Applied Energy 28 (1987) 163-189

Performance Analysis of the Stationary-reflector/ Tracking-absorber Solar Collector

M. E E1-Refaie Mechanical Power Engineering Department, Cairo University, Cairo (Egypt)

SUMMA R Y This is an analytical stud), of the performance Of the stationary-reflector~ tracking-absorber ( S R T A ) solar collector with tubular absorber. The mathematical treatment and the derived formulae are generalized for any rim angle and any absorber-to-reflector diameter ratio. The effects of these two parameters on the average concentration ratio are investigated. Different multi-reflection zones of the mirror are ident(fied. Their contributions to the total concentrated power and the local concentration ratio, at d(ff'erent absorber points, are assessed. The concentration profile along the absorber is determined under cfifJ~,rent conditions. The influence of mirror r[tectance on the flux density at d(~]~,rent points is evaluated. The circumferentially-distorted concentration profi'le at times ~1 oblique incidence is displayed. The absorber surface is divided into bright, .faint and dim regions. A mathematical procedure is presented to contour these regions. Their occurrence and area growth are shown to he dependent on the rim angle and diameter ratio.

NOM ENC LATU R E Local concentration ratio, defined by eqn (25) (dimensionless). Average concentration ratio, given by eqn (14) (dimensionless). E Eccentricity shown in Fig. 16 (m). F, Percentage of the input power which falls on the nth reflection zone (dimensionless). !63 Applied Energy 0306-2619/87/$03"50 ~" Elsevier Applied Science Publishers Ltd, England. 1987. Printed in Great Britain C

Caw

164

M. F. El-Refaie

i i~vg I IR L
?/

P,
r

Local flux density at any point on the absorber (W/mE). Average flux density all over the absorber (W/m/). Normal intensity of the direct solar radiation (W/m2). Input ratio, given by eqn (8) (dimensionless). Length of absorber, shown in Fig. 2 (m). Number of reflections experienced by an incident beam or order of reflection'zone (dimensionless). Power concentrated along the absorber segment from the root up to a distance x (W). Total power concentrated on the absorber surface (W). Radius of a circle on the mirror corresponding to any position angle

(m).
ra

r~
R

S
x

X
Xmax,n

Absorber radius (m). Radius of the spherical reflector (m). Absorber-to-reflector diameter ratio (dimensionless). Path length of the reflected beam from the point of first reflection up to the absorber surface (m). Distance along the absorber reckoned from the root, shown in Fig. 2 (m). Normalized distance along the absorber, defined by eqn (4) (dimensionless). Location of the furthermost point on the absorber reached by reflection from the nth-order reflection zone (dimensionless). Location corresponding to the position angle 0, shown in Fig. 18 (dimensionless). Position angle at which the nth reflection zone starts (degrees). Position angle corresponding to )(max.. (degrees). Angular deviation of incident beams, shown in Fig. 1 (degrees). A function ((0,n), defined by eqn (24) (dimensionless). Concentration efficiency (dimensionless). Position angle of a point on the mirror, shown in Fig. 2 (degrees). Limiting value of 0, given by eqn (31) (degrees). Shadow angle, shown in Fig. 2 (degrees). Reflectance of the mirror surface (dimensionless). Half the non-irradiated arc of absorber perimeter, shown in Fig. 16 (degrees). Rim angle of the reflector (degrees).

Jn
~'n

6 r/c 0 0 2 P

Subscripts
i max Inner beam. Maximum.

Performance Of the SRTA solar collector

/7 O

165

nth-order reflection zone. Outer beam.

INTRODUCTION The stationary-reflector/tracking-absorber (SRTA) solar concentrator is a promising form of line-focusing solar-energy collector which offers attractive solutions for the problems of size limitation and sun tracking. It has been described previously. L2 The conceptual design of the SRTA is illustrated in Fig. 1. It comprises a stationary concave spherical mirror and a centrally pivoted absorber which is continuously moved, so as to be always in line with the direct solar radiation.

Off-axial~/Axial incidence incidence/ I or axis

2r Fig. I.

~Tracking absorber

A stationary-reflector/tracking-absorber concentrator: spherical rcfector and tubular absorber.

The SRTA solar collector was treated in a number of previous studies. Its optical characteristics were identified 3'4 and its thermal performance was studied. 5 Results of experimental monitoring and computer simulation were also reported. 6 The degradation of the concentration due to off-axial incidence was investigated for specific cases. 7 However, most of the previous investigations were interested mainly in concentrators with relatively shallow reflectors having rim angles limited to 60 degrees. Moreover, most of the mathematical treatments were based on the asumption of an infinitesimally slim absorber, i.e. a negligibly small absorber diameter in comparison with the reflector diameter.

