Performance analysis of a solar air heater equipped with inverted arrow-shaped ribs

Abstract

In this study, thermo-fluid dynamics of an inverted arrow-shaped rough absorber plate in a turbulent regime ( $3, 800 \leq R e \leq 18, 000$ ) is numerically investigated. The computational results have been obtained using Finite Volume Method (FVM) in ANSYS Fluent 19.0. A constant heat flux of 1 kW $/$ m² is applied to the aluminum absorber plate. The impact of Reynolds number ( $R e$ ) ( $3, 800 \leq R e \leq 1, 8000)$ and relative roughness pitch ( $P / e$ ) ( $7.14 \leq P / e \leq 17.86)$ on heat dissipation from the absorber plate has been examined. The roughness height ( $e / D_{h}$ ) has maintained a constant at $e / D_{h}$ = 0.042 throughout the study. For all relative roughness pitches, average Nusselt number ( $\bar{{N u}_{r}})$ rises with $R e$ by up to 180.52%. However, at elevated $R e$ the average value of the friction factor $(\bar{f_{r})}$ reduces by up to 52.78%. The computational analysis predicts that the maximum $\bar{{N u}_{r}}$ , approximately 5.4 times in contrast to a smooth duct, performed at a $P / e$ = 17.86. Meanwhile, the maximum increase in the $\bar{f_{r}}$ , about 3.82 times relative to the smooth counterpart, is observed at a $P / e$ = 7.14. The results revealed that the optimal thermal-hydraulic performance parameter (THPP) reaches 3.66 at $P / e$ = 7.14 and $R e$ = 12,000. Additionally, correlations obtained for the $\bar{{N u}_{r}}$ and $\bar{f_{r}}$ from the computational data. The prediction accuracy of these correlations is within exhibits ±5% deviation with a coefficient of determination ( $R$ ² = 0.98). These results provide valuable contributions to the optimizing layout of an energy-efficient solar air heating system.

Keywords

Absorber plate inverted arrow-shaped rib turbulent flow thermal-hydraulic performance parameter NEF

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