Numerical investigation on the thermohydraulic performance of a solar air heater duct featuring parabolic rib turbulators on the absorber plate

Abstract

Solar power is a clean and sustainable energy option, widely accessible and capable of driving the creation of more sustainable systems in the future. A specialized device called the Solar Air Heater harnesses solar energy for various applications. In the current study, a novel quadratic shape ribs affixed to the absorber plate in different orientations with a transverse pattern to the flow, and one straight side and one curved side are subjected to a compressive analysis using numerical methods. The two rib orientations are shown individually, with one side being straight and the other quadratic curve. Ansys Fluent is used to examine the impacts of a number of variables on SAH performance, including rib characteristics (pitch and height) and airflow inlet velocity. The range of Reynolds numbers used for the investigation is 3400–20000, with a rib pitch ratio ranging from 6.66 to 20. The contours of pressure, temperature, and velocity are displayed to elucidate the physics of fluid flow and heat transfer. A notable enhancement is achieved, wherein an optimized case with parabolic rib turbulator SAH and rib roughness pitch of 16.66 yields a Thermal Enhancement Ratio (TER) of 2.14.

Keywords

• Solar energy
• Parabolic rib turbulators
• Solar air heater
• Absorber plate
• Friction factor