Review of various solar cavity receivers of parabolic dish concentrators with design aspects and heat loss analysis

Year 2024, Volume: 10 Issue: 3, 756 - 772, 21.05.2024

Kushal S. Wasankar Nitin P. Gulhane

Abstract

In a parabolic dish system, the heat losses from the cavity receiver significantly suppress the system’s efficiency and may increase its overall cost. Several existing researches have numerically and experimentally developed the different cavity receiver models by modifying their inclinations, design geometrics, and structure. The conductive loss does not occur much in the cavity receivers compared to the convective loss. So, the analysis of convective loss is more critical in the cavity receivers; however, the accurate prediction of convection loss is quite complex due to the temperature distribution near the cavity. This prime aim of the paper is to comprehensively review the existing literature related to design configurations of cavity receivers and heat loss analysis to set a platform for performance improvement via design modifications. The study emphasizes the effect of geometric parameters like the structure of cavity receivers, shape and sizes, and angle of inclinations with the ground. Structural configurations, especially the hemispherical, cylindrical, conical, and trapezoidal cavity receivers utilized for the solar dish collector (SDC), are investigated between the years 1980 to 2022. A comparison is made based on heat loss models and research outcomes. Besides, the Nusselt correlation model used for predicting heat losses is also carried out in this review by varying the effects such as inclination, aperture ratio, wind effect, etc. This review supports the solar cavity designers for experimentally investigating and simulating a new modified solar cavity receiver with minimization and accurately predicting convective losses.

Keywords

Cavity Receivers, Convective Heat Loss, Nusselt Correlation, Parabolic Dish Collector, Thermal Efficiency

References

• [1] Dincer F. The analysis on photovoltaic electricity generation status potential and policies of the lead- ing countries in solar energy. Renew Sustain Energy Rev 2011;15:713−720. [CrossRef]
• [2] Tripanagnostopoulos Y, Souliotis M, Nousia T. Solar collectors with colored absorbers. Solar Energy 2000;68:343−356. [CrossRef]
• [3] Mekhilef S, Faramarzi SZ, Saidur R, Salam Z. The application of solar technologies for sustainable development of agricultural sector. Renew Sustain Energy Rev 2013;18:583−594. [CrossRef]
• [4] Sridhar K, Lingaiah G, Kumar GV, Kumar SA, Ramakrishna G. Performance of cylindrical par- abolic collector with automated tracking system. Appl Solar Energy 2018;54:134−138. [CrossRef]
• [5] Fuqiang W, Ziming C, Jianyu T, Yuan Y, Yong S, Linhua L. Progress in concentrated solar power technology with parabolic trough collector system: A comprehensive review. Renew Sustain Energy Rev 2017;79:1314−1328. [CrossRef]
• [6] Islam MT, Huda N, Abdullah AB, Saidur R. A com- prehensive review of state-of-the-art concentrat- ing solar power (CSP) technologies: Current status and research trends. Renew Sustain Energy Rev 2018;91:987−1018. [CrossRef]
• [7] Zhao XUYI, Fuqiang W, Xuhang S, Ziming C, Xiangtao G. Analysis of heat transfer performance of the absorber tube with convergent-divergent structure for parabolic trough collector. J Therm Engineer 2021;7:1843−1856. [CrossRef]
• [8] Mehrpooya M, Ghorbani, Moradi M. A novel MCFC hybrid power generation process using solar para- bolic dish thermal energy. Int J Hydrogen Energy 2019;44:8548−8565. [CrossRef ]
• [9] Waghmare SA, Puranik BP. Center-oriented aim- ing strategy for heliostat with spinning-eleva- tion tracking method. J Solar Energy Engineer 2022;144:024503. [CrossRef]
• [10] Kodama T. High-temperature solar chemistry for converting solar heat to chemical fuels. Prog Energy Combust Sci 2003;29:567−597. [CrossRef]
• [11] Kussul E, Baidyk T, Makeyev O, Lara-Rosano F, Saniger JM, Bruce N. Flat facet parabolic solar concentrator with support cell for one and more mirrors. WSEAS Tran Power Systems 2008;3:577−586.
