Development and testing of a solar collector for use in domestic space and water heating

Abstract

A study was conducted into the development of a solar collector using used automobile engine oil as the solar absorber and sensible heat storage medium. The aim was to utilize the stored heat for domestic space and water heating. A computer program to calculate the useful energy gain by such a collector under different conditions was developed. This was done to aid in predicting the temperature at which heat storage was achieved. It was found that the used automobile engine oil was a good absorber of solar radiation, but the maximum temperature to which it could be raised was limited to the range of 40°C to 50°C. This was due to the vaporization of oil in the collector which caused the condensate to cloud the cover glass. The temperatures achieved in storage was sufficient for use in domestic space heating but not for use in water heating. The calculated temperatures of the oil in storage, using the computer program to determine useful heat gain by the collector and the temperatures achieved experimentally were in close agreement. The controls adopted functioned satisfactorily.