International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

Experimental Analysis of a Flat Plate Solar

Collector System for Small-Scale Desalination
Applications
P. Koshy Mathews*

G. Jims John Wessley

School of Mechanical Sciences,

Karunya University,Coimbatore,
Tamilnadu, India.
jims_john@karunya.edu

Kalaivani College of Technology,

Madukkarai, Coimbatore,
Tamilnadu, India.
pkoshymathews@yahoo.co.in

Abstract This paper presents the results of the experimental

investigation on a solar flat plate collector carried out at
Coimbatore, India (11N Latitude and 74E Longitude). The
collector tubes allowed the water to flow twice across the flat
plate collector using a circulating pump during which the water
gets heated by the solar radiation received by the absorber. The
maximum temperature of water obtained on a typical day in the
month of April was 64C with a solar radiation of 932.2651
W/m2. The available solar radiation strongly influences the
temperature gain of the system while the wind velocity plays a
considerable role in influencing the heat lost by the system. It is
observed that the two-pass flow of water across the absorber
plate results in a maximum temperature gain with an overall
collector efficiency of 43.7 %. This solar water heating system
using flat plate collector can be used for small-scale desalination
applications.
Keywords flat plate collector, solar desalination, solar energy,
solar radiation, solar water heating

I. INTRODUCTION
This paper presents the results of the experimental
investigation on a solar flat plate collector carried out at
Coimbatore, India (11N Latitude and 74E Longitude). The
collector tubes allowed the water to flow twice across the flat
plate collector using a circulating pump during which the
water gets heated by the solar radiation received by the
absorber. The maximum temperature of water obtained on a
typical day in the month of April was 64C with a solar
radiation of 932.2651 W/m2. The available solar radiation
strongly influences the temperature gain of the system while
the wind velocity plays a considerable role in influencing the
heat lost by the system. It is observed that the two-pass flow
of water across the absorber plate results in a maximum
temperature gain with a overall collector efficiency of 43.7 %.
This solar water heating system using flat plate collector can
be used for small-scale desalination applications.
Desalination is one of the many processes available
for purification of saline water to meet the fresh water needs
and solar energy is one of the many sources of energy which
can be used to power such systems [1]. Desalination

however, is an energy intensive process and so not viable

especially in developing countries due to high energy costs or
non-availability of high grade energy such as electricity in the
remote arid areas. The pairing of renewable energy sources
with desalination systems is seen as a sustainable route for
increasing potable water supplies [2]. The coastal and the arid
regions of the world with fresh water deficiency are the ones
blessed with plenty of sunshine [3]. The diffuse nature of the
available solar energy and the insignificant operating costs of
thermal desalination systems pave way for the efficient use of
solar energy in small-scale solar desalination systems to
produce potable water. The freely available solar energy can be
used for desalination either by producing the thermal energy
required to drive the phase change process or by producing
electricity needed to drive the membrane process [4].
The major component of any solar collection system
is the solar collector which functions as a heat exchanger that
transforms the energy obtained from solar radiation to the
working fluid. Flat plate collectors are one of the cheapest,
non-concentrating solar collectors used for intercepting and
absorbing solar radiation with a concentration ratio of 1 and a
temperature range of 50-90C [5]. Tian Pau Chang [6], made
elaborate studies on the optimal tilt angle of solar flat plate
collectors for maximum efficiency according to different
radiation types in various places of Taiwan. In a cloudy or
polluted environment, it was suggested that the collector
should be mounted on a flatter tilt angle than the latitude of the
location. The studies of Pravin [7], on the various
concentration techniques in flat plate collector concludes that
the collector performance can be improved by the use of the
glazing with high transmissivity, metal additives in absorber
black coatings and nano materials. The experimental
investigations on a new solar flat plate collector by Raj
Thundil Karuppa [8], suggests that the use of GI pipes with
sandwich type absorbers can be a cost-effective substitute to
the copper tubes with minimal loss in efficiency. Ziqian Chen
[9], concludes that the efficiency of the collector increases
while the heat loss coefficient of the collector decreases with
increase in the volume flow rate of the solar collector fluid.
Nakoa [10], investigated the effect of coloured absorbers on

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International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

the performance of the solar water heater and inferred that the
daily average efficiency of the black and blue absorbers are
higher that of the red-brown and colourless absorbers.