• [12] Kaushika ND, Reddy KS. Performance of a low cost solar paraboloidal dish steam generating system. Energy Conver Manage 2000;41:713−726. [CrossRef]
• [13] Hijazi H, Mokhiamar O, Elsamni O. Mechanical design of a low cost parabolic solar dish concentra- tor. Alexandria Engineer J 2016;55:1−11. [CrossRef]
• [14] Hussein AK. Applications of nanotechnology in renewable energies-A comprehensive overview and understanding. Renew Sustain Energy Rev 2015;42:460−476. [CrossRef]
• [15] Hussein AK. Walunj A, Kolsi L. Applications of nanotechnology to enhance the performance of the direct absorption solar collectors. J Therm Engineer 2016;2:529−540. [CrossRef ]
• [16] Hussein AK, Li D, Kolsi L, Kata S, Sahoo B. A review of nano fluid role to improve the performance of the heat pipe solar collectors. Energy Procedia 2017;109:417−424. [CrossRef]
• [17] Liu C, Wu Y, Li D, Ma T, Hussein AK, Zhou Y. Investigation of thermal and optical performance of a phase change material-filled double-glazing unit. J Building Physics 2018;42:99−119. [CrossRef]
• [18] Hussein AK. Applications of nanotechnology to improve the performance of solar collectors-Recent advances and overview. Renew Sustain Energy Rev 2016;62:767−792. [CrossRef]
• [19] Hafez AZ, Soliman A, El-Metwally KA, Ismail IM. Design analysis factors and specifications of solar dish technologies for different systems and applications. Renew Sustain Energy Rev 2017;67:1019−1036. [CrossRef]
• [20] Hafez AZ, Soliman A, El-Metwally KA, Ismail IM. Solar parabolic dish Stirling engine system design simulation and thermal analysis. Energy Conver Manage 2016;126:60−75. [CrossRef]
• [21] Schöttl P, Bern G, Pretel JAF, Fluri T, Nitz P. Optimization of solar tower molten salt cavity receiv- ers for maximum yield based on annual perfor- mance assessment. Solar Energy 2020;199:278−294. [CrossRef ]
• [22] Garrido J, Aichmayer L, Abou-Taouk A, Laumert B. Experimental and numerical performance anal- yses of a dish-stirling cavity receiver: Geometry and operating temperature studies. Solar Energy 2018;170:913−923. [CrossRef ]
• [23] Samanes J, García-Barberena J, Zaversky F. Modeling solar cavity receivers: a review and comparison of natural convection heat loss correlations. Energy Procedia 2015;69:543−552. [CrossRef]
• [24] Flesch R, Stadler H, Uhlig R, Pitz-Paal R. Numerical analysis of the influence of inclination angle and wind on the heat losses of cavity receivers for solar ther- mal power towers. Solar Energy 2014;110:427−437. [CrossRef ]
• [25] Alipourtarzanagh E, Chinnici A, Nathan GJ, Dally BB. Experimental insights into the mecha- nism of heat losses from a cylindrical solar cavity receiver equipped with an air curtain. Solar Energy 2020;201:314−322. [CrossRef]
• [26] Gonzalez MM, Palafox JH, Estrada CA. Numerical study of heat transfer by natural convection and surface thermal radiation in an open cavity receiver. Solar Energy 2012;86:1118−1128. [CrossRef]
• [27] Cheng TS, Liu WH. Effects of cavity inclination on mixed convection heat transfer in lid-driven cavity flows. Computers Fluids 2014;100:108−122. [CrossRef]
• [28] Izadi M, Behzadmehr A, Shahmardan MM. Effects of inclination angle on mixed convection heat trans- fer of a nanofluid in a square cavity. Int J Comput Meth Engineer Sci Mech 2015;16:11−21. [CrossRef]
• [29] Wang J, Huang X, Gong G, Hao M, Yin F. A sys- tematic study of the residual gas effect on vac- uum solar receiver. Energy Conver Manage 2011;52:2367−2372. [CrossRef]