166

M. F EI-Refaie

In the present work, the performance of the SRTA solar collector with tubular absorber is further investigated. The effects of the reflector rim angle and the absorber-to-reflector diameter ratio are rigorously taken into consideration. The mathematical formulae and procedures are generalized for any rim angle and any non-zero absorber-to-reflector diameter ratio. The role of multi-reflection modes is thoroughly investigated from two different points of view, namely the contribution to the concentrated power and the influence on the axial concentration profile. The involvement of repetitively reflected energy necessitated speculative attention being given to the effect of mirror reflectance. A method is presented for mapping the faint and dim regions which appear on the absorber surface at times of oblique incidence. It can be adopted for once-reflected as well as multi-reflected radiation.

G E O M E T R Y OF R E F L E C T I O N The absorber is continuously moved so as to have its axis pointing to the sun. Thus, the incident direct solar beams will always be parallel to the absorber axis. They will be parallel to the mirror axis, i.e. normal to the aperture, only at the instant of time when the sun is at the zenithal position relative to the aperture. The position of any general incident beam will be defined by its position angle 0 shown in Fig. 2. The beams at high position angles may go through more than one reflection before hitting the absorber. Accordingly, the reflector surface may be divided into different reflection zones each characterized by a certain number of reflections. Figure 3 illustrates the limits which define the different zones. These limits depend on the number of reflections and the absorber-to-reflector diameter ratio. It can be shown that the position angle/3, at which the n-reflection zone, nth-order zone, starts is expressed by /3, = [(n -- l)n +
2]/(2n --

1)

(1)

where 2 is half the arc of the reflector shaded by the absorber. It will be known as the shadow angle and is given by 2=sin 1R (2)

The number of reflections experienced by a beam incident at a position angle 0 can conversely be obtained, from eqn (1), in the form
n =- ~ ( 0 - - 2 ) / ( n -

20)~ + 1

(3)

where [[a~] stands for the integer part of a. The variation of the reflection zone limits with the diameter ratio is displayed in Fig. 4. In this figure, as well

Performance ~f the SRTA solar collector

167
3( 18o - 2 e ) 5 - 360

Angle
A

=
2 --

180-2e
e

2(180-2e) 3
e - 180

Angle

(a) S i n g l e

reflection

(b) D o u b l e

reflection

(c) T r i p l e

reflection

Fig. 2.

Different modes of rcflection in a SRTA concentrator.

~,~-~'~

......

#2

B3

Fig. 3.

Limits of the different reflection zones on the mirror surface.

168

M. F. El-Refaie

9O

80 " ~

n)lO

~~,0,'(,~,9,1~

Triple reflection 70 Double reflection

6o
if)

b.0 r-~

5o
Single reflection

20

3o

20 n=l

.02

.~

.~

.~

.1

.12

.14

.le

.lO

.2

dimensionless

Fig. 4. Variation of reflection-zone limits with the diameter ratio.

as in some other figures presented subsequently, the domain of the diameter ratio is extended to impractically large values for the sake of illustrating the general trend. Any ray, incident on the mirror at any position angle 0, will undergo a number of reflections n corresponding to 0 of eqn (3); then it will eventually impinge on the absorber surface at a distance x reckoned from the absorber root (see Fig. 2). This distance will be normalized with reference to the reflector radius in the form
X = x/r~ 0 < X < L/l~

(4)

Perlormance o1 the SR TA solar collector

169

A geometrical study of the different reflection modes shown in Fig. 2 reveals that, in general for any beam incident within the nth reflection zone, the two angles 1 and 2 will be
J = n(~z -- 20) 2 = (2n 1)0 1t+ 1 )rr

Consequently, it can be shown, through further geometrical manipulations, that the normalized distance X where this beam will strike the absorber is given by X = (1 - - R2) 1/2 q-- (-1)" sin 0 sm (2n0)
.

Rcot(2nO)

(5)

A plot of this relation is shown in Fig. 5 for two different diameter ratios. Each of the successive arcs stands for one of the reflection zones. The points where the curve rests against the abscissa represent the limiting angles fi,, ( n = 1,2,3 .... ). Figure 5 shows that the radiation reflected from any reflection zone, of order n, is spread over a segment of the absorber extending from the root. X = 0, up to a m a x i m u m value of X, which will be denoted by X . . . . . . This m a x i m u m value decreases sharply as the order of the reflection zone (n) increases. Moreover, the figure clarifies that any point on the absorber, at a location X, receives two reflected beams from two different points at two different position angles within one or more reflection zones. The beam reflected at the lower angle will be called the inner beam, while the other will be known as the outer beam. The two corresponding position angles will be
.5

.4
~d c,
3

i_Xmax ] '
e

.2
~J X II X 09

.1

\\
' ]0 ~ / I ~ 20 ' Y I 30 Position 2 XI 40 angle ' ~

o
~ ~ r'O

1"
50

'

~ I I 60

wd'2'~
,~0

8 , degrees

Fig. 5.

Variation of the normalized dislance X with the position angle 0.

170

M.F.

