MAHAKAL INSTITUTE OF

TECHNOLOGY, UJJAIN
PROJECT :- DESIGN OF PROTOTYPE SOLAR CHIMNEY POWER
GENERATOR
GUIDED BY:- DR. SANTOSH VYAS NAME AND ROLL NO. OF TEAM MEMBERS :-
PRADEEP RATHORE (0704ME151062)
PRAFFUL JAISWAL (0704ME151063)
PRANAV GAUR (0704ME151067)
RAJESH ANJANA (0704ME151076)
YOGENDRA SINGH PANWAR (0704ME151116)
 CONTENT

• OBJECTIVE • THEORETICAL FORMULATION FOR POWER

• THE SOLAR CHIMNEY OUTPUT & EFFICIENCY
• DESIGN AND FABRICATION DETAILS
• PARTS OF THE SOLAR CHIMNEY
COLLECTOR • ADVANTAGES
TURBINES • LIMITATIONS
CHIMNEY • CONCLUSION
• WORKING PRINCIPLES OF SOLAR CHIMNEY
OBJECTIVE
• IN MANY PARTS OF THE WORLD, THERE IS A GROWING
AWARENESS THAT SOME ALTERNATIVE ENERGY SOURCES
COULD HAVE AN IMPORTANT ROLE TO PLAY IN THE
PRODUCTION OF ELECTRICITY.
• HOWEVER, ONLY THE SOLAR ENERGY REPRESENTS TOTALLY
NONPOLLUTING INEXHAUSTIBLE ENERGY RESOURCE THAT
CAN BE UTILIZED ECONOMICALLY TO SUPPLY MANS
ENERGY NEEDS FOR ALL TIME .
THE SOLAR CHIMNEY
• THE SOLAR CHIMNEY IS BASICALLY HYDRAULIC POWER PLANT, BUT INSTEAD OF WATER IT USES HOT AIR.
BENEATH A LARGE GLASS ROOF AIR IS HEATED. IT ENTERS A VERTICAL TUBE PLACED AT THE CENTER OF
THE ROOF AND CREATES AN UP DRAUGHT THERE INSIDE THE TUBE KAPLAN – TYPE WIND TURBINE WITH
ELECTRICAL GENERATOR AND PRODUCING ELECTRICITY.
• CONTINUOUS OPERATION IS GUARANTEED BY PLACING TIGHT WATER – FILLED TUBES UNDER THE
ROOF. THE WATER HEATS UP DURING THE DAYTIME AND EMITS ITS HEAT AT NIGHT. THESE TUBES ARE
FILLED ONLY ONCE, NO FURTHER WATER IS NEEDED.
• THE SOLAR CHIMNEY SYSTEM CONSISTS OF THREE PARTS THE COLLECTOR, TURBINES AND THE CHIMNEY.
 PARTS OF THE SOLAR CHIMNEY

THE COLLECTOR
• COLLECTOR IS THE PART, WHICH IS USED TO PRODUCE
HOT AIR BY GREEN-HOUSE EFFECT. IT IS USUALLY 5-6
METERS HIGH AND COVERS A VERY LARGE AREA ABOUT
THOUSANDS OF M² AS SEEN IN FIGURE 2.
• THERE IS NO LIMITATION FOR THE SURFACE AREA. THE
LARGER THE AREA, THE MORE ENERGY GENERATED FROM
THE CHIMNEY.
• THERE SHOULD BE SLIGHTLY INCREASING HEIGHT
TOWARDS TO THE CHIMNEY IN ORDER TO OBTAIN MINIMUM
FRICTION LOSS
TURBINES
• TURBINES, SEEN IN FIGURE , ARE USED TO CONVERT
AIR CURRENT TO THE MECHANICAL ENERGY.
• TURBINES ARE PLACED HORIZONTALLY IN CHIMNEY,
VERTICALLY IN THE COLLECTOR. IN ORDER TO OBTAIN
MAXIMUM ENERGY FROM THE WARMED AIR, TURBINES
BLADES SHOULD COVER ALL THE CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA
OF THE CHIMNEY.
• TO DO THIS, ONE BIG TURBINE OR A FEW SMALL
TURBINES SHOULD BE USED IN CHIMNEY.
THE CHIMNEY

• THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE PLANT IS THE CHIMNEY, SEEN IN FIGURE . IT ACTS AS A
THERMAL ENGINE. SINCE THE FRICTION LOSS IS MINIMUM IN THE CHIMNEY IT LIKES A
PRESSURE TUBE.
• LONGER THE CHIMNEYS HEIGHT, THE MORE THE ENERGY PRODUCED FROM THE CHIMNEY.
• THE EFFICIENCY OF THE CHIMNEY IS NOT DEPEND ON THE AMOUNT OF THE TEMPERATURE
RISING, BUT DEPENDS ON THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE.
• THUS, EFFICIENCY DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL TO THE RATIO BETWEEN THE HEIGHT OF THE
CHIMNEY AND THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE.
 WORKING PRINCIPLE OF SOLAR CHIMNEY

• TRANSPARENT ROOF, WHICH IS SEEN İN FIGURE

10, ADMİTS THE SHORT WAVE SOLAR
RADİATİON COMPONENT AND RETAİNS LONG-
WAVE RADİATİON FROM THE HEATED GROUND.
THUS, WHEN SOLAR RADİATİON PASS THROUGH
THE TRANSPARENT ROOF İT İS ABSORBED BY THE
GROUND ELEMENTS AND İT CONVERTS İNTO
HEAT ENERGY.

Fig. 10 Transparent roof

WORKING PRINCIPLE OF SOLAR CHIMNEY
• SINCE AIR IS HEATED, IT STARTS TO RISE UP AND
MOVE TOWARDS TO CHIMNEY,SEEN İN FIGURE 11.
ALSO, IT GAINS VELOCITY.
• HEATED AIR ENTERS THE CHIMNEY PLACED AT THE
CENTER OF THE ROOF AND CREATES AN UP DRAUGHT
THERE.
• INSIDE THE CHIMNEY, TURBINES WITH ELECTRIC
GENERATOR, PRODUCE ELECTRICITY.

Fig. 11 Schematic seen of the solar chimney

Tower Chimney Tower Apron Area Apron OUTPUT INDEX INDEX
Height (m) Diameter (sq.m) height (m) (Power Ch.Ht/ Apron Area
(m) generation) Apron Area / Ch.Ht

MANZANAR 195 10 45000 2 50 KW 0.004333 230.769

ES, Spain
(Built 2002)

Gaboronte 22 1 160 NO DATA NO DATA 0.1375 7.2727

Botswanna
(Built 2005)

Australian 1000 130 38.5×105 NO DATA 200 MW 2.59×10-5 38484

Govt
(Planned
2002)
Greentower, 1500 280 37×106 NO DATA 400 MW 4.05×10-5 24667
Nambia
(planned
2008)
THEORETICAL FORMULATION FOR POWER OUTPUT
AND EFFICIENCY OF SUT
• IN OUR CONSIDERATION, WE IDENTIFIED THREE VARIABLES THAT WOULD INFLUENCE THE
POWER OUTPUT OF THE SUT: 𝐴APRON, AREA OF APRON, ΗTOWER, HEIGHT OF TOWER AND
𝐷TOWER, DIAMETER OF TOWER.
• POWER IS GENERATED FROM THE WIND TURNING THE TURBINE. FOR NOW WE SET ASIDE THE
BASE EFFICIENCY OF THE TURBINE AND ASSUME IT HAS 100% EFFICIENCY, HENCE THE POWER
OUTPUT IS SIMPLY DEPENDENT OF THE WIND VELOCITY AND THE AREA COVERED BY THE
TURBINE.
𝑃=(1/ 2)𝜌𝑐P𝐴TURBINE𝜈3
• THE AREA, 𝐴, IS SIMPLY THE DIAMETER OF THE TOWER AT THE POINT WHERE THE TURBINE IS
PLACED. FOR OUR SETUP, WE USE THE MOST GENERAL CASE FOR THE TOWER AND ASSUME IT
HAS UNIFORM DIAMETER THROUGHOUT.
𝐴TURBINE= (1/ 4)𝜋𝐷2TOWER
• THE VELOCITY OF THE AIR, 𝑣, IS CAUSED BY THE CONVECTION FLOW OF THE AIR DUE TO
HEATING FROM THE SUN. ADDITIONALLY THE AIR EXITS AT THE TOP OF THE TOWER WHERE THE
TEMPERATURE IS COOLER. HENCE, THE VELOCITY OF THE AIR IS GIVEN BY THE FOLLOWING:
𝑣 = (2𝑔𝐻TOWER(Δ𝑇/TA))1/2
WHERE Δ𝑇 REPRESENTS THE DIFFERENCE IN TEMPERATURE BETWEEN THE HEATED GAS AT THE
BOTTOM OF THE TOWER AND THE TOP OF THE TOWER AND 𝑇 REPRESENTS THE AMBIENT
TEMPERATURE OF THE AIR AT THE TOP.
METHODOLOGY ADOPTED:-

