Course instructors

Prof. Dr. Ghazy Assassa

Dr. Mohamed Abd-Elrahman
Dr. Aly Soliman
Dr. Ashraf Elsayed
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2022
The sun
• The sun is a sphere of intensely hot gaseous matter with a diameter
of 1.39 × 109 m.

• The solar energy strikes our planet a mere 8 minutes and 20 seconds
after leaving the giant furnace, the sun which is 1.5 × 1011 m away.

• The sun's total energy output is 3.9 × 1020 MW which is equal to

63 MWΤ𝑚2 of the sun's surface.

• 30 minutes of solar radiation falling on earth is equal to the world

energy demand for one year.

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Sun radiant power
The Sun radiant power comes from nuclear fusion processes (process
of conversion the hydrogen to helium), during which the sun Loses 4.3
million tones of mass each second. This mass is converted into radiant
energy, each square meter of the sun’s surface emits a radiant power of
63.1 MW.
• The Sun is composed primarily of about 74.9% hydrogen and
23.8% helium by mass. Everything else
“metals”(oxygen,carbon,neon,iron) is less than 2% .

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Sun radiant power

• The Sun's energy output in each second is the result of conversion of

about 700,000,000 tons of hydrogen into 695,000,000 tons of helium
and 5,000,000 tons of energy is produced by Nuclear Fusion reactions.
As it travels out toward the surface, the energy is continuously
absorbed and re-emitted at lower and lower temperatures so that by the
time it reaches the surface of the Sun, it is primarily visible light. For
the last 20% of the way to the surface, the energy is carried more by
Convection than by radiation. The surface of the Sun, called the
photosphere, is at a temperature of about 5800 K.

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The sun fusion process generates intense energy that travels outwards as
electromagnetic radiation. Electromagnetic radiation from the Sun takes
the form of visible light (41%), Ultra violet, X rays, and Gamma rays
(9%), and shortwave infra red energy (50%).

370 nm to 750 nm
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Visible spectrum
• A typical human eye will respond to wavelengths from about 390 to
700 nm

visible light wavelength range

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Blackbody Radiation

• Blackbody
A blackbody is something that emits (or absorbs) electromagnetic
radiation with 100% efficiency at all wavelength a black body (an
opaque and non-reflective body).

• Blackbody Radiation
The amount of the radiation emitted by a blackbody depends on the
absolute temperature of the blackbody.

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Solar irradiance and irradiation
Solar irradiance = Power / Area
Solar irradiation (isolation) = Power * Time / Area

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Atmospheric effects
solar radiation is absorbed , scattered and reflected by components of
the atmosphere

The amount of radiation reaching the earth is less what entered the top
of the atmosphere . We classify it in two categories:

Direct radiation : radiation from the sun that reaches to the earth
without scattering

Diffuse radiation : radiation that is scattered by the atmosphere and

clouds

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The total daily insolation at a place on the earth's surface is
determined by:
a) The angle of the sun's rays.
b) The amount of time a place is exposed to the sun's rays.
c) The amount of clouds, dust, and water vapor in the
atmosphere.

• Insolation also varies with latitude and the seasonal

changes produced by the tilt of earth’s axis in its orbit around the
sun.

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Solar Flux and Flux Density

• Solar Luminosity (L)

the sun output (power emitted in the form of photons)
𝐋 = 𝟑. 𝟗 × 𝟏𝟎𝟐𝟔 𝐖

• Solar Flux Density (𝐒𝐝 ) or (E)

the amount of solar energy per unit area of the sun E = Sd
L 3.9×1026 6 w
= 2 = 8 2 = 64 × 10 Τm2
4π × rsun 4π × 6.96×10

The amount of energy the sun give off per every square meter
of surface area (photosphere)

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Emission temperature
• The emission energy from a blackbody depends on temperature. It is
given by the Stefan-Boltzman Law:

𝑬 = 𝝈 𝑻𝒔𝒖𝒏 𝟒

𝑬 = Solar Flux Density = 64 × 106 𝑤ൗ 2

𝑚
𝝈 = S.B constant = 5.67 × 10−8 𝑤ൗ 4 2
𝐾 𝑚

∴ 𝑻𝒔𝒖𝒏 = 𝟓𝟕𝟗𝟔 𝑲
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 𝑆 × 4𝜋𝑟 2 = 𝐸 × 4𝜋𝑅2