• [30] Gong G, Huang X, Wang J, Hao M. An optimized model and test of the China's first high tempera- ture parabolic trough solar receiver. Solar Energy 2010;84:2230−2245. [CrossRef]
• [31] Prakash M. Numerical study of natural convection heat loss from cylindrical solar cavity receivers. Int Scholar Res Notices 2014:104686. [CrossRef]
• [32] Ryu S, Seo T. Estimation of heat losses from the receivers for solar energy collecting system of Korea Institute of Energy Research. KSME Int J 2000;14:1403−1411. [CrossRef]
• [33] Kumar NS, Reddy KS. Numerical investigation of natural convection heat loss in modified cavity receiver for fuzzy focal solar dish concentrator. Solar Energy 2007;81:846−855. [CrossRef]
• [34] Natarajan SK, Reddy KS, Mallick TK. Heat loss characteristics of trapezoidal cavity receiver for solar linear concentrating system. Appl Energy 2012;93:523−531. [CrossRef ]
• [35] Loni R, Ghobadian B, Kasaeian AB, Akhlaghi MM, Bellos E, Najafi G. Sensitivity analysis of parabolic trough concentrator using rectangular cavity receiver. Appl Therm Engineer 2020;169:114948. [CrossRef ]
• [36] Boyd DA, Gajewski R, Swift R. A cylindrical blackbody solar energy receiver. Solar Energy 1976;18:395−401. [CrossRef ]
• [37] Zhai H, Dai Y, Wu J, Wang R. Study on trough receiver for linear concentrating solar collector. In: Goswami DY, Zhao Y, editors. Proceedings of ISES World Congress 2007 (Vol. I-Vol. V). Berlin: Tsinghua University Press; 2008. pp. 711−715. [CrossRef]
• [38] Melchior T, Perkins C, Weimer AW, Steinfeld A. A cavity-receiver containing a tubular absorber for high-temperature thermochemical processing using concentrated solar energy. Int J Therm Sci 2008;47:1496−1503. [CrossRef]
• [39] Gao W, Xu G, Li T, Li H. Modeling and performance evaluation of parabolic trough solar cavity-type receiv- ers. Int J Green Energy 2015;12:1263−1271. [CrossRef]
• [40] Bader R, Pedretti A, Barbato M, Steinfeld A. An air-based corrugated cavity-receiver for solar parabolic trough concentrators. Appl Energy 2015;138:337−345. [CrossRef]
• [41] Liang H, Zhu C, Fan M, You S, Zhang H, Xia J. Study on the thermal performance of a novel cavity receiver for parabolic trough solar collectors. Appl Energy 2018;222:790−798. [CrossRef]
• [42] Liang H, Fan M, You S, Xia J, Zhang H, Wang Y. An analysis of the heat loss and overheating pro- tection of a cavity receiver with a novel movable cover for parabolic trough solar collectors. Energy 2018;158:719−729. [CrossRef]
• [43] Dabiri S, Khodabandeh E, Poorfar AK, Mashayekhi R, Toghraie D, Zade SAA. Parametric investiga- tion of thermal characteristic in trapezoidal cavity receiver for a linear Fresnel solar collector concen- trator. Energy 2018;153:17−26. [CrossRef]
• [44] Fan M, Liang H, You S, Zhang H, Zheng W, Xia J. Heat transfer analysis of a new volumetric based receiver for parabolic trough solar collector. Energy 2018;142:920−931. [CrossRef]
• [45] Manikandan GK, Iniyan S, Goic R. Enhancing the optical and thermal efficiency of a para- bolic trough collector-A review. Appl Energy 2019;235:1524−1540. [CrossRef]
• [46] Facão J, Oliveira A.C. Numerical simulation of a trap- ezoidal cavity receiver for a linear Fresnel solar col- lector concentrator. Renew Energy 2011;36:90−96. [CrossRef ]
• [47] Lin M, Sumathy K, Dai YJ, Wang RZ, Chen Y. Experimental and theoretical analysis on a lin- ear Fresnel reflector solar collector prototype with V-shaped cavity receiver. Appl Therm Engineer 2013;51:963−972. [CrossRef ]