EI-Refaie

referred to by 0i, , and 0o,, for the nth-order zone. In more detail, a point along the absorber at Xm,x,, + t < X < Xmax,. will receive 2n reflected beams. The exceptions to the above-mentioned rule are the points located at )(max,. (n = 1, 2, 3 .... ). Each of these points receives (2n - 1) reflected beams; 2(n - 1) beams from the reflection zones of order 1 up to (n - 1) and one beam from the nth-order zone. The position angles corresponding to these points will be designated by 7, (n = 1, 2, 3 .... ). The value of Xm~x.1 defines the appropriate length of the absorber L/r~. The angle 71 can be obtained from eqn (5) by substituting n = l , differentiating with respect to 0, and equating to zero. This yields
~'1 =

sin-'(~fR)

(6)

Substituting ~1 for 0 in eqn (5) results in

L/r,

= Xma~.1 = (1 -- R2) 1/2 -- (1 + 3R 2/3 -- 4R2) 1/2

(7)

The variation of the absorber length with the diameter ratio is illustrated in Fig. 6. If the absorber is extended beyond the limit x = L, the additional length will not be irradiated. It is to be noted that a point at the absorber tip is the only location on the absorber which receives one reflected beam only. Equation (7) and Fig. 6 are based on the assumption that the rim angle ~ is larger than 71. Usually this will be the case in practice because the values of~,~ are comparatively low; it has a measure of 12-44 for R = 0.01 and increases

.5o

(D ,-~
,H (n

cn in

.45

.20

<D

.35
[n

30

.25

t I I I iool .02 .04 .

I i .oe

I I I I I I I I I i .~ a2 .s4 .'~e .le .2

dimensionless

Fig. 6.

Variation of absorber length with the absorber-to-reflector diameter ratio.

Performance 0[" the SRTA solar collector

171

to 35.79 at R = 0.2. However, ifO were less than 7~, the irradiated length of the absorber would be given by

L/r~],<,,., = (1 - R2) 1/2 - [sec 0 + R(cot 0 - tan ~)]

This represents a practically remote possibility, yet it is included here to complete the analysis.

P E R F O R M A N C E W H E N T H E I N C I D E N T R A D I A T I O N IS N O R M A L TO T H E A P E R T U R E The study of the power concentration and the flux distribution on the absorber surface will be based on the assumption that the absorber diameter is large enough to intercept all the reflected radiation. Considering the mean value of the sun's angular diameter to be 32 minutes, then the diameter ratio necessary to intercept the reflection at a position angle 0 will be R > 4"65 x 10 3(S/r~)]o where S is the path length of the reflected beam from the point at 0 to the absorber surface; it can be obtained from Fig. 2 in the general form &r~ = (11 - 1)(sin 20/sin 0) + [-sin (2n - 1)0 + ( - I)'R]/sin 2nO This implies that the absorber would have an axially variable cross-section. Because we are dealing with tubular absorbers, the diameter ratio, in all the cases presented subsequently, was carefully selected to satisfy the condition of complete interception. Theoretically the reflector rim angle may assume any value up to 9 0 . Its value affects the a m o u n t of input power potentially available on the aperture as well as the concentrated power received by the absorber. Lowering the rim angle below 9 0 reduces the available power. This entails a reduction of the concentrated power but to a lesser degree because the contribution of the mirror elements located at high position angles suffers a number of successive reflection losses. The hemispherical concentrator, with ~ = 90 , will be considered as a reference to define the input power ratio IR. This is the ratio of the input power available on the aperture of any concentrator, having a rim angle 0, to that available for a hemispherical concentrator having the same reflector radius. It is given by IR
= (sin 2 ~ s i n 2 ,,;.)/( 1 s i n 2 2) (8)

The variation of IR with the rim angle 0 is illustrated in Fig. 7. The different fractions of the input power reflected on different reflection zones of the mirror surface will be transmitted to the absorber with different

172 1 .8 .6
0 ,,q

M. F. El-Refaie

~.i~//3.1
~I"./~] 2 , , , , ,

30 ,

60 degrees

90

Fig. 7. Variation of the input ratio with the rim angle.

transmission efficiencies. Therefore, it is useful to know the distribution of the available power among the different zones. This will be represented by a percentage F,, which stands for the fraction of the input power incident on the nth-order reflection zone. It can be shown that this percentage is given by one of the forms F, = [(sin2fl.+l-sin2fl,)/(sin2O=0

RZ)] x 100 =[(sin2tp-sinifl,)/(sinZO-R2)]xlO0

for fl,+l < ~ forfl,<0<fl,+l for ~b <ft,

(9) (10) (11)

The trends of variation of the percentage F., for any zone, and its cumulation, for different zones, with the rim angle are shown in Figs 8 and 9 respectively. A study of Fig. 9, keeping in mind that the optical transmission efficiency is lower for higher-order reflection zones, will end up with the conclusion that the role of multi-reflection zones is of secondary importance. This may be true from the point of view of concentrated power. Nevertheless, high-order reflections have a profound effect on the local flux densities at some parts of the absorber surface; this will be shown hereinafter. When evaluating the concentrated power on the absorber surface, the effect of the mirror-surface reflectance should be introduced. This property is dependent on the incidence angle which is equal to the position angle 0. Accordingly, the reflectance p should ideally be treated as a variable dependent on the position angle. However, and in order to avoid overcomplexity of the analysis and to bypass the necessity of knowing the directional characteristics of the surface, an average value will be used in what follows. If necessary, a suggested refinement is to use different average values for the different reflection zones.

