A numerical investigation of laminar forced convection in a solar collector with non-circular duct

Abstract

This paper presents a two-dimensional numerical study to investigate laminar flow in a flat plate solar collector with non-circular duct (regular polygonal, elliptical, and Cassini oval shape) featuring forced convection with constant axial wall heat flux and constant peripheral wall temperature (H1 condition). Applying the velocity profile obtained for the duct laminar flow, the energy equation was solved exactly for the constant wall heat flux using the Boundary Element Method (BEM). Poiseuille and Nusselt numbers were obtained for flows having a different number of geometrical factors. The results are presented and discussed in the form of tables and graphs. The area goodness factor and volume goodness factor are calculated. The predicted correlations for Poiseuille and Nusselt numbers may be a very useful resource for the design and optimization of solar collectors with non-circular ducts.