• [48] Loni R, Kasaeian AB, Asli-Ardeh EA, Ghobadian B. Optimizing the efficiency of a solar receiver with tubular cylindrical cavity for a solar-powered organic Rankine cycle. Energy 2016;112:1259−1272. [CrossRef]
• [49] Pavlovic S, Loni R, Bellos E, Vasiljević D, Najafi G, Kasaeian A. Comparative study of spiral and coni- cal cavity receivers for a solar dish collector. Energy Conver Manage 2018;178:111−122. [CrossRef ]
• [50] QiuY,XuM,LiQ,XuY,WangJ.Anovelevacu- ated receiver improved by a spectral-selective glass cover and rabbit-ear mirrors for parabolic trough collector. Energy Conver Manage 2021;227:113589. [CrossRef ]
• [51] Hahm T, Schmidt-Traub H, Leßmann B. A cone concentrator for high-temperature solar cavity-re- ceivers. Solar Energy 1999;65:33−41. [CrossRef]
• [52] Harris JA, Lenz TG. Thermal performance of solar concentrator/cavity receiver systems. Solar Energy 1985;34:135−142. [CrossRef ]
• [53] Naito H, Kohsaka Y, Cooke D, Arashi H. Development of a solar receiver for a high-effi- ciency thermionic/thermoelectric conversion sys- tem. Solar Energy 1996;58:191−195. [CrossRef]
• [54] Siebers DL, Kraabel JS. Estimating convective energy losses from solar central receivers (No. SAND-84-8717). Livermore, CA: Sandia National Lab; 1984. [CrossRef ]
• [55] Seo T, Ryu S, Kang Y. Heat losses from the receivers of a multifaceted parabolic solar energy collecting system. KSME Int J 2003;17:1185−1195. [CrossRef ]
• [56] Stine WB, McDonald CG. Cavity receiver convec- tive heat loss. Proceedings of the International Solar Energy Society (ISES) Solar World Conference Kobe Japan; 1989.
• [57] Leibfried U, Ortjohann J. Convective heat loss from upward and downward-facing cavity solar receivers: Measurements and calculations. ASME J Solar Energy Engineer 1995;117:75−84. [CrossRef]
• [58] Clausing AM. Convective losses from cavity solar-receivers-comparisons between analytical predictions and experimental results. ASME J Solar Energy Engineer 1983;105:29−33. [CrossRef]
• [59] Beltran R, Velazquez N, Espericueta AC, Sauceda D, Perez G. Mathematical model for the study and design of a solar dish collector with cavity receiver for its application in Stirling engines. J Mech Sci Tech 2012;26:3311−3321. [CrossRef ]
• [60] Mao Q, Shuai Y, Yuan Y. Study on radiation flux of the receiver with a parabolic solar concentra- tor system. Energy Conver Manage 2014;84:1−6. [CrossRef ]
• [61] Karimi R, Gheinani TT, Avargani VM. A detailed mathematical model for thermal performance analysis of a cylindrical cavity receiver in a solar parabolic dish collector system. Renew Energy 2018;125:768−782. [CrossRef ]
• [62] Yan J, Peng YD, Cheng ZR. Optimization of a dis- crete dish concentrator for uniform flux distribu- tion on the cavity receiver of solar concentrator system. Renew Energy 2018;129:431−445. [CrossRef]
• [63] Xiao L, Guo FW, Wu SY, Chen ZL. A comprehen- sive simulation on optical and thermal performance of a cylindrical cavity receiver in a parabolic dish collector system. Renew Energy 2020;145:878−892. [CrossRef ]
• [64] Quere PL, Humphrey JA, Sherman FS. Numerical calculation of thermally driven two-dimensional unsteady laminar flow in cavities of rectangular cross section. Numeric Heat Transfer 1981;4:249−283. [CrossRef ]
• [65] Penot F. Numerical calculation of two-dimensional natural convection in isothermal open cavities. Numeric Heat Transf Part A Appl 1982;5:421−437. [CrossRef ]
