KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA

Jazan University
Faculty of Engineering
Department of Mechanical Engineering

ME417: Renewable Energy

Lab Report 2
Evacuated tube Solar Collector

Student Name : Hassan Nasser Komait

ID: 201906672
Group: 2628
Supervisor: Dr. Sofiene Mellouli

1
 Content
Introduction………………….……………………………………...…………..3
How Does An Evacuated tube Collector Work...................................................4
Types of Evacuated tube Collector ……………….………………..…………..5
Components of Evacuated tube Collector………….……….……............…….7
comparison between flat plate collector and evacuated tube collector…………9

Applications of a flat plate collector and evacuated tube collector……………10

Heat transfer Fluid of evacuated tube solar Collector……………...……….….10

How to Calculate The Efficiency?.....................................................................11

Conclusion ………………………………………...………………….………12

2
 ❖ Introduction

The evacuated tube collector (ETC) consists of a number of sealed glass

tubes which have a thermally conductive copper rod or pipe inside
allowing for much high thermal efficiency and working temperature
compared to the flat plate solar collectors even during a freezing cold day.

Evacuated Tube Collectors as their heat source overcome this problem

because the solar collector uses individual rounded tubes which are always
perpendicular to the sun’s rays for most of the day. This allows a solar hot
water system using an evacuated tube collector to operate at a much high
efficiency and temperature for a much longer period than a conventional
single flat plate collector installed system.

Figure.1: Evacuated Tube Collectors.

3
 ❖ How Does Evacuated tube Collector Work

The system’s tubes are made up of two glass cylinders that are fused at
each end. Both tubes are made from strong and durable Borosilicate glass.
The inner tube is covered in a solar absorbing coating and a vacuum is
generated between the tubes. This vacuum provides excellent insulation
against heat loss and helps to retain up to 97 per cent of the thermal energy.

Figure.2: Evacuated tube Collector parts.

Inside the glass tube is a copper heat pipe that contains a small amount of
purified water. The coating on the inner glass tube absorbs the sun’s
thermal energy, thus heating the water in the heat pipe. This water
evaporates and rises to the manifold at the top of the pipe. The manifold is
where your domestic hot water pipes flow through and it’s here that the
heat generated in the heat pipe is transferred to your water.

4
 Figure.3:The tube parts of the collector.

❖ Types of Evacuated tube Collector

Heat Pipe

In heat pipe evacuated tube collectors, a sealed heat pipe, usually made of
copper to increase the collectors efficiency in cold temperatures, is
attached to a heat absorbing reflector plate within the vacuum sealed tube.

This vacuum enables the liquid to vapourise at very lower temperatures

than it would normally at atmospheric pressure. When sunlight in the form
of solar radiation hits the surface of the absorber plate inside the tube, the
liquid in the heat pipe quickly turns into a hot vapour type gas due to
presence of the vacuum. As this gas vapour is now lighter, it rises up to the
top portion of the pipe heating it up to a very high temperature.

5
 Figure.4: heat pipe evacuated-tube collector cross section.

Direct-flow evacuated-tube collector

A direct-flow evacuated tube collector has two pipes that run down and
back, inside the tube. One pipe is for inlet fluid and the other for outlet
fluid. Since the fluid flows into and out of each tube, the tubes are not easily
replaced. Also, should a tube break, it's possible that all of the fluid could
be pumped out of the system - if a closed loop is used, or your water will
flow out as in a broken pipe, if an open loop is used.

Figure.5: Direct-flow evacuated-tube collector cross section.

6
 ❖ Components of Evacuated tube Collector
1. Header pipe
2. Manifold

The manifold casing protects the header and glass wool insulation from the
elements, and makes the collector attractive and neat. The casing is made
from corrosion resistant grade aluminum and is black.

3. Heat transfer fin

The aluminum fins holds the heat pipe in place and conducts the heat from
the inside of the glass tube into the heat pipe

4. Evacuated tube
5. Heat pipe

Heat pipes act like a low-resistance thermal conductor. Due to their

thermal-physical properties, their heat transfer rate is thousands of times
greater than the best solid heat conductor of the same dimensions.

6. Mounting frame

The frame is designed to withstand high speed winds, and the tubes provide
minimal resistance due to their round shape.

7. Glass Wool Insulation

Glass wool is a very popular insulation material, used throughout the world
in many high temperature insulation applications.

7
Figure.6: Components of Evacuated tube Collector.

Figure.7: Evacuated tube Collector cross section.

8
 ❖ comparison between flat plate collector and evacuated tube
collector

Figure.8: evacuated tube collector VS flat plate collector.

Evacuated tube collector Flat plate collector

Quick heat generation
Collector efficiency on higher
temperature is high
Convection and Convecting losses
is low.
Emissivity is low.
Temperature range from 60deg. to
120 deg
Heat exchanger not required
Advanced technology at
competitive prices that is System
Cost per unit water is low.
Hot water availability for 350 days
in a year.
It is very easy to replace glass tube.
Water quality is not effect the
system.
It has low maintenance
Slow heat generation
Collector efficiency on higher
temperature is low.
Convection and Convecting losses
is high.
Emissivity is high.
Temperature range from 60 deg. to
80 deg.
Heat exchanger required
Old technology at higher prices
Hot water availability for 300 days
in a year claimed.
Difficult and expensive to replace
glass sheet
Water quality effect the heating
system forming scale overmetal
tube.
Its required high maintenance.

9
 ❖ Where is the Applications of a flat plate collector and evacuated
tube collector

When it comes to colder areas that witness snowfall for the most part of
the year, evacuated tube collectors are an excellent choice. They can supply
hot water efficiently even when the temperature is extremely low. But in
The hotter areas the flat plate collectors is better.

Figure.9: evacuated tube collector in winter.

❖ Applications of solar collectors as a heat assisting device:

solar cooker, air conditioning, swimming pool heating, water heating,

steam generation.

❖ Heat transfer Fluid of evacuated tube solar Collector.

The common: 10 mol% of ethylene-glycol in water is heat transfer fluid in

this system.

Antifreeze mixture

Thermal oil

10
 ❖ How to Calculate The Efficiency

𝑄𝑜𝑢𝑡
=
𝑄𝑖𝑛
∆𝑇 𝑚 𝐶𝑝
𝑄𝑜𝑢𝑡 = = ( 𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑊 )
𝑇𝑖𝑚𝑒
M = Mass
∆𝑇= Difference in temperature of liquid before and after heating
Cp = specific heat capacity

𝑄𝑖𝑛 = 𝑅𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝑄𝑖𝑛 = 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 ∗ 𝑆𝑢𝑛𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 ( 𝑖𝑛 𝑊𝑎𝑡𝑡 ) = ( 𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑊 )

𝑄𝑖𝑛 > 𝑄𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝐴𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠

The Range of Performance :

Evacuated tube collectors are the most efficient but most costly type of
hot water solar collectors
Heat pipe: from 51.5% (winter) to 65.6% (spring).
Direct-flow: operating efficiencies of (30–45) % are typical.

11
 ❖ Conclusion
Evacuated tube solar collectors are more efficient than flat plate collector
in the temperature range of 50-200 ℃ in the application of high
temperature used domestic and industrial application. Because advantage
of vacuum created between tube is type of collector very common and
effective in cooled climate. Since it can harvest both beam and diffuse
radiations more efficient than concentric types of solar collector. Since the
tube is independent in case of damage only system efficiency is decrease
but the other types of collector totally system damage.

12