Two-Axis Solar Heat Collection Tracker System for Solar Thermal Applications

An experimental study was performed to investigate the effect of using a continuous operation two-axes tracking on the solar heat energy collected. This heat-collection sun tracking which LDR (light dependent resistor) sensors installed on the Fersnel lens was used to control the tracking path of th...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Tsung-Chieh Cheng, Wei-Cheng Hung, Te-Hua Fang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Hindawi Limited 2013-01-01
Series:International Journal of Photoenergy
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/803457
Description
Summary:An experimental study was performed to investigate the effect of using a continuous operation two-axes tracking on the solar heat energy collected. This heat-collection sun tracking which LDR (light dependent resistor) sensors installed on the Fersnel lens was used to control the tracking path of the sun with programming method of control with a closed loop system. The control hardware was connected to a computer through Zigbee wireless module and it also can monitor the whole tracking process information on a computer screen. An experimental study was performed to investigate the effect of using two-axes tracking on the solar heat energy collected. The results indicate that sun tracking systems are being increasingly employed to enhance the efficiency of heat collection by polar-axis tracking of the sun. Besides, the heating power was also measured by designed power measurement module at the different focal length of Fresnel lens, and the design of shadow mask of LDR sensors is an important factor for solar photothermal applications. Moreover, the results also indicated that the best time to obtain the largest solar irradiation power is during 11:00 –13:00  in Taiwan.
ISSN:1110-662X
1687-529X