Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Performance enhancement of a double-pass solar air heater with a shot-blasted absorber plate and winglets

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A double-pass solar air heater (DPSAH) with shot blasting and winglets in the air passage is a recommended cost-effective design development to enhance thermal performance. Three different absorber plate configurations for DPSAHs were experimentally tested: (a) V-corrugation with shot blasting, (b) V-corrugation with shot blasting and a 4-3 winglet pattern, and (c) V-corrugation with shot blasting with a 3-2 winglet pattern. Furthermore, aluminum winglets were welded to the DPSAH absorber plate to increase the channel turbulence to enhance the heat transfer performance. The pressure drop and thermal performance of the DPSAHs with and without winglets were investigated using meteorological parameters such as ambient temperature, wind speed, solar irradiance, and interior temperature at regular time intervals. V-corrugation with 4-3 winglets has a maximum thermal efficiency and pressure drop of 49.5 % and 230 Pa, respectively, at a mass flow rate of 0.02 m/s. Results showed that the thermal efficiency of V-corrugation with 4-3 winglets was improved by a maximum of 7 % compared with the V-corrugation air heater. Finally, increasing the mass flow rate from 0.01 kg/s to 0.02 kg/s increases the pressure drop by 1.22 times for the V-corrugation and 1.3 times for the V-corrugation with 4-3 winglets. Furthermore, a complete economic study of DPSAHs for India is examined in this article.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Abbreviations

As :

Collector surface area, m2

Aco :

Collector area, m2

Ac :

Cross-sectional area of the collector, m2

c p :

Specific heat, kJ/kg K

Dh :

Hydraulic diameter, m

f:

Friction factor, dimensionless

hi :

Average heat transfer coefficient, W/m2K

hbuoy :

Head loss due to buoyancy

I:

Solar irradiance or Intensity of solar radiation, W/m2

k:

Thermal conductivity, W/m K

m:

Air or mass flow rate, kg/s

Nu:

Nusselt number, dimensionless

Pp:

Pumping power, W

Qs :

Rate of heat transfer or Heat supplied, W

qw:

Average wall heat flux, W/m2

Re:

Reynolds number, dimensionless

Tout :

Outlet temperature of the collector, K

Tw :

Plate temperature, K

Tin :

Inlet temperature of the collector, K

Ta :

Ambient temperature, K

U:

Overall heat transfer coefficient, W/m2K

V:

Air velocity, m/s

ρ:

Density, kg/m3

μ:

Dynamic viscosity of air, Ns/ m2

η: :

Collector or thermal efficiency, %

ΔP:

Total pressure drop, Pa

ΔPbuoy :

Pressure drop due to buoyancy head loss, Pa

ΔPfriction :

Pressure drop due to friction, Pa.

ΔPfittings :

Pressure drop due to joints, Pa

P:

Plain

o:

Outside

i:

Inside

CHTC:

Convective heat transfer coefficient

SWH:

Solar water heater

FPSC:

Flat plate solar collector

SWHS:

Solar water heating system

HTFs:

Heat transfer fluid

DPSAHs:

Double pass solar air heating system

References

  1. B. M. Ramani, A. Gupta and R. Kumar, Performance of a double pass solar air collector, Solar Energy, 84 (2010) 1929–1937.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. G. K. Poongavanam, K. Panchabikesan, A. J. D. Leo and V. Ramalingam, Experimental investigation on heat transfer augmentation of solar air heater using shot blasted V-corrugated absorber plate, Renewable Energy, 127 (2018) 213–229.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. M. Abuşka and M. B. Akgül, Experimental study on thermal performance of a novel solar air collector having conical springs on absorber plate, Arab. J. Sci. Eng., 41 (2016) 4509–4516.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. S. Chand and P. Chand, Parametric study on the performance of solar air heater equipped with louvered fins, J. Mech. Sci. Technol., 32 (2018) 3965–3973.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. P. Velmurugan and R. Kalaivanan, Energy and exergy analysis of solar air heaters with varied geometries, Arab. J. Sci. Eng., 40 (2015) 1173–1186.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. M. M. M. Salih, O. R. Alomar, F. A. Ali and H. M. Abd, An experimental investigation of a double pass solar air heater performance: a comparison between natural and forced air circulation processes, Solar Energy, 193 (2019) 184–194.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. S. Skullong, P. Promthaisong, P. Promvonge, C. Thianpong and M. Pimsarn, Thermal performance in solar air heater with perforated-winglet-type vortex generator, Solar Energy, 170 (2018) 1101–1117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. J. S. Sawhney, R. Maithani and S. Chamoli, Experimental investigation of heat transfer and friction factor characteristics of solar air heater using wavy delta winglets, Applied Thermal Engineering, 117 (2017) 740–751.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. S. Singh, L. Dhruw and S. Chander, Experimental investigation of a double pass converging finned wire mesh packed bed solar air heater, Journal of Energy Storage, 21 (2019) 713–723.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. A. J. Mahmood, L. B. Y. Aldabbagh and F. Egelioglu, Investigation of single and double pass solar air heater with transverse fins and a package wire mesh layer, Energy Conversion and Management, 89 (2015) 599–607.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. A. P. Omojaro and L. B. Y. Aldabbagh, Experimental performance of single and double pass solar air heater with fins and steel wire mesh as absorber, Applied Energy, 87(12) (2010) 3759–3765.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. A. A. El-Sebaii, S. Aboul-Enein, M. R. I. Ramadan, S. M. Shalaby and B. M. Moharram, Thermal performance investigation of double pass-finned plate solar air heater, Applied Energy, 88(5) (2011) 1727–1739.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. S. Skullong and P. Promvonge, Experimental investigation on turbulent convection in solar air heater channel fitted with delta winglet vortex generator, Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 22(1) (2014) 1–10.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. M. F. El-khawajah, L. B. Y. Aldabbagh and F. Egelioglu, The effect of using transverse fins on a double pass flow solar air heater using wire mesh as an absorber, Solar Energy, 85 (2011) 1479–1487.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. C.-D. Ho, C.-S. Lin, Y.-C. Chuang and C.-C. Chao, Performance improvement of wire mesh packed double-pass solar air heaters with external recycle, Renewable Energy, 57 (2013) 479–489.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. W. Baig and H. M. Ali, An experimental investigation of performance of a double pass solar air heater with foam aluminum thermal storage medium, Case Studies in Thermal Engineering, 14 (2019) 100440.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. L. B. Y. Aldabbagh, F. Egelioglu and M. Ilkan, Single and double pass solar air heaters with wire mesh as packing bed, Energy, 35 (2010) 3783–3787.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. K. Sopian, M. A. Alghoul, E. M. Alfegi, M. Y. Sulaiman and E. A. Musa, Evaluation of thermal efficiency of double-pass solar collector with porous-nonporous media, Renewable Energy, 34 (2009) 640–645.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. H. D. Ammari, A mathematical model of thermal performance of a solar air heater with slats, Renewable Energy, 28 (2003) 1597–1615.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. R. K. Ravi and R. Saini, Experimental investigation on the performance of a double pass artificial roughened solar air heater duct having roughness elements of the combination of discrete multi V-shaped and staggered ribs, Energy, 116 (2016) 507–516.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. H. K. Ghritlahre and R. K. Prasad, Prediction of heat transfer of two different types of roughened solar air heater using artificial neural network technique, Therm. Sci. Eng. Prog., 8 (2018) 145–153.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. M. Ansari and M. Bazargan, Optimization of flat plate solar air heaters with ribbed surfaces, Appl. Therm. Eng., 136 (2018) 356–363.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. B. Bhushan and R. Singh, Nusselt number and friction factor correlations for solar air heater duct having artificially roughened absorber plate, Solar Energy, 85 (2011) 1109–1118.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. V. S. Hans, R. P. Saini and J. S. Saini, Heat transfer and friction factor correlations for a solar air heater duct roughened artificially with multiple V-ribs, Solar Energy, 84 (2010) 898–911.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. S. Yadav and M. Kaushal, Energetic performance evaluation of solar air heater having arc shape oriented protrusions as roughness element, Solar Energy, 105 (2014) 181–189.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. V. B. Gawande, A. S. Dhoble, D. B. Zodpe and S. Chamoli, Experimental and CFD investigation of convection heat transfer in solar air heater with reverse L-shaped ribs, Solar Energy, 131 (2016) 275–295.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. S. K. Sharma and V. R. Kalamkar, Experimental and numerical investigation of forced convective heat transfer in solar air heater with thin ribs, Solar Energy, 147 (2017) 277–291.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. A. S. Yadav and J. L. Bhagoria, A CFD based thermohydraulic performance analysis of an artificially roughened solar air heater having equilateral triangular sectioned rib roughness on the absorber plate, Int. J. Heat Mass Transf., 70 (2014) 1016–1039.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. A. Kumar and M. Kim, Effect of roughness width ratios in discrete multi V-rib with staggered rib roughness on overall thermal performance of solar air channel, Solar Energy, 119 (2015) 399–414.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. K. Kulkarni, A. Afzal and K. Kim, Multi-objective optimization of solar air heater with obstacles on absorber plate, Solar Energy, 114 (2015) 364–377.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. E. A. Handoyo and D. Ichsani, Numerical studies on the effect of delta-shaped obstacles spacing on the heat transfer and pressure drop in v-corrugated channel of solar air heater, Solar Energy, 131 (2016) 47–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. H. M. Yeh, C. D. Ho and J. Z. Hou, Collector efficiency of double-flow solar air heaters with fins attached, Energy, 27 (2002) 715–727.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. N. Moummi, S. Y. Ali, A. Moummi and J. Y. Desmons, Energy analysis of a solar air collector with rows of fins, Renewable Energy, 29 (2004) 2053–2064.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. R. K. Ravi and R. P. Saini, Experimental investigation on performance of a double pass artificial roughened solar air heater duct having roughness elements of the combination of discrete multi V shaped and staggered ribs, Energy, 116 (2016) 507–516.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. A. Heydari and M. Mesgarpour, Experimental analysis and numerical modeling of solar air heater with helical flow path, Solar Energy, 162 (2018) 278–288.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. P. Promvonge, C. Khanoknaiyakarn, S. Kwankaomeng and C. Thianpong, Thermal behavior in solar air heater channel fitted with combined rib and delta-winglet, International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 38(6) (2011) 749–756.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. H. Esen, Experimental energy and exergy analysis of a double-flow solar air heater having different obstacles on absorber plates, Building and Environment, 43 (2008) 1046–1054.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. R. Nowzari, L. B. Y. Aldabbagh and F. Egelioglu, Single and double pass solar air heaters with partially perforated coverand packed mesh, Energy, 73 (2014) 694–702.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. P. Promvonge and S. Skullong, Enhanced heat transfer in rectangular duct with punched winglets, Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 28(3) (2020) 660–671.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Y. Xu, M. D. Islam and N. Kharoua, Experimental study of thermal performance and flow behaviour with winglet vortex generators in a circular tube, Applied Thermal Engineering, 135 (2018) 257–268.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. M. Khoshvaght-Aliabadi, O. Sartipzadeh and A. Alizadeh, An experimental study on vortex-generator insert with different arrangements of delta-winglets, Energy, 82 (2015) 629–639.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. H. Xiao, Z. Dong, Z. Liu and W. Liu, Heat transfer performance and flow characteristics of solar air heaters with inclined trapezoidal vortex generators, Applied Thermal Engineering (2020) 115484.