Per/brmance of the SRTA solar collector

173

iO0 20I R=O.OI

95

15L

n=2

9o

+d
10

~2

8,

'~85

R=O.

Ol

0 60

70 80 , degrees

90

6,',, v ,

70 ]egrees

,-;0

,a{:,

Fig. 8. Percentage of input power incident on the nth reflection zone of themirror.

Fig. 9. Cumulative percentage o1" inpu! power incident on the rcflection zones up to
the nt h zone.

When the reflector rim angle is in the position-angle range of the ./th reflection zone, [Jj < ~ < flj+ 1, the total concentrated power received by the absorber will be expressed by
j--I

Pt = T r r 2 I I ~ p"(sin2 /J.~ l -- sinZ fl.) + pJ(sin21/J -- sin2 fli} ]

12}

The average flux density all over the absorber surface is equal to the quotmnt

174

M. F. El-Refaie
0

~ 0 -

,-'

g
0 0 0 r-~ 0 cO 0 kO 0 0 0.] 0 ~

SSeTUOTSU~mTp

~A~
,

1~444oI
sseTuoTsu@mT p ,
0

8
u
0

m o

.~_

._~
0 0 :-q

0 CO

0 kO

0 ~ '

0 Ck]

ssaTuoTsua~TP
I

ss~TuoTsu~mT

'

Performance of the SRTA solar collector

175

of the total power divided by the circumferential surface area of the absorber, i.e. /ave = Pt/(2~raL) {13) and the average concentration ratio will be
j-1

Cave

~---

1 i"'e/l= 2R{i,/r~) [Zp.(sin2fi,+l_sin2fl,)+pJ(sin20_sin2fl/)l(14

The variation of the average concentration ratio with the rim angle is displayed in Fig. l0 for two values of the mirror reflectance and two diameter ratios. An additional scale is incorporated to show the variation of the concentration efficiency q, defined as the ratio of the total concentrated power to the total available input power passing through the aperture. The trend of variation of the average concentration ratio with the diameter ratio is illustrated separately in Fig. 11 for a hemispherical concentrator. The
150 =90

cD cD {1) H o .r--t {D

i00

,H

c)

h0 > a3

5 L 9 :o8
0 | J P 1 I I .o2 .o4 .~
R ,

l t .o0

! a

I t I I .,2 .,4

I I I I .,i .so

.2

dimensionless
ratio.

Fig. 1 I.

Variation of the average concentration ratio with the diameter

176

M. E El-Refaie

results presented, in Figs 10 and 11 were calculated taking into account ten reflection zones, n = 1 up to 10. The local flux density i at any point located at a distance x along the absorber is given by
1

i-

dP 1 dP r a27r- x - 2rtrar ~ d X d

(15)

where P is the power concentrated on the absorber segment extending from the root up to the particular location X. The value of P depends on the location X and the rim angle $. If their values fall in the ranges Xmax, k + 1 < X'<Xmax. k and flj.<O<flj+~, then P may be expressed by any of the following forms depending on the relative order of k and j. This is also explained by the diagrammatic sketch shown in Fig. 12, (In this sketch, the relative sizes of the successive arcs are distorted on purpose for the sake of illustration.)
Case 1. k < j
k

P"[( sin2 ft,+ 1 - - sin2 0o,,) + (sin2 0i., - s in2 ft,)]

n=l j 1

Pro(sin2 tim+, -- sin2 tim) + PJ(sin2 ~ -- sin2 flj)}

m=k+ 1

(16)

dP 2 [-~-~ dx-~rstL2_.p
n=l

/d d. ~sin20,..-dxS'n

0o..

)]

(17)

Case 2. j <_ k Case 2a. 004 < tp

j-I

P = xr~l{~
n=l

pn[(sinZ fln+ l -- sin2 Oo,n) + (sinZ Oi.n -- sin2 fln)]

+ p Jr(sin 2 ~t - sin 20o,j)

J

(sin 20i,j

--

sin 2 fij)]}

(18)

d P _ 7~t~zi dX
n=l

pn

sin2

0i n --

dX sin2 0'"

(19)

Per/brmance of the SR TA solar colh,ctor

177

~I
1 82

1
81

\/
2
Bk

\/..,,
k

..q
~j j
&
b

V \, , ,9
--C

l
Fig. 12.

~ !,v 'Cv
O
x

(3

D i a g r a m m a t i c illustrations o f possible c o m b i n a t i o n s o f X a n d ~p (/, a n d / I . U p p c r :

k</: lower: ./_<k-- a:

Oo.:<tO:b: 0,/< //<0,i: c: fii<~//<'O~,/.