𝑆 = 𝐸 × 4𝜋𝑅2 Τ4𝜋𝑟 2 = 𝐸 𝑅2 Τ𝑟 2

S = Solar Constant
E = 64 × 106 W/m2
R = 6.96 × 108 m = Radius of the sun
r = 1.51 × 1011 m =Average Sun Earth Distance

∴ S = 1367 W/m2

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Solar energy incident on the Earth
= total amount of solar energy can be absorbed by Earth
= (Solar constant) x (Shadow Area)
2
= 𝑆 × 𝜋 𝑅𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ

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Available solar radiation
• Direct, beam radiation
• Diffuse radiation
• Reflected radiation

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Solar Energy Absorbed by Earth
• Solar Constant (S)
= solar flux density reaching the Earth = 1370 𝑤 Τ𝑚2
• Solar energy incident on the Earth
2
= S x the “flat” area of the Earth = 𝑆 × 𝜋𝑅𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ
• Solar energy absorbed by the Earth
= (received solar flux) – (reflected solar flux)
2 2 2
= 𝑆 × 𝜋𝑅𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ − α × 𝑆 × 𝜋 𝑅𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ = (1- α )𝑆 × 𝜋 𝑅𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ

α is the planetary albedo of the Earth, which is about 0.3.

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Techniques to measure various components of solar radiation. The
detector is assumed to be a black surface of unit area with a filter to
exclude long wave radiation. (a) Diffuse blocked. (b) Beam blocked. (c)
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Total.
Where b for beam, d for diffuse, t for total, h for the horizontal plane and
c for the plane of a collector. The asterisk ∗ denotes the plane
perpendicular to the beam..
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Air Mass
• Air mass represents how much atmosphere the solar radiation has to
pass through before reaching the earth surface.
• Air mass AM=1 when the sun is directly overhead at sea level
𝐴𝑀 = 1ൗcos 𝜃
𝑧
Zenith is the point in the sky directly overhead a particular location.

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Sun peak hours
• Peak Sun Hours is the number of hours required for a day’s total
radiation to accumulate at peak sun condition (1000 W/m^2 ).
• Example problem of Peak sun hours per day:
If during the day we have 4 hours at 500 W/m2 and 6 hours at 250 W/m^2 we should
compute the peak sun hours per day as follow:
First, multiply 4hs x 500 W/m^2 and add to it 6hs x 250 W/m^2 – This will equal 3500
Wh/m^2
Second, we know that by definition Peak Sun is 1000 W/m^2, so if we divide the total
irradiation for the day by Peak Sun we will obtain Peak Sun hours. – That is,
Peak Sun Hours = Total Irradiation [Wh/m^2] / Peak Sun [W/m^2] = Peak Sun hours
In our specific problem: Peak Sun Hours = 3500 Wh/m^2 / 1000 W/m^2 = 3.5 Peak Sun
hours

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What Happens After the Earth Absorbs Solar Energy ?

• The Earth warms up and has to emit radiative

energy back to the space to reach a equilibrium
condition.

• The radiation emitted by the Earth is called

“terrestrial radiation” which is assumed to be like
blackbody radiation.

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Planetary Energy Balance
• Energy emitted by Earth = Energy absorbed by Earth
σ 𝑇𝑒 4 × 4𝜋𝑅𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ
2 2
= (1− α )𝑆 × 𝜋𝑅𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ
σ 𝑇𝑒 4 = (1− α ) 𝑆ൗ4
4 (1− α ) 𝑆 4 (1− 0.3 )×1370
𝑇𝑒 =
4𝜎
=
4×5.67×10−8
= 255 k

Earth’s blackbody temperature

𝑇𝑒 = 255 K (-18C)

greenhouse effect (33C) !!

Earth’s surface temperature)
TS = 288 K (15C) 24
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Latitude and Longitude
• Φ Latitude, that is the angular location north or south of the equator
north positive −90° < ∅ < 90°

Egypt latitude 𝟑𝟎° 𝟎𝟔′ N Egypt l𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝟑𝟏° 𝟐𝟓′ E

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• The Earth’s axis of rotation is not perpendicular to
the plane of the Earth’s orbit
• It is tilted about 23½° away from the
perpendicular & is called the obliquity.
• The Earth maintains this tilt as it orbits the Sun,
with the Earth’s north pole pointing toward the
north celestial pole
Definition sketch for latitude ∅ and longitude 𝜓

