The influence of micro channel on the performance of low concentrator parabolic collector systems with phase change material

Abstract

Increasing global economic development leads to a continuous increase in energy demand, considering the limited conventional resources of energy as well as the impact on the environment associated with its use. The primary disadvantage of solar energy is that it is only accessible during the day. Thermal energy storage systems can overlook this flaw since they can store energy throughout the day for use at night. This paper presents a new cooling technique for low-concentration parabolic collectors with microchannel and Phase Change Material (PCM). A test model consisting of a parabolic concentrator was designed and fabricated to test the parabolic concentrator with and without PCM in Baghdad city during January, March, and July. The solar receiver is an essential component of a solar-powered system and was manufactured from Aluminum metal with 44 microchannels (0.3 m in length, 0.02 m in width, and 0.009 m in height), where the receiver consisted of four rows of microchannels, each row consisting of 11 channels is constructed with velocity and temperature measurement facilities to achieve the experimental results. The results show that the PCM will store the energy roughly three hours after sunset at a flow rate of 0.009339 kg/s. Also, the result indicated that the two-axis tracking system would increase thermal efficiency. 

Keywords

• thermal energy storage
• microchannels
• latent heat
• solar concentrator
• two-axis tracking
• paraffin wax