Cleaner Engineering and Technology (Feb 2023)
Experimental investigation on thermal performance of solar water heater equipped with Serpentine fin core heat exchanger
Abstract
We present the design and development of a cost-effective solar water heater with good thermal efficiency, powered only by the sun. Although they seriously harm the environment, oil and gas heaters are often used in Iraqi homes due to the country's chronic electricity problem. Heat exchangers with copper tubes and aluminum fins painted with dark black paint from the developed solar heater complex. The electronic control system connected to the cold water line regulates the water flow rate into the heat exchanger pipes. It has a 0.5 L per minute water flow. At 2: 45 pm on December 23, the peak of thermal efficiency of 58% was achieved. After testing on the coldest days of the year in our country of Iraq, the solar heater's water can reach a maximum temperature of 64 °C. This solar heater has been proven to be a reliable way to generate hot water with good performance without utilizing electricity, oil, or gas and without polluting the environment with harmful gases. Its features include Serpentine finned heat exchangers, an electronic control system, and affordability.
