Parabolic Trough Collector Performance in a Hot Climate

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Adel A. Ghoneim 1 and Adel M. Mohammedein 2

Abstract: Kuwait receives annual total radiation of roughly 5; 280 MJ=m2 with nearly 3,347 h of sunshine. The potential for reduction of
greenhouse gas emissions motivates widespread of renewable energy systems. In the research reported in this paper, a numerical model is
developed to study the effect of different collector parameters and operating conditions on the performance of parabolic trough solar collector
(PTSC) in Kuwait climate. The proposed model considers all thermal losses which have been neglected in existing models. New equations
were developed and used in the present model as well as reviewing the equations for convective heat transfer losses. The effects of heat
conduction in the collector tube wall and mixed convection in the inner tube neglected in previous studies are included in the proposed model.
In addition, a case study is presented to examine the feasibility of integrating renewable energy systems in existing buildings. Solar energy
absorption system is considered in the research reported in this paper to satisfy cooling load of an existing building. The program conducted on
an existing institutional building intending to convert it into near-net-zero energy building. The 2-story building under consideration is the main
building at the College of Technological Studies, Kuwait. Computer software is adapted to simulate the performance of different solar system
components. The economic calculations for the present study are based on lifecycle savings method. In addition, a numerical model is developed to assess the environmental impacts of building integrated renewable energy systems. The present results indicate that convection loss
from the absorber tube to supporting structures is the largest between the other losses. The integrated parabolic trough collectors (PTC) satisfy
nearly 73% of the building cooling load under all climatic conditions of Kuwait. The annual avoided CO2 emission at the optimum conditions is
about 980 t/year which confirms the environmental impacts of these systems in Kuwait. The solar system net cost is almost equal to the current
cost of producing electricity in Kuwait. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)EY.1943-7897.0000268. 2015 American Society of Civil Engineers.
Author keywords: Parabolic trough collector (PTC); Net-zero energy building; Building integrated renewable systems; Avoided CO2
emission.

Introduction
Energy consumption worldwide is increasing rapidly due to the
increasing global population and the industrial processes in many
countries. The production and use of conventional fossil fuel
energy resources accounts for a high percentage of air pollution
leading to harmful impacts on the environment. In contrast, renewable energy systems can be adapted to generate energy with little
if any pollution. Widespread commercialization of renewable
energy systems, especially in hot climate regions like Kuwait,
can significantly reduce energy consumption of conventional fuels.
In return, this will help greatly in reducing environmental pollution
and maintain the environment healthy and clean.
Throughout the past decade, important progress has been
achieved in solar power technology. Thermal power plants are
among the wide range of most fascinating option of renewable
energy technologies for producing electricity economically. A parabolic trough solar collector (PTSC) will be a common one in near
future. The PTSC collectors use elevated temperature to warm
liquid in absorber tubes. Parabolic trough collector (PTC) is a
1

Associate Professor, Applied Sciences Dept., College of Technological

Studies, Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET),
Shuwaikh 70654, Kuwait (corresponding author). E-mail: aa.ghoniem@
paaet.edu.kw
2
Associate Professor, Applied Sciences Dept., College of Technological
Studies, Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET),
Shuwaikh 70654, Kuwait.
Note. This manuscript was submitted on September 8, 2014; approved
on January 8, 2015; published online on February 26, 2015. Discussion
period open until July 26, 2015; separate discussions must be submitted
for individual papers. This paper is part of the Journal of Energy Engineering, ASCE, ISSN 0733-9402/04015008(11)/$25.00.
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high-temperature concentrator. It consists of a parabolic shaped

reflector that concentrates the radiation on a receiver throughout
focus associated with reflector. Heat transfer fluid (HTF) is circulated through absorber tubes. At normal operating conditions, HTF
departs from a collector with certain outlet temperature. Heat exchangers are employed to transfer energy to steam in a power plant.
When the sun insolation is low and during peak hours, thermal storage can be used in these systems to provide electricity. A steam
turbine is used as the prime mover for power generation. The working fluid could be an organic fluid or water with a maximum
operating temperature around 400C.
A theoretical model (Kalogirou et al. 1997) is employed to examine parabolic trough collector efficiency. They carried out optimization for the flash vessel. The optimization focused on selection
associated with dimensions and capacity of the flash vessel to minimize energy requirement. Analysis of energy gained from system
estimated that only 48.9% linked to irradiation can be utilized for
steam generation. Price et al. (2002) reviewed the present high-tech
of parabolic trough solar power technology. They claimed that
since final commercial parabolic trough plant was constructed, significant technological improvement is achieved. This means the
subsequent generation parabolic trough plants will tend to be more
improved. Also the new generation parabolic trough plants will
have enhanced features like economical thermal storage. In addition, ongoing research proves that PTSC technology is able to compete with traditional resources of energy production. A review
presented shows the way trough solar power plants are expected
to enhance. An extensive experimental study is carried out by Souliotis and Tripanagnostopoulos (2004). Parameter optimization is
carried out regarding stored water volume per collector. Water storage volume plus duration of associated integrated collector storage
((ICS) are considered. They experimentally compared three storage

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systems of various diameters inside symmetrical parabolic trough.

System efficiencies as well as temperature variation profiles are
compared to determine the optimum system size. They manufactured two ICS devices of various reflectors, transparent covers, and
absorbing surfaces. Experimental study of ICS models considers
also profile of daily variation in temperature. The determined data
compared to alternative performance of other two flat plate tubes
(FPTU) systems to verify enhancement due to proposed ICS setup.
Two techniques are developed by Riffelmann et al. (2006) to
determine the solar flux into focal of parabolic trough collector.
They predicted positions through parabola where intercept losses
occur. Generation of steam is analyzed by Eck et al. (2006) through
PTC as appealing possibility relating the improvement attained in
the economics of PTSC technology into multimegawatt generation.
They presented benefits, drawbacks, and factors affecting the construction of the saturated steam operated cycle. A simulation study
of parabolic trough collector driven by LiBrH2 O absorption is carried out by Mazloumi et al. (2008). The proposed system provides
cooling load of 17.5 kW that occurs in July. Regarding the required
collector area, results revealed a negligible influence of mass flow
rate; nevertheless this has an important influence in the optimum
capacity of the storage tank. For a peak load day in July, the minimum required collector area was about 57.6 m2 . Poullikkas (2007)
studied the feasibility of setting up parabolic trough for power generation in Mediterranean location. The results show that parabolic
trough could be economically feasible under certain conditions. A
metallic substance is adapted by Adinberg et al. (2010) as a thermal
storage medium to act as phase change material. Experiments
showed reasonable results regarding thermal stability associated
with adapted storage materials.
An overview is presented by Garcia et al. (2010) linked to parabolic trough collectors manufactured and commercialized during
the past millennium, besides prototypes currently under development. An investigation of parabolic trough collectors is carried
out by Sansoni et al. (2011). They applied the research outcomes
to model installed in Florence (Italy) for household sources. Their
work summarizes outcomes of several studies. Also, the work analyzes the relations between radiation monitoring, trough position,
angular misalignments, mirror deformations, as well as collection
efficiency. They concluded that the placement of parabolic trough
collector and sun tracking ought to become matched to optimize the
collection performance. Daniel et al. (2011) employed specific
coatings utilizing evacuated and non evacuated glass tubes to regulate convective as well as radiative heat losses. They developed a
numerical process to investigate vacuum shell performance. They
found that performance of evacuated tube is the highest. Preceding
discussion reveals that numerous studies are carried out regarding
heat transfer by natural convection within a vacuum space and
heat loss within the solar furnace. However, most previous investigations concentrate on heat loss by natural convection solely. So,
mixed convection within the tube wall are not included. Therefore,
a coupled heat transfer method within the solar furnace tube analysis has seldom been examined.
A comprehensive physical model to predict the thermal performance of parabolic trough collectors during transient operations is
introduced by Xu et al. (2013). Four sets of outdoor tests were
conducted to verify the model. Comparison of the predicted outlet
temperature, energy output, and thermal efficiency with measured
data shows that the model accurately predicts the transient thermal
performance for both heating and cooling processes. A simplified
numerical methodology for designing parabolic trough solar energy
systems was proposed by Harrigan (1981). This method proposed a
design chart called storage sizing graph, which obtains the optimum collector area for certain locations. Ratzel et al. (1979) carried
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out both analytical and numerical studies of the heat conduction

and convective losses in an annular receiver for different geometries. Three techniques were proposed to reduce the conduction
heat loss. These techniques are as follows: (1) evacuating, (2) oversizing annular receiver while keeping the Rayleigh number under
1,000 over operation range, and (3) use of gases with low thermal
conductivity. A more recent methodology for the economic optimization of the solar area in either parabolic trough or complex solar
plants was carried out by Montes et al. (2009). Edenburn (1976)
predicted the efficiency of a PTC by using an analytical heat transfer model for evacuated and nonevacuated annulus cases. An analytical model of solar electric generating system (SEGS) LS-2
parabolic solar collector was developed by Dudley et al. (1996).
The thermal loss model for the heat collection element was one
dimensional steady state model based on thermal resistance analysis. Stuetzle (2002) proposed an unsteady state analysis of the solar
collector receiver to calculate the collector field outlet temperature.
The results show a good match between the calculated and measured outlet temperatures. A detailed numerical model for the
single-pass solar receiver was developed by Garca-Valladares
and Velsquez (2009). Their results showed that the proposed configuration enhances the thermal efficiency of the solar collector
compared with a single pass. A theoretical model is carried out by
Odeh et al. (1996) for heat loss of a parabolic trough collector in
terms of wall temperature rather than working fluid temperature.
Their results were compared with the Sandia test data and showed
that the model underestimates the measured loss. Recently, threedimensional (3D) heat transfer analysis of PTCs was performed by
combining the Monte Carlo ray trace (MCRT) method and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis introduced by Cheng et al.
(2010), He et al. (2011), and Gong et al. (2010). The results indicated that the support bracket and bellow under nonvacuum
conditions bring a high conductive heat loss.
The previously reviewed literature shows that a lot of studies
have been carried out to model the performance of parabolic trough
collectors. However, existing models assume that there is no
thermal interaction between the neighboring surfaces (absorber
envelope and envelopeenvelope) for thermal radiation losses. The
previous assumptions greatly simplify the analysis. However, these
assumptions underestimate the radiation losses at high absorber
temperatures. To account for the thermal interaction between adjacent surfaces, a comprehensive radiative analysis is carried out in
the research reported in this paper for heat losses in the absorber
and the glass envelope. A review of the equations for convective
heat transfer losses was performed as well and new equations are
implemented in the present model. The effects of heat conduction
in the collector tube wall and mixed convection in the inner tube
which have been neglected in previous studies are also considered
in the proposed developed model. The proposed model can predict
the effects of annuli space, tube diameter ratio, and heat conductivity coefficient of the inner tube wall on the heat transfer performance. Parametric studies are carried out for different collector
absorber areas, overall heat loss coefficients, optical losses, collector inlet temperatures, mass flow rates of the heat transfer fluid,
angles of incidence, and concentration ratios. This will lead to the
optimum parabolic trough performance as well as the maximum
annual energy yield under Kuwait climatic conditions.

Theoretical Analysis
Solar Radiation
Prediction of collector performance requires knowledge of the
absorbed solar energy by the collector absorber plate. The solar

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energy incident on a tilted collector consists of three different

components, as follows: (1) beam radiation, (2) diffuse radiation,
and (3) ground-reflected radiation. The details of the calculation
depend on which diffuse-sky model is used. Using an isotropic
sky model, the absorbed radiation on the absorber plate can be
expressed as



1 cos
G Gb Rb b Gd d
2



1 cos
Gb Gd g g
1
2
where the subscripts b, d, and g represent beam, diffuse, and
ground-reflected radiation, respectively; G = intensity of radiation
on a horizontal surface; = transmittanceabsorptance product
that represents the effective absorptance of the cover-plate system;
= collector slope; g = diffuse reflectance of ground; and Rb is a
geometric factor, the ratio of beam radiation incident on a tilted
surface to that on a horizontal surface. The angle of incidence
() represents the angle between the beam radiation and the plane
normal to the surface. There are other losses from the collector due
to the angle of incidence. The losses occur because of additional
reflection and absorption by the glass envelope as the angle of incidence increases. The angle of incidence modifier (IAM) corrects
for these additional reflections and absorption losses.
The calculation can be simplified by defining equivalent angles
that give the same transmittance for diffuse and ground-reflected
radiation. Performing the integration of the transmittance over the
appropriate angle of incidence with an isotropic sky model and
equivalent angle of incidence for diffuse radiation yields
d;e 59.7 0.1388 0.001497 2

where = tilt angle of the solar collector. For ground-reflected

radiation, the equivalent angle of incidence is given by
g;e 90 0.5788 0.002693 2

Parabolic Trough Collector

A performance model is developed for solar thermal collector based
on a linear, tracking parabolic trough reflector. The reflector is
focused on a surface-treated metallic pipe receiver enclosed in an
evacuated transparent tube. The developed PTSC model is a steadystate model and is based on the energy balance and heat transfer
mechanism within the PTSC receiver tube. The model can calculate
the fraction of the incident solar energy recovered in the fluid circulating through the pipe receiver and evaluate the thermal loss
from the collector. The model also calculates the pressure drop over
the receiver, and the temperature of the various collector components and of fluid throughout the receiver under different conditions. So, the model can be used for optimizing PTSC design by
varying the size of the receiver tube, the size of the glass envelope,
receiver tube material, coating material, and so forth. In addition, the proposed model considers the effect of fluid properties,
and ambient and operating conditions on the performance of the
collector.
The heat collection element (HCE) consists of an absorber surrounded by a glass envelope. The absorber is typically a stainless
steel tube with a selective absorber surface which provides the required optical and radiative properties. Selective surfaces combine
a high absorptance of solar radiation with low emittance for the
temperature range in which the surface emits radiation. The glass
envelope is an antireflective evacuated glass tube which protects the
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absorber from degradation and reduces heat loss. The vacuum

enclosure is used primarily to reduce heat loss at high operating
temperatures. It also protects the solar-selective absorber surface
from oxidation. The heat transfer model is based on an energy balance between the heat transfer fluid and the environment.
The solar energy reflected by the mirror is absorbed mainly by
eabs and the absorber surface Q
aabs . Part of
the glass envelope Q
the energy taken by the absorber is transferred to the heat transfer
fluid by forced convection V af;conv , the remaining energy is
ae;rad and
transferred back to the glass envelope by radiation Q

natural convection Qae;conv and lost through the support brackets

cond;bracket as well. The heat loss from the absorber
by conduction Q
in the form of radiation and natural convection is conducted by the
esa;conv
glass envelope and lost to the environment by convection Q

and radiation Qes;rad , together with the energy absorbed by the

eabs . In order to obtain the partial differential
glass envelope Q
equations (PDEs) that govern the heat transfer phenomena, an
energy balance is applied over a section of the solar receiver.
The detailed analysis of the partial differential equations and
method of solution can be found in Rohsenow et al. (1998). After
applying the energy balance on a control volume, assuming
unsteady state and incompressible fluid, the subsequent partial
differential equation [Eq. (4)] can be obtained
Ai;a f Cp;f

V 2f
T f

a;f;conv
f Cp;f T f
m
Q
t
z
2

where
Vf

f
m
f Ai;a

f = fluid mass flow rate; Ai;a = internal cross-sectional area

where m
of the absorber; Cp;f = specific heat of the fluid; T f = fluid temper0
ature; and Q
af;conv = heat transfer by convection from the absorber
to HTF per unit length, and is given by
0
Q
af;conv Nuf kf T a T f

where Nuf = Nusselt number; kf = thermal conductivity of HTF;

and T a = absorber wall temperature. The equation for fully developed turbulent flow [RD , the Reynolds number based on the
absorber inner pipe diameter (Di;a ), is greater than 2,300] and convective heat transfer in circular ducts is adapted (Kaka et al. 1987)



Cf =2RD 1,000 Pr
Pr 0.11
N uf
7
1 12.7Cf =21=2 Pr2=3 1 Prw
RD

V f Di;a
f

where Cf = friction coefficient (Fanning friction factor); Pr =

Prandtl number; and vf = kinematic viscosity of HTF. Eq. (8) is
valid for 2,300 RD 5 106 and 0.5 Pr 2,000. The thermal
properties should be evaluated at the bulk mean heat transfer
fluid temperature, except Prw which is evaluated at the absorber
wall temperature. The convection heat transfer coefficient for rough
tubes can be estimated using the friction coefficient from
Colebrook and White as referred by Rohsenow et al. (1998)
1
2
9.35
p 3.48 1.7372 ln
p

Di;a RD Cf
Cf

5 R 70 9

where

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Fig. 1. Control volume for absorber analysis

Vf
f

10

For laminar flow, (RD 2,300), the Nusselt number on walls

with uniform temperature is given by Nuf 3.66. Two heat
transfer mechanisms occur between the absorber and the glass
envelope, as follows: (1) convection heat transfer, and (2) thermal
radiation. Convection heat transfer depends on the annulus
pressure; experimental work as stated in Rohsenow et al. (1998)
has shown that heat transfer loss is independent on the annulus vacuum pressure for pressures above 133.32 Pa (1 Torr). At pressures
below 133.32 Pa (1 Torr), molecular conduction is the heat transfer
mechanism while for pressure above 133.32 Pa (1 Torr), natural
convection takes place. Fig. 1 shows the control volume used
for the absorber analysis.
Applying the energy balance on the control volume



T a

T a
0 Q
0
Aa a Cp;a
Aa
k
Q
a;abs
af;conv
t
z a z
0
0
0

Qae;conv Qae;rad Q
11
cond; bracket
where Aa = absorber cross section area [Aa =4D2o;a D2i;a ];
0
Do;a = outer pipe diameter; Di;a = inner pipe diameter; Q
a;abs =
0

solar absorption in the absorber per receiver length; Qaf;conv = heat

transfer by convection from absorber to heat transfer fluid per unit
0
ae;conv
length; Q
= heat transfer by convection from absorber to
0
envelope per unit length; Q
ae;rad = heat transfer by radiation from
0
absorber to glass envelope per unit length; and Q
cond;bracket = heat
conduction through support brackets per unit length. Stainless steel
is normally used as the absorber tube material. Thermal radiation
analysis for one surface implies that all surfaces that can exchange
radiative energy with the surface must be considered simultaneously. How much energy two surfaces exchange depends on their
size, separation distance, and orientation. To carry out the radiative
heat transfer analysis, the view factors for a short annulus proposed
by Siegel and Howell (1971) are employed. The heat transfer mechanisms from the glass envelope to the surroundings are convection
and radiation. Convection heat transfer distinguishes two cases, as
follows: (1) wind guided (forced convection), and (2) no wind
(natural convection). The radiation heat transfer is between the
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glass envelope and either the sky or the collector surface. The maximum radiation heat loss takes place when the solar receiver is assumed to be surrounded only by the sky. The energy balance on the
control volume results in the subsequent partial differential equation [Eq. (12)]



T e

T e
0
ae;conv
0 Q
Ae e Cp;e
Ae
Q
k
e;abs
t
z e z
0
0
0
12
Q
ae;rad 0 Qesa;conv Q e s; rad
0 = solar absorption in the envelope per receiver length;
where Q
e;abs
0

Qae;conv = heat transfer by convection from the glass envelope to

0
the surrounding air per unit length; and Q
es;rad 0 = heat transfer by
radiation from the glass envelope to the sky per unit length. The
heat transfer by convection per unit length from the glass envelope
to the surrounding air is calculated as
0
esa;conv
Q
he Do;e T e T

13

where
he

Nue ke
Do;e

14

For no wind conditions, Eq. (15) is recommended (Kaka et al.

1987) for a horizontal cylinder under natural convection



1=6 2
RD
Nue 0.60 0.387
15
1 0.559=Pr9=16 16=9
In order to simplify the model, it is presumed that half of the
receiver surface is surrounded by the mirror and the other half
by the sky. The heat flux and radiosity are calculated for each surface and a set of energy balance-equations for internal and external
surfaces are written. In the research reported in this paper, it is assumed that the collector mirror temperature is approximately the
ambient temperature. When the collector surface is not included
in the analysis, maximum radiation heat transfer loss occurs,
and this means that the glass envelope is assumed to be totally
covered by the sky. So, the heat flux (q esi ) for the area considered
is expressed by the StefanBoltzmann equation

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q esi esi T 4esi T 4sky

16

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where = StefanBoltzmann constant (5.67 108 W=m2 K4 );

= object emissivity; T esi = body temperature; and T sky = ambient
temperature.
Several relationships have been proposed to connect T sky for
clear skies, to other meteorological variables. In the absence of
meteorological data such as relative humidity, dew point temperature, and so on, a simple relation (Swinbank 1963) can be used
T sky 0.0553T 1.5
a

17

The energy absorbed in the solar receiver is affected by optical

properties and imperfections of the solar collector ensemble. For a
concentrating collector, the effective optical efficiency is defined as
long as the direct beam radiation is normal to the collector aperture
area. When the beam radiation is not normal, the angle of incidence
modifier is included to account for optical and geometric losses
due to angles of incidence greater than 0. The IAM depends on
geometrical and optical characteristics of the solar collector. It is
defined as the quotient between the transmittanceabsorptance
product at the angle of the incidence of radiation and that at normal
incident radiation.

Numerical Model
The set of partial differential equations was discretized for steadystate conditions by using the finite-difference method and taking
into account the dependence of thermal properties on temperature.
Turning to the heat transfer fluid, discretization by backwards
differencing creates a set of algebraic equations. For the absorber
and the envelope, the discretization is carried out using the central
difference and thus another set of algebraic equations is obtained.
Finally, the boundary conditions for each element are set down.
The proposed model includes the thermal interaction between
absorberenvelope and envelopeenvelope. These thermal radiation losses were not included in other existing models. To account
for the thermal interaction between adjacent surfaces, a comprehensive radiative analysis carried out for heat losses in the absorber and
the glass envelope. A review of the equations for convective heat
transfer loss was performed as well and new equations were incorporated in the present model. The effects of heat conduction in the
collector tube wall and the mixed convection in the inner tube,
which have been neglected in previous studies, are also taken into
consideration in the present model. The resulting set of nonlinear
algebraic equations is solved simultaneously using numerical techniques. These equations are solved using an implicit Euler scheme.
Linear system equations are written using the matrixvector notation, Ax b, where A is the matrix of coefficients of the system, x
the column vector of the unknown variables x1 ; : : : ; xn , and b is a
given column vector.
Collector thermal efficiency () is the ratio of energy collected
by the working fluid to the direct normal solar radiation incident on
the collector aperture. It is typically determined by testing a collector over a range of high temperatures and is expressed as

f T o;f T i;f
m
GAa

18

f = fluid mass flow rate; T o;f = fluid outlet temperature;