The design parameters and the specifications of the solar

collector system is summarised in Table 1.
TABLE 1

SPECIFICATIONS OF THE SOLAR WATER HEATING SYSTEM

The present work aims at fabricating a low-cost flat
plate collector with two-pass flow arrangement and to
investigate the performance of the same exposing it to the
solar radiation available at the test site Coimbatore, India
(11N Latitude and 74E Longitude). The hot water generated
is intended to be coupled to a low temperature flash
evaporation desalination system to provide potable water

Component
Absorber

Material
Copper
Copper

Pipes
GI

II. DESIGN OF FLAT PLATE SOLAR COLLECTOR SYSTEM

The design of any solar collection system necessitates the
estimation of the available solar radiation at the experimental
site. The monthly average daily solar radiation on a tilted
surface is estimated using standard correlations [11], based on
which the solar collector is designed and fabricated. The
monthly average daily radiation HT on a tilted surface is given
by
HT =

(1)

where Hb = Average beam radiation on horizontal surface =

H-Hd
Hd = Average Diffuse radiation on horizontal surface
Rb = Ratio of beam radiation to radiation on
horizontal surface
= angle of tilt of the collector (11)
= Diffuse reflectance of ground
The available monthly average daily radiation is estimated
for all the days in a year and the corresponding maximum
water temperature that can be obtained is also calculated. A
collector area of 2 m2 was chosen to heat 100 liters of water.
The flat plate collector is divided into two halves along its
length and the water enters through the first half of the bottom
header and moves up through the circulating pipes and flows
into the top header. The water again flows down from the top
header to the bottom header through the second half of the
collector and absorbs further heat from the absorber. This
mechanism of two pass is adapted to allow the water to absorb
the maximum heat from the absorber. The schematic
representation of the experimental set-up is shown in Fig. 1.

Insulation
Cover 1 & 2
Thermocouple
Pyranometer

Yellow
Glass
wool
Glass
k-type
NI
Precision

Dimensions/Specification
Area 2 m2 (2 x 1 x 0.001) m
Header Pipes 25.7 mm OD
22 mm ID
Collector pipes 12 mm OD
10 mm ID
Circulating pipes Diameter
25 mm
15 mm thick (Collector)
Absorptivity 0.86
Error 2%
Error 0.9 - 1.2%

III. EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATIONS

The solar flat plate collector is set at an angle of 11o facing
south to obtain maximum radiation. The outlet from the
collector is connected to the inlet of an insulated storage tank
of capacity100 liters. The outlet of the storage tank is
connected with a circulating pump pump which pumps the
water from the storage tank through the collector.
Thermocouples are fixed to find the temperature of water at the
inlet of the collector, outlet of the collector and on the top
surface of the absorber plate, bottom surface of the collector,
on the glass cover surface and between the glazings. All the
thermocouple wires are connected to the temperature
indicators. Pyranometer is kept directly under the sun which
receives the solar radiation and sends a mV signal which is
indicated by a micro voltmeter. The flow control valve is used
to set the flow rate of water flowing through the collector and
it is set as 0.08 m/s. The experimental set-up is switched on
around 9:30 am and the temperatures, wind velocity and the
solar radiation are noted down till 4:30 pm at an interval of 30
minutes. The experiment is repeated for 3 months on all days
of good solar radiation. The data obtained on a typical day is
shown in Table. 2.
The overall efficiency of the solar collector system is
obtained by using the relation [12]

(2)
IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Fig 1 Schematic arrangement of the solar water heating system

The experimental analysis of the flat plate collector was

carried out from the month of February to April at the
experimental site and the maximum temperature of the water is
recorded. It is found that the theoretical estimated maximum
water temperature was around 62-65 C, while the maximum
temperature recorded by the system is around 45-60C. The
variation of the theoretical and observed water temperature as
recorded by the flat plate collector system is shown on Fig. 2.

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International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

TABLE 2
DATA RECORDED ON A TYPICAL DAY

Time in a day

Solar
Radiation
[W/m2]

Wind
velocity
[m/s]

9.30 am
10.00 am
10.30 am
11.00 am
11.30 am
12.00 Noon
12.30 pm
1.00 pm
1.30 pm
2.00 pm
2.30 pm
3.00 pm
3.30 pm
4.00 pm
4.30 pm

349.5994
429.716
633.6489
699.1988
844.8653
546.2491
932.2651
619.0823
815.7319
815.732
677.3489
604.5157
546.2491
371.4494
174.7997

1.20
2.30
0.80
1.70
0.90
0.70
1.10
1.40
2.30
2.40
1.70
1.00
1.40
0.80
1.20

Top
Cover
(Glass)
60
57
67
77
80
62
63
74
72
71
73
71
71
63
56

Ambient
30
33
35
37
39
38
39
40
38
41
41
41
41
40
39

Temperature [C]
Between
Absorber
Absorber
and Glass
48
53
45
53
55
59
62
68
65
72
58
56
62
59
60
66
62
63
65
64
64
65
62
65
63
64
60
58
58
52

Water
in

Water Out

29
34
35
38
39
41
45
49
52
53
53
53
55
55
55

34
39
40
45
50
56
57
59
62
63
64
63
64
64
63

heat from the collector to the surounding is less, causing

increased temperature gain by the water.

Fig. 2 Variation of theoretical and experimental water temperatures

Fig.3 shows the variation of the absorbed solar radiation and

its corresponfding water temperature during the test. It is
observed that the water temperature strongly depends on the
solar radiation available.

Fig.3 Variation of water temperature with solar radiation

The variation of ambient temperature and the water

temperature are shown in Fig. 4. It is seen that the ambient
temperature and the hot water temperature follow the same
trend as both are influenced by the available solar radiation.
Moreover, when the ambient temperature is high, the loss of

Fig.4 variation of ambient and water temperatures

Fig. 5 shows the variation of the top glass and absorber

temperatures with respect to the wind velocity. It is observed
that the wind velocity varies from 0.6 to 2.1 m/s during the
experiments and the heat loss from the absorber is less when
the wind velocity is minimum. As the wind velocity
influences the heat lost by convection the temperature
difference between the glass and the absorber is found to be
less, when the wind velocity is also minimum and viceversa.
The variation of the recorded temperatures of the
system on a typical day is shown in Fig. 6. It is seen that the
temperatures are influenced by the available solar radiation.
However, the insulated water tank maintains the temperature
of water at high temperature even when the solar radiation
starts to decrease towards the evening. The water temperature
reaches a maximum of 64 C after the noon when the
temperatures of water and the absorber are almost similar.
Thus, all the heat absorbed by the absorber is effectively
transfered by the two-pass flow of water in the collector

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International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

Subscripts
C
- Collector
i
- inlet
o
- Outlet
w
- Water
REFERENCES
[1] O.O. Badran, H.A. Al-Tahaineh, The effect of coupling a
flat plate collector on the solar still productivity, Desalination
183 (2005) 137-142.
[2] Hazim Mohammed Qiblawey, Fawzi Banat, Solar thermal
desalination technologies, Desalination 220 (2008) 633-644.

Fig.5 Variation of glass and absorber temperatures with respect to the wind
velocity

[3] Y. M. El-Sayed, The rising potential of competitive solar

desalination, Desalination 216 (2007) 314-324.

[4]
Soteris A. Kalogirou, Seawater desalination using
renewable energy sources, Progress in energy and combustion
science 31(2005) 242-281.
[5]
Andrea Cipollina., GiorgioMicale., Lucio Rizzuti,
Seawater Desalination Conventional and renewable energy
processes, Springer verlag Berlin Heidelberg, New York,
2009.
[6] Tian Pau Chang, Study on the optimal tilt angle of solar
collector according to different radiation types, Journal of
Applied Science and Engineering, 6 (2008) 151-161.

Fig.6 Variation of system temperatures on a typical day

V. CONCLUSIONS
The experimental analysis of a solar flat plate
collector indented to be coupled to a small-scale desalination
system is carried out.
The results of the experiments show that the available solar
radiation at the experimental site is reasonably good enough
to heat water to a temperature around 60C using a nonfocusing flat plate collector. The water temperature of 64C
was recorded on a day when the solar radiation measured was
932.2651 W/m2. The maximum overall efficiency of the flat
plate collector estimated was 43.4 %. The water temperature
depends on the available solar radiation and is also influenced
by the convective heat losses due to wind motion over the
cover plate. The solar flat plate collector system may be
economically used to heat saline water for small-scale
desalination purposes
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors wish to thank the management of
Karunya University, Coimbatore, India for providing all the
necessary support to carry out these experiments at the Energy
Park in the University campus.

[7] Pravin N. Gajbhie, Rupesh S. Shelke, Solar energy

concentration techniques in flat plate collector, Journal of
Mechanical Engineering and Technology, 3 (2012) 450-458.
[8]
Raj Thundil Karuppa. R, Pavan. P, Reddy Rajeev,
Experimental investigation of a new solar flat plate collector,
Research Journal of Engineering Sciences, 1 (2012) 1-8.
[9] Ziqian Chen, Simon Furbo, Bengt Perers, Jianhua Fan,
Elsa Andersen, Efficiencies of flat plate solar collectors at
different flow rates, Energy Procedia 30 (2012) 65-72.
[10] K. M. A. Nakoa, M. R. Karim, S. L. Mahmood, M. A. R.
Akhanda, Effect of colored absorbers on the performance of a
built-in-storage type solar water heater, Journal of Renewable
energy Research, 1-4 (2011) 232-239.
[11] John A Duffie., William A Beckman, Solar Engineering
of Thermal Processes, John Wiley and sons, Inc., New Jersy,
Fourth edition, 2013.
[12]
G. N. Tiwari, Sangeetha Suneja, Solar Thermal
Engineering systems, Narosa Publishing House, New Delhi,
1997.

Nomenclature
A
- Area (m2)
Cp
- Specific heat capacity (J/kg K)
m
- Mass flow rate (m/s)
T
- Temperature (C)

******

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International Conference on Recent Advances in Mechanical Engineering and Interdisciplinary Developments [ICRAMID - 2014]

ISBN 978-93-80609-17-1
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