observed to follow the path of variation of solar intensity. At the start of the experiment, the value of charging efficiency was observed to be maximum, whereas the maximum values of instantaneous efficiency and overall thermal efficiency were observed at noon. The key finding is that the nail twist pitch ratio enhances the overall thermal performance of the CPCSWH.