Case 2h. O~,j< 6 < 004

j-1

P= rrr~l{~pn[( sin2fi.+l--sin2Oo,n)+( sin20i,n - s i n 2

n=l

fin)]

+ pJ(sin 20~,j - sin 2 fij}

(20)

dX -

,2,[ :(dsin20n
n 1

j-1

-- d X sin- 0o,.) + P j dd sin- 0~.,i] X .

121)

Case 2c. ~ < O~d

j-1

P= ~ r 2 1 { 2 n[( sin2 fin+l-- sin20o.n} +{sin20i,. -Sin2 fin}]

n=l

+ P J(sin2 0 -- sin2

fij)}

221

dX

dP _ rcrffI

IX p. (d
n=l

j-I

sin2 0i n -- d X sin2 0 .....

)]

t23)

178

M. F. El-Ref~tie

The derivative d(sin 20~,,)/dX or d(sin 20o,.)/dX, will be denoted by ((0,n) and can be obtained from eqn (5) in the form ~(0, n) = sin 20 sin 2 2nO~I(- 1)"(sin 2nO cos 0 - 2n sin 0 cos 2nO) + 2nR] The local concentration ratio is expressed by
1 dP

(24)

C = i / I = 2glrar ~d X

(25)

Substituting from eqn (17), (19), (21) or (23), one at a time, together with eqn (24) into eqn (25), yields the formulae expressing the local concentration ratio for different possible combinations of X and ~, i.e. k and j, listed above. These are:

Case 1

C=~

Case 2a

C= ~

Case 2b

C=~

l{E I{E I{E

n--1 J n=l j 1

p"[~(O,, n) - ~(0o, n)]

p"[#(0 i, n) - #(0o, n)]

t } }

(26)

(27)

p"[~(Oi, n) - ~(0o, n)] + pJ~(Oi, n)

(28)

n-1 j-1

2R
n--1

p"[~(O,, n) - ~(0o, n)]

(29)

When implementing eqns (26) to (29) to plot the axial concentration profile along the absorber, it may be necessary at certain locations to switch from one formula to another. It can be concluded from Fig. 5 that the function ~(0~, n) is always positive while ~(0o, n) is always negative. Accordingly, the term [~(0~, n) - ~(0o, n)] in any of eqns (26) to (29) represents the resultant effect of the inner and outer beams impinging at the point from the nth-order reflection zone. Some samples of results obtained by using eqns (26) to (29) are presented graphically in Figs 13 to 15. These results were calculated taking into consideration five reflection zones ( n = 1 up to 5). The highest local concentration ratio occurs at the absorber tip. For large rim angles, a number of peaks occur close to the absorber root; these are contributed to by the different multi-reflection zones of the mirror. The mirror reflectance has a linear (i.e. proportional) effect on the local concentration ratio at large

Performance o# the SRTA solar collector

179

300

"250

200
0

,.-t

150
O

loo ~
5O

~? .....
R=O.OI
=90

, L/Jr =0.4664)
s

0.! X

0.2 ,

0.3

0.4

O.

dimensionless

Fig. 13.

Concentration profile along the absorber for different mirror rcflectances.

values of X, where the absorber is irradiated from the first-order reflection zone only (Xm~,x.Z < X < L/r,). On the other hand, its effect is more profound at points close to the root where multi-reflected radiation is received; this is clear in Fig. 13. If the rim angle is taken to be less than 9 0 , a sudden drop of the local concentration ratio will take place at some point along the absorber; see Fig. 14. This point is the one at which the angle 004 steps above . At the remaining points closer to the root, the outer beams, from thejthorder zone, will be absent and the absorber will be irradiated by the inner

180

M. F. El-Refaie

300
=90

250

~o Lo ~D O

200

15o

o i00

I !

5O
@ 50 0 1 L~l

I I P=0.9

= .
I

=. 664) S
I

0.i X

0.2 0.3 0.4 , dimensionless

0.5

Fig. 14.

Concentration profile along the absorber for different reflector rim angles.

beams only. F o r example, in Fig. 14, for a rim angle of 70 a point at X = 0"04 receives two beams from the first reflection zone together with the inner beam only from the second zone, and for a rim angle of 50 , the same point receives only the inner beam from the first zone. Irradiation by the inner beam of the first reflection zone is very faint because the numerical value of ~(0~, 1)is small. This is attributed to the steep slope of the curve in Fig. 5 over the domain ), < 0 < 71. Figure 15 emphasizes the important role of multi-reflection zones in shaping the concentration profile at the root end of the absorber. A comparison between this figure and Fig. 14 reveals that overlooking the effect of multi-reflected radiation will entail serious underestimation of the local flux densities at small values of X. It is to be mentioned here that the effect of high-order reflection will be met even in concentrators having small rim angles (less than or equal to #2). In such concentrators, when the incident

Performance of the SR TA solar collector

200

181

Z50
@

200

5O

--9o2 ,
_ 1 ...... i

fi
I* =500
I ] l J

I,__oo
I I
I I

0.1 X ,

0.2

0.3

O.k

O.