Parameters values

Chimney height (Hch) 7 feet

Chimney diameter (Dch) 90 mm
Collector diameter (Dcoll) 5 feet
Distance from ground to the cover (Hcoll) 2 feet
Solar irradiance (G) 198.32 W/m2
Collector efficiency factor (F’)
Ambient temperature (Tamb.) 27 C
DESIGN AND FABRICATION DETAILS:

• 1. FABRICATION OF CHIMNEY
• A METALLIC CONE STAND IS USED AS THE BASE OF OUR PROTOTYPE SOLAR CHIMNEY. HOLES
WERE DRILLED AT EQUAL SPACING FOR SECURING OF SUPPORT WIRES.
• RECTANGULAR SECTIONS OF THE CONE WERE CUT OFF TO ALLOW FOR AIR FLOW FROM
UNDER THE APRON TO THE CHIMNEY.
• A LONG PVC PIPE WAS USED AS OUR CHIMNEY. THESE ARE JOINED TOGETHER AND AIR-
SEALED USING DUCT TAPE.
FABRICATION DETAILS:

• 2. FABRICATION OF GROUND
• ROOF CONCRETE ACT AS THE “GROUND” OF THE ENTIRE SETUP. THEY ARE SELECTED TO BE
GREY SO AS TO PREVENT THE GROUND FROM ABSORBING ALL THE LIGHT (AND THUS, HEAT)
AS WELL AS ABSORB SUFFICIENT AMOUNT OF IRRADIATION, ALLOWING THE AIR INSIDE THE
APRON TO ABSORB MORE HEAT TO CREATE A LARGER TEMPERATURE DIFFERENTIAL.
• TO HELP IDENTIFY THE MIDDLE OF THE SETUP, A CROSS WAS MADE FROM FOUR CORNERS OF
THE GROUND. AFTER POSITIONING THE CHIMNEY, THE POINT WAS MARKED FOR FUTURE
REFERENCE.
FABRICATION DETAILS:

• 3. FABRICATION OF TURBINE
• THE TURBINE WAS MADE OF A DC MOTOR AND AN APPROPRIATELY SIZED FAN BLADE. AFTER
ATTACHING THE BLADES TO OUR MOTOR, THE ENTIRE SETUP WAS ATTACHED TO A FRAME
SUPPORT WHICH IS THEN HOT GLUED TO THE INSIDES OF OUR CHIMNEY. THE SEVEN FAN
BLADE SELECTED WERE 2.5” AND 3” AND WERE INTENDED TO FIT OUR CHIMNEYS WITH INNER
DIAMETER OF 3” AND 3.5” RESPECTIVELY.
FABRICATION DETAILS
• 4. FABRICATION OF SOLAR PLATE COLLECTOR
• FOR OUR COLLECTOR, FIVE PIECES OF TRANSPARENT PLASTIC COVER WAS BOUGHT. WE THEN CUT OUT
A SHEET OF PLASTIC, WITH AN OPENING IN THE CENTRE TO FIT OVER THE CHIMNEY. FISHING LINES WERE
TIED FROM THE CHIMNEY BASE TO SURROUNDING STAND TO SUSPEND THE GLASSES, LETTING IT ACT AS
OUR COLLECTORS.

