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An experimental study on trapezoidal salt gradient solar pond using magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) salt and coal cinder

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Abstract

The salt gradient solar pond (SGSP) is used to store solar energy for low-temperature applications. This study investigates experimentally the density and temperature profile of Magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) in a trapezoidal-shaped SGSP. Four identical trapezoidal solar ponds were constructed by using plywood. The sides of the pond were completely covered with polythene sheets and given a black coating. The experiments were conducted using four identical solar ponds for seven days with different concentrations of magnesium sulfate and identified that the 16% concentration of MgSO4 (SGSP-M16) is the optimum concentration. Further, the experiment is extended to a 16% concentration of MgSO4 with coal cinder (SGSP-C). The temperature difference between the lower convective zone (LCZ) and upper convective zone (UCZ) is of about 13.7 °C and 17.6 °C for SGSP-M16 and SGSP-C, respectively. It is also observed that maximum temperatures of 54 °C and 59.1 °C in the heat storage zone for SGSP-M and SGSP-C, respectively. This higher temperature in SGSP-C is owing to the low volume heat capacity and low thermal diffusivity of the coal cinder.

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Abbreviations

SGSP:

Salt gradient solar pond

A sp :

Surface area of the solar pond (m2)

A LCZ :

Top surface area of the LCZ (m2)

C p :

Thermal capacity of stored water (J kg−1 K−1)

h(x):

Amount of solar intensity reaching the depth x from top surface

I r :

Amount of solar irradiation (Wm−2)

k w :

Thermal conductivity of brine solution (W m−1 K−1)

m :

Mass of water (kg)

LCZ:

Lower convective zone

NCZ:

Non-convective zone

UCZ:

Upper convective zone

Δt :

Time interval (secs)

Z ncz :

Height of NCZ (m)

T atm :

Ambient temperature (K)

T LCZ :

Temperature in LCZ (K)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Government College of Engineering, Salem, India

    P. Dineshkumar & M. Raja

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Dineshkumar, P., Raja, M. An experimental study on trapezoidal salt gradient solar pond using magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) salt and coal cinder. J Therm Anal Calorim 147, 10525–10532 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-022-11292-w

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