  43. S. Chamoli, R. Lu, D. Xu and P. Yu, Thermal performance improvement of a solar air heater fitted with winglet vortex generators, Solar Energy, 159 (2018) 966–983.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. T. Alam and M.-H. Kim, Performance improvement of doublepass solar air heater — a state of art of review, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 79 (2017) 779–793.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. M. G. Gabhane and A. B. Kanase-Patil, Experimental analysis of double flow solar air heater with multiple C shape roughness, Solar Energy, 155 (2017) 1411–1416.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. A. Kumar, J. L. Bhagoria and R. M. Sarviya, Heat transfer and friction correlations for artificially roughened solar air heater duct with discrete W shaped ribs, Energy Convers. Manage., 50 (2009) 2106–2117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. A. S. Abdullah, M. M. Abou Al-sood, Z. M. Omara, M. A. Bekc and A. E. Kabeel, Performance evaluation of a new counter flow double pass solar air heater with turbulators, Solar Energy, 173 (2018) 398–406.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  48. F. W. Dittus and L. M. K. Boelter, Heat Transfer in Automobile Radiators of the Tubular Type, University of California Press, Berkeley, University of California Publications in Engineering, 2 (1930) 443–461.

    MATH  Google Scholar 

  49. H. Hassan, M. S. Yousef and S. Abo-Elfadl, Energy, exergy, economic and environmental assessment of double pass V-corrugated-perforated finned solar air heater at different air mass ratios, Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments, 43 (2021) 100936.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Mechanical Engineering, Yeungnam University, 280 Daehak-Ro, Gyeongsan, Gyeongbuk, 712-749, Korea

    P. Ganesh Kumar, Mohammed Salman & Sung Chul Kim

  2. School of Mechanical Engineering, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, 632014, Tamil Nadu, India

    D. Sakthivadivel & K. Balaji

Authors
  1. P. Ganesh Kumar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. D. Sakthivadivel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. K. Balaji
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Mohammed Salman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Sung Chul Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to P. Ganesh Kumar or Sung Chul Kim.

Additional information

P. Ganesh Kumar completed his Ph.D. in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Anna University, Chennai, India. He is working as an Associate Professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Yeungnam University at Gyeongbuk, Republic of Korea. His fields of research interests include nanofluids, surface modifications, heat exchangers, solar thermal and energy storage. He has published over 30 research papers in refereed international journals.

D. Sakthivadivel completed his Ph.D. in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Anna University, Chennai. He is working as a Senior Assistant Professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, India. His research interests include gasification, solar energy technologies and applications.

K. Balaji completed his Ph.D. in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Anna University, Chennai. He is working as a Senior Assistant Professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, India. His research interests include solar thermal energy low energy heating and cooling system.

Mohammad Salman is pursuing Ph.D. in School of Mechanical Engineering at Yeungnam University at Gyeongbuk, Republic of Korea. He received his B.E. and M.E. (Mechanical Engineering) from Aligarh Muslim University in Aligarh, India. His fields of research interests include heat transfer and design optimization in solar heat collectors.

Sung Chul Kim completed his Ph.D. in the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea. He is working as an Associate Professor in the School of Mechanical Engineering at Yeungnam University at Gyeongbuk, Republic of Korea. He received various honors and awards. His fields of research interests include automotive thermal management system, advanced air conditioning/heating systems using alternative refrigerant and industrial/residential energy conversion system.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kumar, P.G., Sakthivadivel, D., Balaji, K. et al. Performance enhancement of a double-pass solar air heater with a shot-blasted absorber plate and winglets. J Mech Sci Technol 35, 2743–2753 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-021-0544-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-021-0544-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation