Effect of Solar Air Flat Plate Collector Geometric Parameters on the Thermal Behavior inside an Indirect Solar Drier

Abstract

This work focuses on the possibility of determining the most efficient type of solar air flat plate collector (simple pass or double pass collector) as well as examining the effect of its geometric parameters in order to achieve a good homogeneity of the temperature distributed inside the indirect solar drier which is naturally ventilated. Several investigations conducted experimentally show a more elevated efficiency by 8% of the simple pass collector in comparison with the double pass collector. A CFD simulation, which was done based on variations in the length and width of the solar collector under different climatic conditions, reveals that the 4m x 1.5m solar simple pass collector produces a more homogenous distribution of temperature which is better suited for the drying system.