• [66] Tan Y, Zhao L, Bao J, Liu Q. Experimental investi- gation on heat loss of semi-spherical cavity receiver. Energy Conver Manage 2014;87:576−583. [CrossRef]
• [67] Li H, Huang W, Huang F, Hu P, Chen Z. Optical analysis and optimization of parabolic dish solar concentrator with a cavity receiver. Solar Energy 2013;92:288−297. [CrossRef ]
• [68] Pavlovic S, Daabo AM, Bellos E, Stefanovic V, Mahmoud S, Al-Dadah RK. Experimental and numerical investigation on the optical and ther- mal performance of solar parabolic dish and cor- rugated spiral cavity receiver. J Clean Product 2017;150:75−92. [CrossRef ]
• [69] Thirunavukkarasu V, Sornanathan M, Cheralathan M. An experimental study on energy and exergy per- formance of a cavity receiver for solar parabolic dish concentrator. Int J Exergy 2017;23:129−148. [CrossRef]
• [70] Venkatachalam T, Cheralathan M. Effect of aspect ratio on thermal performance of cavity receiver for solar parabolic dish concentrator: An experimental study. Renew Energy 2019;139:573−581. [CrossRef]
• [71] Uzair M, Anderson TN, Nates RJ. Modeling of con- vective heat loss from a cavity receiver coupled to a dish concentrator. Solar Energy 2018;176:496−505. [CrossRef ]
• [72] Craig KJ, Slootweg M, Le Roux WG, Wolff TM, Meyer JP. Using CFD and ray tracing to estimate the heat losses of a tubular cavity dish receiver for different inclination angles. Solar Energy 2020;211:1137−1158. [CrossRef ]
• [73] Prakash M, Kedare SB, Nayak JK. Investigations on heat losses from a solar cavity receiver. Solar Energy 2009;83:157−170. [CrossRef ]
• [74] Loni R, Asli-Ardeh EA, Ghobadian B, Bellos E, Le Roux WG. Numerical comparison of a solar dish con- centrator with different cavity receivers and working fluids. J Clean Product 2018;198:1013−1030. [CrossRef ]
• [75] Loni R, Kasaeian AB, Asli-Ardeh EA, Ghobadian B, Gorjian S. Experimental and numerical study on dish concentrator with cubical and cylindri- cal cavity receivers using thermal oil. Energy 2018;154:168−181. [CrossRef ]
• [76] Lopez O, Baños A, Arenas A. On the thermal per- formance of flat and cavity receivers for a parabolic dish concentrator and low/medium temperatures. Solar Energy 2020;199:911−923. [CrossRef]
• [77] KalidasaMurugavel K, Vivekanandan M, Kumaran ET, Raj RS, Shriram V, Pandian MS. Comparative study on convection loss of different shape solar dish collector cavity receivers at different positions using CFD. Mater Today Proceed 2021;37:3091−3095. [CrossRef ]
• [78] Prakash M, Kedare SB, Nayak JK. Numerical study of natural convection loss from open cavities. Int J Therm Sci 2012;51:23−30. [CrossRef]
• [79] Leong WH, Hollands KGT, Brunger AP. On a physically-realizable benchmark problem in inter- nal natural convection. Int J Heat and Mass Transf 1998;41:3817−3828. [CrossRef ]
• [80] Abbasi-Shavazi E, Torres JF, Hughes G, Pye J. Experimental correlation of natural convection losses from a scale-model solar cavity receiver with non-isothermal surface temperature distribution. Solar Energy 2020;198:355−375. [CrossRef]
• [81] Eames PC, Norton B. Detailed parametric analyses of heat transfer in CPC solar energy collectors. Solar Energy 1993;50:321−338. [CrossRef]
• [82] Koenig AA, Marvin M. Convection heat loss sen- sitivity in open cavity solar receivers. Final Report DOE Contract No: EG77-C-04-3985. Oak Ridge, TN: Department of Energy; 1981.
