Fractal-Fin, Dimpled Solar Heat Collector with Solar Glaze

Technical Report · Thu Sep 01 04:00:00 EDT 2022

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1888357· OSTI ID:1888357

Rodriguez, Salvador ^[1]; Beato, Moises ^[1]; Monroe, Graham ^[1]; Sharpe, Rob ^[1]

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1. Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), Albuquerque, NM, and Livermore, CA (United States)

Exterior solar glaze was added to a 3 foot x 3 foot x 3 foot aluminum solar collector that had six triangular dimpled fins for enhanced heat transfer. The interior vertical wall on the south side was also dimpled. The solar glaze was added to compare its solar collection performance with unglazed solar collector experiments conducted at Sandia in 2021. The east, west, front, and top sides of the solar collector were encased with solar glaze glass. Because the solar incident heat on the north and bottom sides was minimal, they were insulated to retain the heat that was collected by the other four sides. The advantages of the solar glaze include the entrapment of more solar heat, as well as insulation from the wind. The disadvantages are that it increases the cost of the solar collector and has fragile structural properties when compared to the aluminum walls. Nevertheless, prior to conducting experiments with the glazed solar collector, it was not clear if the benefits outweighed the disadvantages. These issues are addressed herein, with the conclusion that the additional amount of heat collected by the glaze justifies the additional cost. The solar collector glaze design, experimental data, and costs and benefits are documented in this report.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); NMSBA
• DOE Contract Number: NA0003525
• OSTI ID: 1888357
• Report Number(s): SAND2022-12752; 710021
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

14 SOLAR ENERGY
42 ENGINEERING