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Seasons
• During part of the year the northern hemisphere of the Earth is tilted
toward the Sun
• As the Earth spins on its axis, a point in the northern hemisphere
spends more than 12 hours in the sunlight
• The days there are long and the nights are short, and it is summer in the
northern hemisphere and winter in the southern hemisphere
• The summer is hot not only because of the extended daylight hours but
also because the Sun is high in the northern hemisphere’s sky
• As a result, sunlight strikes the ground at a nearly perpendicular angle
that heats the ground efficiently
• This situation reverses six months later
Seasons are NOT! caused by the changing distance of the Earth from
the sun during a year!
The Seasons are caused by the tilt of Earth’s axis of rotation 23½°
away from the perpendicular & is called the obliquity
 • The Sun appears to trace out a
circular path called the
ecliptic on the celestial
sphere tilted at 23 ½ degrees
to the equator
Sept • The ecliptic and the celestial
equator intersect at only two
21 points
June • Each point is called an
21 equinox
• The point on the ecliptic
farthest north of the celestial
equator that marks the
location of the Sun at the
beginning of summer in the
Dec northern hemisphere is called
the summer solstice
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March • At the beginning of the
northern hemisphere’s winter
21 the Sun is farthest south of the
celestial equator at a point
called the winter solstice
Landmarks on the Earth’s surface are
marked by the Sun’s position in the sky
throughout the year
 Perihelion and aphelion
• The perihelion is the point in the orbit where the earth comes nearest to
the Sun. It is the opposite of aphelion, which is the point in the orbit
where the earth is farthest from the Sun.

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The Four Seasons

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Solar angles

▪ High sun angles (45o to 90o) mean more intense sunlight.

80o

▪ Low sun angles (0o to 45o) mean less intense sunlight.

30o

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Declination, δ
• 𝛿 Declination, that is the angular position of the sun at solar noon
with respect to the plane of the equator. (the angle between the
equator and a line drawn from the center of the Earth to the center of
the sun) north positive.
−23.45° < 𝛿 < 23.45°
360
𝛿 = 23.45 sin (𝑟𝑎𝑑)
365(284+𝑁)
• N = the day number, such that N = 1 on the 1st January.

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Graph of declination angle

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Hour Angle (HRA) 𝝎
• hour angle, that is, the angular east or west deviation from
displacement of the sun east or west of the local meridian due to
rotation of the earth on its axis at 15° per hour ( one angle each
minute) morning or east (-) afternoon or west (+).
• Line from north to south , crossing through solar zenith- called local
meridian
• The hour angle is defined as zero at local solar noon
𝝎 = 𝟏𝟓 × ( 𝑯 − 𝟏𝟐)

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Solar Altitude & zenith Angles
• zenith angle : The angle between the vertical and the line to the sun.
This is also the angle of incidence on a horizontal surface for beam
radiation. 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝜽𝒛 = 𝐬𝐢𝐧 ∅ 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝜹 + 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝜹 𝐜𝐨𝐬 ∅ 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝝎
• The solar altitude angle is the angle between the sun's rays and a
horizontal plane. Or is the vertical angle between the sun and the
horizon 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝑨 = 𝐬𝐢𝐧 ∅ 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝜹 + 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝜹 𝐜𝐨𝐬 ∅ 𝐜𝐨𝐬 𝝎
from the horizon , the angle of the sun relative to a line perpendicular to
the earth's surface is called Solar Zenith angle 𝜽𝒛 .
𝜽𝒛 + 𝑨 = 𝟗𝟎°

For sunrise and sunset , Altitude is Zero , A=0

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 Azimuth Angle
• The solar azimuth angle 𝒁 is the angle of the sun's rays
measured in the horizontal plane from due south (true south);
westward is designated as positive for the northern
hemisphere.
cos 𝛿 sin 𝜔
sin 𝑍 =
cos 𝐴
• 𝜸 surface azimuth angle ,that is, the deviation of the
projection on a horizontal plan of the normal to the surface
from the local meridian with zero due south, east negatives
west positive −90° < 𝛾 < 90°
For example, due east would be 90° and due west would be -90°.

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Position of the sun in the sky

𝜽𝒛
A
𝒁

A = Altitude angle
𝒁 = Solar Azimuth angle
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𝜽𝒛 = Zenith angle
Sun Position

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Solar path

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Tilt angle
• β Slope or surface tilt angle from the horizontal. that is, the angle
between the plane surface in question and the horizontal (0° < 𝛽
< 90° for a surface facing towards the equator); (90° < 𝛽 < 180° for a surface
facing away from the equator);

For horizontal surfaces: 𝛽 = 0°

For vertical surfaces: 𝛽 = 900

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Incidence Angle, Θ
• The solar incidence angle, θ is the angle between the sun's rays and the
normal on a surface.