• [83] Lovegrove K, Taumoefolau T, Paitoonsurikarn S, Siangsukone P, Burgess G, Luzzi A, et al. Paraboloidal dish solar concentrators for multi-megawatt power generation. Proceedings of the International Solar Energy Society (ISES) Solar World Conference Goteborg Sweden; 2003.
• [84] Yasuaki S, Fujimura K, Kunugi T, Akino N. Natural convection in a hemispherical enclosure heated from below. Int J Heat and Mass Transfer 1994;37:1605−1617. [CrossRef ]
• [85] Khubeiz JM, Radziemska E, Lewandowski WM. Natural convective heat-transfers from an isother- mal horizontal hemispherical cavity. Appl Energy 2002;73:261−275. [CrossRef ]
• [86] Yanping Z, Yuxuan C, Chongzhe Z, Hu X, Falcoz Q, Neveu P, et al. Experimental investigation on heat-transfer characteristics of a cylindrical cavity receiver with pressurized air in helical pipe. Renew Energy 2021;163:320−330. [CrossRef]
• [87] Vikram TS, Reddy KS. Investigation of convective and radiative heat losses from modified cavity based solar dish steam generator using ANN. Int J Therm Sci 2015;87:19−30. [CrossRef]
• [88] Reddy KS, Vikram TS, Veershetty G. Combined heat loss analysis of solar parabolic dish-modified cavity receiver for superheated steam generation. Solar Energy 2015;121:78−93. [CrossRef]
• [89] Reddy KS, Veershetty G, Vikram TS. Effect of wind speed and direction on convective heat losses from solar parabolic dish modified cavity receiver. Solar Energy 2016;131:183−198. [CrossRef]
• [90] Kumar NS, Reddy KS. Investigation of convection and radiation heat losses from modified cavity receiver of solar parabolic dish using asymptotic computational fluid dynamics. Heat Transf Engineer 2010;31:597−607. [CrossRef ]
• [91] Wu SY, Guan JY, Xiao L, Shen ZG, Xu LH. Experimental investigation on heat loss of a fully open cylindrical cavity with different boundary conditions. Exp Therm Fluid Sci 2013;45:92−101. [CrossRef ]
• [92] Wang W, Xu H, Laumert B, Strand T. An inverse design method for a cavity receiver used in solar dish Brayton system. Solar Energy 2014;110:745−755. [CrossRef]
• [93] Reddy KS, Natarajan SK, Veershetty G. Experimental performance investigation of modified cavity receiver with fuzzy focal solar dish concentrator. Renew Energy 2015;74:148−157. [CrossRef]
• [94] Loni R, Kasaeian AB, Asli-Ardeh EA, Ghobadian B, Le Roux WG. Performance study of a solar-assisted organic Rankine cycle using a dish-mounted rect- angular-cavity tubular solar receiver. Appl Therm Engineer 2016;108:1298−1309. [CrossRef]
• [95] Zou C, Zhang Y, Falcoz Q, Neveu P, Zhang C, Shu W, et al. Design and optimization of a high-temperature cavity receiver for a solar energy cascade utilization system. Renew Energy 2017;103:478−489. [CrossRef]
• [96] Si-Quan Z, Xin-Feng L, Liu D, Qing-Song M. A numerical study on optical and thermodynamic characteristics of a spherical cavity receiver. Appl Therm Engineer 2019;149:11−21. [CrossRef]
• [97] Thirunavukkarasu V, Nair VU, Tiwari K, Cheralathan M. Experimental investigation on ther- mal performance of cavity receiver integrated with short-term thermal energy storage for a solar para- bolic dish concentrator. J Therm Anal Calorimetry 2020:147:1−12. [CrossRef]