• 5. ELECTRICAL SETUP
• WITH DATA THAT STATES THE 7MW OUTPUT OF SOLAR TOWER, THE CIRCUIT WAS SCALED SMALL AS
OUR POWER OUTPUT IS PREDICTED TO BE IN THE MILLIWATTS RANGE. RESISTORS OF 0.25W RATING
WERE PURCHASED AS WE DO NOT NEED THE HIGHER POWER RATINGS FOR THIS EXPERIMENT.
ILLUSTRATIVE IMAGES:
ADVANTAGES

• SOLAR CHIMNEY POWER STATIONS ARE PARTICULARLY SUITABLE FOR GENERATING ELECTRICITY IN
DESERTS AND SUN-RICH WASTELAND.
• IT PROVIDES ELECTRICITY 24 HOUR A DAY FROM SOLAR ENERGY ALONE.
• NO FUEL IS NEEDED. IT NEEDS NO COOLING WATER AND IS SUITABLE IN EXTREME DRYING REGIONS.
• IT IS PARTICULARLY RELIABLE AND A LITTLE TROUBLE-PRONE COMPARED WITH OTHER POWER
PLANTS.
• THE MATERIALS CONCRETE, GLASS AND STEEL NECESSARY FOR THE BUILDING OF SOLAR CHIMNEY
POWER STATIONS ARE EVERYWHERE IN SUFFICIENT QUANTITIES.
• NO ECOLOGICAL HARM AND NO CONSUMPTION OF RESOURCES.
LIMITATIONS

• SOME ESTIMATES SAY THAT THE COST OF GENERATING ELECTRICITY FROM A SOLAR CHIMNEY
IS 5X MORE THAN FROM A GAS TURBINE. ALTHOUGH FUEL IS NOT REQUIRED, SOLAR
CHIMNEYS HAVE A VERY HIGH CAPITAL COST .
• THE STRUCTURE ITSELF IS MASSIVE AND REQUIRES A LOT OF ENGINEERING EXPERTISE AND
MATERIALS TO CONSTRUCT .
CONCLUSION
• SOLAR CHIMNEY POWER PLANTS ARE AN INTERESTING ALTERNATIVE TO CENTRALIZED ELECTRICITY
GENERATION POWER PLANTS. IT IS AN IDEALLY ADAPTED TECHNOLOGY FOR COUNTRIES THAT LACK A
SOPHISTICATED TECHNICAL INFRASTRUCTURE, WHERE SIMPLICITY AND UNCRITICAL OPERATION OF THE
INSTALLATION IS OF CRUCIAL IMPORTANCE. A DETAILED LITERATURE SURVEY OF THIS SYSTEM WAS PERFORMED.
THE REVIEW DISCUSSES THE PRINCIPLES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF SUCH A SYSTEM, ITS REQUIREMENTS, ITS
CONSTRUCTION AND ITS OPERATION. IT GIVES ALSO A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE PRESENT STATE OF RESEARCH
AT THE SOLAR CHIMNEY POWER PLANT AND FUTURE PROSPECTS FOR LARGE-SCALE PLANTS. THIS PAPER
SHOWED THAT FEW PROTOTYPES HAVE BEEN TESTED IN THE WORLD. IT CAN BE CONCLUDED THAT SUCH
SYSTEMS NEED TO BE VERY LARGE IF THEY ARE TO GENERATE SIGNIFICANT QUANTITIES OF POWER. BECAUSE
OF HIGH CONSTRUCTION COST OF SOLAR CHIMNEY, MANY RESEARCHERS HAVE CHOSEN THE NUMERICAL
WAY IN THEIR STUDIES ESPECIALLY CFD METHODS.
THANK YOU