• For a horizontal plane the incidence angle, θ and the zenith angle 𝜽𝒛
are the same.

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Factors Affecting Solar irradiance
• The relative positions of the sun and solar panel will dictate how
much power is actually generated.
Factor Symbol Dependence

Latitude ∅ Geographic
Declination 𝜹 Temporal (day)
Hour Angle 𝝎 Temporal (hour)

Sun Altitude 𝑨 Solar

Sun Azimuth 𝒁 Solar
Surface Tilt 𝜷 Panel Surface
Surface Azimuth 𝜸 Panel Surface

Incidence Angle 𝜽 Panel & Solar

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𝜔 = 15 × 3 + 12 + 15
60 − 12 = 48.75
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Solar Radiation measurements
• Pyranometer , Devices that measure the global solar irradiance on a
horizontal surface are called pyranometers. If these devices are
screened from the sun’s direct rays by a fixed ring that covers the
whole path of the sun in the sky, then the device measures only the
diffused radiation. The radiation receiver is seated beneath a
spherical glass cover and consists of a star-shaped arrangement of
black and white thermo-elements. These elements generate
thermo-electromotive forces, depending on their temperature,
which can be measure

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Sun rise , sun set and the length of the day.
• At sun rise and sun set , the sunlight parallel to the ground surface with a zenith
angle of 90°
• the number of hours between sunrise and sunset is

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Solar Time
• Time specific to the sun does not coincide with local clock time for
two reasons. The first is the changes in the rotational and orbital
angular speed of the earth. This correction called the equation of
time (ET) , B is the day angle

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Local time (LT) and local solar time
(LST)
• Local time (LT) is official time in a particular state /region or country. Or in easy
meaning it’s the time shows by everybody stopwatch.
• Local solar time (LST) or Solar time is the time set according to the position of the
sun in the sky
• Twelve noon of local solar time is described as when the sun is highest in the sky.
Solar noon
• Solar noon Time when the sun is directly overhead position of interest. Each hour away from this
position corresponds to a 15o deviation (hour angle). Or Local noon is defined to be
• when the Sun crosses the upper meridian, which is the half of the meridian above the horizon

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Apparent and mean solar time
• Apparent solar time : is based on the apparent motion of the
Sun across the celestial sphere, which varies over the course
of the year ( shortest shadow)
• Mean solar time is based on the motion of an imaginary
mean sun along the celestial equator, which produces a
uniform mean solar day of 24 hours
• Ordinary watches and clocks measure mean solar time
• Equation of time = apparent solar time – mean solar time

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Apparent Solar Time (AST)
Most meteorological measurements are recorded in terms of local
standard time. In many solar energy calculations, it is necessary to obtain
irradiation, wind, and temperature data for the same instant. It is,
therefore, necessary to compute local apparent time, which is also called
the true solar time. Solar time is the time to be used in all solar geometry
calculations.
𝑨𝑺𝑻 = 𝑳𝑺𝑻 = 𝑳𝑻 ∓ 𝟒 𝑳𝒔𝒕𝒎 − 𝑳𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒆 + 𝑬
𝐴𝑆𝑇 = 𝐿𝑆𝑇 = 𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 = 𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 (𝑚𝑖𝑛)
𝐿 𝑇 = 𝐿𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 (𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑘 )
𝐿𝑠𝑡𝑚 = 𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑑 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑛
𝐿𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒 = 𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒

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Example
a city of longitude 95 degree east of Greenwich meridian . If the
longitude of standard meridian is 105 degree east of Greenwich meridian
, calculate local solar time (LST) when the local time (LT) is 3:00 pm on
1st march.
answer

n= 31+28+1= 60 , B=93.69 , E= -13 minutes

𝐴𝑆𝑇 = 𝐿𝑆𝑇 = 𝐿 𝑇 ∓ 4 𝐿𝑠𝑡𝑚 − 𝐿𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒 + 𝐸
𝐿𝑆𝑇 = 3: 00 𝑝𝑚 − 4 105 − 95 + −13
𝐿𝑆𝑇 = 15 − (4 105 − 95 /60) + −13/60 = 14.1166
𝐿𝑆𝑇 = 2 : 07 pm

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Report # 1

Solar Water heating System

• PPT , doc or Pdf
• 15 Slides or 10 pages
• Any topic in the field
• Types
• Operation
• Design
• ….etc

Deadline 06 March 2021 @10:00 Pm

alisoliman@feng.bu.edu.eg

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