dimensionless

Fig. 15. Concentration profile along the absorber neglecting the effect of multiple reflections.

solar beams are inclined to the aperture, multi-reflection zones will be asymmetrically present on the mirror surface. The way in which the absorber surface will deal with the concentrated radiation gives additional weight to the multi-reflected radiation. It can be shown, from Fig. 2, that a beam incident at a position angle 0 will eventually hit the absorber at an incidence angle equal to 12170- ~z(2n - 1)/2f. This term has a progressively decreasing average value for higher-order reflection zones. In other words, the radiation reflected from a particular reflection zone will be closer to normal as the order of the reflection zone increases. Consequently, the absorber will show higher absorptances (or higher effective transmittance absorptance products, if the effect of the diathermanous shield around the absorber is considered s) for higher-order reflections.

P E R F O R M A N C E W H E N T H E I N C I D E N T R A D I A T I O N IS I N C L I N E D TO T H E A P E R T U R E When the sun is offthe zenithal position, relative to the aperture, the incident beams are not axial with respect to the reflector. The whole, or a part, of the mirror surface will be exposed to the oblique radiation. At values of the angular deviation 6 > (90 - ~p), a part of the reflector surface will be shaded by itself. However, this is more likely to occur in concentrators with large rim angles and at times of the day close to the ends of sunlight duration when the

182

M. E E1-Refaie

normal intensity of the direct insolation is already low. Accordingly, this self-shading does not represent a real practical problem. Hence, no particular attention will be paid to it. Nevertheless, it is included in the general treatment presented in what follows. In general, for any rim angle and any non-zero value of 6, the projection of the irradiated mirror surface, normal to the incidence direction, has an elliptical form, as shown in Fig. 16. The major and minor axes of the ellipse are given by (2rSsin 0) and (2rSsin ~bcos 6) respectively. Referring to the Cartesian coordinates shown in the figure, with the origin at 0, the ellipse will be represented by y2 + = (rs sin 0) 2 (30)

The absorber axis is represented, in the projection plane, by point 0'. Any circle drawn around 0' with a radius r represents the set of points on the mirror surface located at a position angle 0 relative to the instantaneous absorber position. The corresponding value of 0 is given by sin- 1(r/rs). It can

~e,'6,

TM

Axial direction

\
I I I I
\

//

\
/ f i /

iI

Fig. 16.

Projection on a plane n o r m a l to the incidence direction o f solar beams.

Performance ~[ the SRTA solar collector

183

be seen from Fig. 16 that some of these points m a y not exist physically. The just-enclosed circle of radius ~represents a limiting position circle, defined by (7, that will be completely present. This implies that the radiation reflected from all mirror annuli at position angles less than (Twill impinge all around the absorber perimeter, i.e. it will have a circumferentially uniform distribution. This limiting value is given by

(7= ~z,- 6

~31)

At position angles higher than (7, such as that represented by the circle of radius r in Fig. 16, no radiation will be reflected to the absorber in the angular span - ~ to 4~- It is to be noted that the angle 4~ is reckoned from a zero datum defined by the meridian, including the central incident beam and the concentrator axis. Accordingly, this datum is not fixed; it changes its position from time to time around the absorber. In the case displayed in Fig. 16, the radius J~x defines the furthermost position angle 0m~~ that will receive incident radiation. Accordingly, no reflected radiation whatsoever will be received, on any fraction of the absorber perimeter, from a position angle higher than (lmax' The value of 0 ...... is given by

0rnax= ~/-~- ~
The way in which the radiation reflected from the different reflection zones is distributed around the absorber depends on the values of (7 and 0max relative to the transition angles /~, (n = 1, 2, 3.... ). Consider a general case when (Tlies in the range/Jj < (7< [Jj+ 1. In such a case, the reflection from the jth zone will be received in two different modes. The radiation reflected from points at position angles/~j < 0 < (7will encircle the absorber completely. On the other hand, reflection from points at (7< 0 < [~j+l will be received only along a part of the absorber perimeter. Accordingly, all the energy reflected from the different zones, up to the ( / - l ) t h zone. will be distributed uniformly around the absorber. The higher-order reflection zones, ( / + 11 to m, will irradiate progressively shorter arcs of absorber. This is obvious in Fig. 16, where the angle ~b increases with the radius r (i.e. as we move to higher position angles). The highest-order reflection zone (m) which will be partly or completely present can be determined from the inequality [~,, < 0 ..... _< [~,,+ ~. At the end of this discussion a simple but very important fact evolves and should be highlighted: any point on the absorber surface not receiving reflection from the j t h reflection zone will not receive any reflection from higher-order reflection zones ( / + 1) to (m). This rule will be helpful in mapping the areas of degraded concentration on the absorber surface: this is shown hereinafter.

184

M. F EI-Refaie

The projected circle, shown in Fig. 16, for any position angle 0 is represented by the equation y2 + (z - E) 2 = r 2 = (r~ sin 0) 2 where the eccentricity E is found, from Fig. 16, to be E = r s cos ~Osin 6 (33) (32)

The angle ~b, corresponding to any value of 0, can be obtained by intersecting the ellipse and the circle shown in Fig. 16; see eqns (30) and (32). This yields z = r~(cos 0 -- cos ~ cos 6)/tan 6 and y = + r~[sin 2 ~k - (cos 0 - cos ~Ocos 6)2/sin 2 fi] 1/2 (35) Thus q5 = t a n - 1[ y / ( z - E)] = tan - 1{[(sin q; sin 3) 2 - (cos 0 - cos 0 cos 3) 2] l/2/(cos 6 cos 0 - cos qs)} (36) The variation of the angle ~b with the position angle 0 is displayed in Fig. 17 for different values of ~ and 3. The angle q5 is equal to zero for all position angles less than or equal to the limiting value 0-given by eqn (31). In order to contour the areas of low concentration on the absorber surface, it is necessary to determine the non-receiving arc of the absorber perimeter at different sections along the absorber. In principle, this is possible through combining eqns (5) and (36), by eliminating the position angle 0, to get an explicit formula interrelating the angle q5 and the distance X. However, this yielded a mathematical expression which is too cumbersome to be used even in the simple case of n = 1, i.e. once-reflected radiation. Alternatively, the coupling of 4) and X could be achieved in an indirect way through combining Fig. 17, for the pertinent values of q; and 6, with Fig. 5 for the appropriate diameter ratio R. This will be explained later. Based on a discussion presented previously, it can be concluded that if reflection from the single-reflection zone is not received at a certain point on the absorber surface, then all the higher-order reflections will also be absent at this point. Accordingly, we shall be interested mainly in determining the absorber areas not irradiated by first-order reflection. However, the method presented in what follows can be used to map the degradation of the radiation reflected from any zone of order n. It should be used recurrently, in the sense that the areal distribution of the nth-order reflection should be investigated only over the parts of the absorber surface already irradiated by the ( n - 1)th zone. (34)

Per/ormance qf the SRTA solar collector

185

O r--. O

O CO

,a -'Z

,.... O -g

~J

O kD

:_

.s
0~ O LF'X @ -~

%'% e-. O G

tO Oq

-~ ~.

0 O 0 0 O 0 ~- O 0 O h II

:lj %)

J,
,
0 0 0 ~

I
I
0 0

1
0 CO

I
0 0

I
0

I
0

J
0

186

M. E El-Refaie

Figure 18 is a diagram illustrating the combination of Figs 17 and 5. At times of small angular deviations 6, the limiting value 0-will be greater than #2; and reflection from the first zone will be uniformly spread all around the absorber perimeter along the whole absorber length. For larger values of 6, resulting in values of 0 i n the range /1 < 0-< f12 as shown in Fig. 18(a), some points of the absorber will be feebly irradiated by the inner beam only (faint spot). All these points are included along the absorber segment X < X; and for any value of X, they fall within an arc of 2q5o.1 of the perimeter. At 0-= 71, a faint spot will extend all over the length but with a variable arc ranging from zero degrees at the absorber tip to a maximum value 24h.ol0=~2 at the root. As the angular deviation increases such that (7falls in the range ), < 0-< 71, as shown in Fig. 18(b), a completely non-irradiated spot starts to appear on the absorber surface (i.e. a dim spot). This spot will be confined to the segment ) ( < X < L/r~, where the angle ~bi,1 acquires non-zero values. At the same time, the faint region will be extending all over the length. At any section in the range .~< X < L/r~, the faint spot occupies a wider arc (@i,1 < ~bo,1). For very large angular deviations, when 0-decreases to or below the

(h
J

0,I i,i

o,i

7
0 ~. Y1
(a)

o,i

X
x-

B2

0 )~

y~
(bl

13 2

Fig. 18. D e t e r m i n a t i o n o f the angle @ at different locations along the absorber. (a) 71 < (@ - 3) < #2- Faintly irradiated spot in the range 0 < X < X. (b) 2 < (~b - 3) < ",'1- Completely n o n - i r r a d i a t e d spot in the range X< X < L/r~ and faintly irradiated spot all over the length.

Performance qf the SRTA solar collector

187

x/L
1-

.8-

I
!

.6-

.4-

.2-

oi_

--II0

l,

11

-~ o

-i

o
=42.34 +

)o

I~-1i0

-oo

o
6 =50

no

I 0

=20

.8.6.4.

.2-

I
0 0 '-

-0 0

' \\l,,

) "dlO

~=60

~=6~.26

~ =68

~<(~ -

~)<Y1

(~ -

~)=~

(~-

6)<~

Fig. 19. C o n t o u r s o f faint a n d d i m s p o t s o n d e v e l o p e d a b s o r b e r s u r f a c e at different a n g u l a r d e v i a t i o n s . R i m a n g l e = 7 0 ' a n d d i a m e t e r r a t i o R = 0-1 (2 = 5 7 4 a n d ;'~ = 2 7 6 6 t.

188

M. F. EI-Refaie

value 2, both faint and dim regions will be present all over the absorber length. The dim region will always be enclosed within the faint one. Based on the discussion presented above it can be seen that, in the case of inclined incidence, we have different concentration profiles along the different generators of the cylindrical absorber. The circumferential variation of the axial concentration profile is a detail which cannot be completely accommodated here. Interest will be focused only on the qualitative division of the absorber surface into three distinguishable areas, namely the fully-irradiated or bright, the faint and the dim regions. This has been done and a sample of the results is displayed in Fig. 19, which shows the sequential occurrence and growth of degraded concentration regions upon the progressive increase of the angular deviation. In this figure, the relatively large value of 0-1 was deliberately assigned to the diameter-ratio in order to achieve large values of 2 and 71, and hence have wide clear stages of growth of the extinguished regions. As the incident beams deviate from the axial direction, the radiation received from multi-reflection zones suffers a gradually growing degradation similar to that shown in Fig. 19. But the onset of becoming faint starts at lower values of the deviation 6. It can be seen, from Fig. 18, that when considering the reflection from the nth-order zone, faint then dim spots begin to appear as the limiting angle 0-descends across the boundaries/3, + 1 then 7, respectively. These spots will be confined to the absorber segment 0 < X < Xmax,.. They can be contoured in the same way as explained above for the first reflection zone.

CONCLUSIONS The SRTA solar collector can be designed to meet a wide range of concentration requirements. The average concentration ratio may be tuned by manipulating the reflector rim angle and the absorber-to-reflector diameter ratio, In general, the concentration ratios achievable in a SRTA collector are of the same order of magnitude as those realized in conical concentrators and wide-target parabolic troughs. 9'1 Multi-reflection zones may exist on the mirror surface, particularly in concentrators having large rim angles and/or at times of large angular deviations of the incident beams from axial incidence. In general, the contribution of these zones to the total concentrated power is limited. However, they have a marked effect on the local flux densities at points on the absorber close to the mirror surface. The concentration profile along the absorber is characterized by steep variations, The maximum local intensity exists at the absorber tip. A number

PerJormance ~ [ the SRTA solar collector ?+

189

of closely-spaced spikes may exist near the root if multi-reflection zones are present, The mirror reflectance has a proportional effect on the local concentration ratio at points away from the root, irradiated by the first reflection zone. It has a more profound effect along the absorber segment close to the root where reflections from higher-order zones overlap. At times of oblique incidence, the concentration distribution on the absorber surface becomes circumferentially non-uniform. As the angular deviation increases, areas o f localized degraded concentration appear and gradually grow. A faint region commences at the root and progressively extends towards the tip. Then a dim region starts to grow in the opposite direction, i.e. tip-to-root. The faint spot is always wider than the dim one at any section of the absorber; thus a fringe area separates bright and dim regions. Concentrators having large rim angles are less susceptible to this phenomenon. As the rim angle increases, the occurrence of extinguished spots will be delayed to occur at larger angular deviations.

REFERENCES 1. A. B. Meinel, Concentrating collectors, in So&r Energy Eng#reering, ed. A. A. M. Sayigh, Academic Press, New York, 1977. 2. A. B. Meinel and M. P. Meinel, Applied Solar E, ergy, Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Reading, Massachusetts, 1977. 3. W. G. Steward and F. Kreith, Stationary concentrating reflector cum tracking absorber solar energy collector: optical design characteristics, Applied Optics, 14(7) (1975), 1509-12. 4. A. M. Clausing, The performance of a stationary reflector/tracking absorber solar concentrator, Sharing the Sun, Vol. 2, Proc. Joint ('op~/; ISES and Solar Energy Socie O' of Canada, Winnipeg, Canada, August 1976, pp. 304 26. 5. J. F. Kreider, Thermal performance analysis of the stationary reflector/tracking absorber (SRTA) solar concentrator, Trans. ASME, .I. Heat Tran.y[i'r (Aug. 1975), 451 6. 6. B. F. Authier, Design of a stationary spherical collector. Proc. ISES ('o, er., New Delhi, Vol. 2, 1978, pp. 1235 43. 7. A. Bar-Lev, S. Waks and G. Grossman, Analysis of a combined thermal photovoltaic solar system based on the spherical reflector/tracking absorber concentrator, Trans. ASME, J. Solar Energy Engineering, 105 (1983), 322 8. 8. J. A. Duffle and W. A. Beckman, Solar Energy Thermal Processes. John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1974. 9. M. F. EI-Refaie, Theoretical analysis of thc pcrtbrmancc of a conical solar concentrator, Applied Energy, 12 (1982), 37 51. 10. K. E. Hassan and M, F. El-Refaie, Theoretical perl\~rmance of cylindrical parabolic solar concentrators, Solar Energy, 15 (1973), 219 44.