Presentation on Parabolic trough solar collector to produce heated water and steam

A parabolic trough is a type of solar thermal collector used to harness solar energy for various applications, primarily electricity generation. It consists of a long, curved, reflective surface in the shape of a parabola, typically made of glass or polished metal, with a receiver tube running along its focal line. This design allows the trough to concentrate sunlight onto the receiver tube, which contains a fluid such as oil or molten salt. As sunlight hits the reflective surface, it is focused onto the receiver, where the fluid absorbs the heat. This heated fluid is then used to generate steam, which drives a turbine connected to an electrical generator, producing electricity. Parabolic troughs are widely used in concentrated solar power (CSP) systems due to their efficiency, reliability, and ability to operate in a wide range of conditions. They are commonly found in large-scale solar power plants in sunny regions around the world.

1. Design and Fabrication of parabolic trough collector Group Members: Zarnain Khan 20jzmec0388 Arfat Muhammad 20jzmec0394 Adnan Khan 20jzmec0414 Maaz Ali 20jzmec0405

2. Problem Statement People use a lot of energy to heat water in their homes . I n summer we can produce steam through this which is useful for many industrial applications . Traditional water heating methods, which often use fossil fuels or electricity, result in increased energy costs and harm the environment. To solve this, our project will use special parabolic trough collector to heat water and to produce steam using sunlight. It's an affordable and eco-friendly way to get hot water and save money.

3. Status of work done

4. Components selection Receiver Tube: evacuated tube with both end open is used as the solar radiation receiver tube due to its high efficiency and reliability . To reduce the convection. Copper Tubes: copper is often considered an excellent choice Material Thermal Conductivity Corrosion Resistance Ductility Copper 400 W/ m.k Excellent Good Stainless steel 15 W/ m.k Good Poor Aluminum 237W/ m.k Poor Good Copper tubes

5. Components selection Solar Radiation Reflector: Flexible Pipes: Connect the Copper Tubes and the storage tank allowing for easy fluid circulation. They are made of high-quality, flexible materials such as rubber and they are insulated . Storage Tank insulation material: Material Reflectivity Durability Cost Aluminum High Good High Silver Very High Good High Polymer mirrors(Acrylic Sheet) High Fair Low Acrylic Sheet Material Thermal Conductivity Durability Cost Aerogel 0.013 W/ m.k Good Medium Polyurethane 0.025 W/ m.k Excellent Low

6. Components selection Shaft: 12V submersible pump is used For Circulating fluid. Arduino is used for controlling automation Digital display is used to show the temperature at different location. Photoresistor sensor unit ( LDR) is used for solar tracking. Material Strength Corrosion resistance Cost Stainless steel High Excellent Medium – High Carbon steel High Good Low – medium Aluminum Moderate Good Low – medium

7. Performances Analysis Analysis of Tracking system:

8. Performances analysis Parabolic P rofile analysis:

9. Performances analysis: Thermal Analysis: INPUTS

10. Performances analysis Thermal Analysis: OUTPUTS If we use Twisted Tapes in absorber tube

11. Cad Model( in progress) Storage tank

12. Gantt Chart No Task Duration (weeks) Academic Weeks(9 OCT 2023 – 3 JUNE 2023) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 1 Idea Selection 2 2 Proposal Submission 2 3 Literature Review 2 4 Problem analysis and Proposal defense Presentation 2 5 Design Calculation 4 6 CAD Model 2 7 Simulation 2 8 Material Selection 6 9 Construction 4 10 Experiments on Physical Model 4 11 Final Report 4 12 FYP Exhibition 4 13 Thesis Submission and Viva 4