Abstract
The unsteady state of a natural convection loop for a solar energy collector has been studied theoretically. The nature of the response to small disturbances in a set of model equations has been solved for rigorously. It is shown that under a small, but significant set of operating conditions the nominal steady state can be unstable and oscillations in flow rate can be anticipated. The oscillations result from the interaction of temperature disturbances fed around the loop and the gravitational pressure drops. The oscillation period is determined by the total time required for fluid to circulate around the loop. Computations are presented on the effect of dynamic parameters such as residence times, thermal capacitances and thermal time constants, and some of their implications in the design of passive solar heating systems are discussed. Computations of the dominant root of the model characteristic equation are also presented.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 69-79 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | AIChE Symposium Series |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue number | 198 |
| State | Published - 1980 |
| Event | Fundam and Appl of Sol Energy, based upon pap presented at AIChE Annu Meet, 72nd - San Francisco, CA, USA Duration: Nov 25 1979 → Nov 29 1979 |
