Two types of solar collecting systems are frequently employed--flat plate collectors with spectrally selective windows which trap sunlight with the "greenhouse effect" and focusing systems with curved mirrors which concentrate the sun's rays on an absorbing surface. The flat plate collector is the simpler of the two designs, but cannot readily provide temperatures as high as the focusing collector. Both of the collectors are candidates for absorption cycle solar air conditioning systems. This role dictates higher temperature than are normally required of solar collectors, particularly the flat plate design. Focusing systems of interest here are those which are fixed in orientation and require no elaborate solar tracking mount. Such collectors might be economically competitive with flat plate configurations if the higher energy "quality" or delivery temperature they can provide permitted a smaller installation than would be possible with a flat plate collector. An analysis of the two collector candidates is undertaken here to assess the merits of a fixed orientation focusing collector and a more traditional flat plate system. This analysis indicates that the focusing design is superior to the flat plate for solar air conditioning. The study of the two designs includes selection of system configurations and the development of their mathematical descriptions. The analytical approach was to incorporate mathematical models of the collectors into a computer program which predicts the performance of both the flat plate and focusing systems. The program has been designed to permit convenient variation of important parameters so that their effect on collector performance may be determined. The results of the collector analysis and the computer program are presented with sufficient information to permit the reader to use the program for his own analyses.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ucf.edu/oai:stars.library.ucf.edu:rtd-1275 |
| Date | 01 July 1978 |
| Creators | Bucher, H. B. |
| Publisher | Florida Technological University |
| Source Sets | University of Central Florida |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Retrospective Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | Public Domain |
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