Effect of Absorber Plate Design on the Air temperature from A Solar Air Heater

Abstract

 This study examines the thermal efficiency of solar air heaters (SAHs) including several absorber plate designs: smooth plates (SP), rectangular ribbed plates (RRP), and square ribbed plates (SRP). The heat transfer and airflow properties of these designs were investigated under controlled settings using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The investigated mass flow rate is 0.001 kg/s The RRP exhibited superior thermal efficiency, owing to improved turbulence and heat transfer with little pressure loss. The SRP, although augmenting turbulence, exhibited declining results owing to increased flow resistance. These findings underscore the importance of absorber plate design in enhancing solar air heater performance for sustainable energy applications.