where m
T i;f = fluid inlet temperature; G = global solar radiation at collector
surface (W=m2 ); and Aa = absorber area. The thermal loss from the
collector receiver is related to the operating temperature. The thermal loss through PTSC can be changed in different ways depending
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on the receivers configuration and operational conditions. The

thermal loss (TL) can be expressed as

X
X
X
0
ae;conv
0
0
Q

Q

Q

TL
es;rad i

cond;bracket j

19
0
ae;conv
where Q
= heat transfer by convection from the glass
0
envelope to the surrounding air per unit length; Q
es;rad 0 = heat
transfer by radiation from the glass envelope to sky per unit length;
0
and Q
cond;bracket = heat conduction through support brackets per unit
length.
A simulation model compatible with the transient simulation
program TRNSYS was developed to determine the thermal performance of a typical parabolic trough configuration under Kuwait
climatic conditions. A TRNSYS studio project is designed by setting
up the connecting components graphically in the simulation study
(Klein et al. 2006). Parameters treated were area of the collectors
absorber, overall heat loss coefficient from the absorber, reflectivity
of the reflecting surface, and absorptivity and emissivity of the
absorber. The parametric study was conducted for different mass
flow rates and concentration ratios using hourly solar radiation data
for Kuwait. The processed solar insolation data consist of the beam
radiation and diffuse radiation as well as the total radiation on a
tilted surface measured in watts per square meter.

Results and Discussions

To validate the present heat transfer model, it was first compared
with experimental data obtained by Dudley et al. (1994). Current
calculated collector efficiency is in accordance with the trend of the
experimental values; all the results are within the error bars and the
present model gives almost similar collector efficiency values.
The angle of incidence modifier, K (i ), enables the performance of the collector to be predicted for solar angles of incidence
other than 0 (normal). Simulations using the present numerical
model are carried out setting up a value of i and then calculating
K . The angle of incidence modifier represents the ratio between a
specified thermal efficiency value and the peak efficiency of the
collector at zero incidence. Results of simulation are presented
in Fig. 2. Regression analyses provided Eqs. (20) and (21) for
K as a function of i
K U 2.235 106 i 3 1.2146 104 i 2 3.884
103 i 1.125

20

K G 9.272 107 i 3 1.561 104 i 2 1.773

103 i 1.078

21

Coefficients upon solving Eqs. (20) and (21) were 0.958 and
0.961. Up to an angle of incidence of approximately 25 the
glass-shielded receiver performed slightly better, but for greater angles, performance declined more rapidly and was inferior to that of
the unshielded receiver.
In Fig. 2, the calculated value of K was 0.74 for the glassshielded receiver at the maximum tested incidence angle of 54,
and 8.9% lower than that for the unshielded receiver. At the same
maximum angle of incidence, the simplified cosine model underpredicted K by about 25% for the unshielded receiver and by
17.7% for the glass-shielded unit. Two factors are primarily responsible for the decline in performance of a PTSC with increasing i ,
as follows: (1) the geometric reduction in irradiance falling on the

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1.00

0.55

0.90

0.50

Efficiency (-)

Incident Angle Modifier

0.60

0.80

0.45

0.40

0.70

Glass Shielded

0.60

0.35

1000 W/m2
700 W/m2
400 W/m2

Unshielded

0.30
0

0.50
0

10

15

20 25 30 35 40 45
Angle of Incidence (deg)

50

55

60

Fig. 2. Angle of incidence modifier for unshielded and glass-shielded

receivers

aperture as i increases, the so-called cosine effect; and (2) the

change in optical efficiency (due to differences in light interaction)
with the reflective surface of the collector, the glass shield (if
present), and the absorber. Nothing can be done to account for
Effect 1, other than tilting the PTSC constantly to keep it perpendicularly oriented to the sun.
The thermal losses of the collector receiver depend on operating
temperature. The thermal losses through PTSC change in different ways depending on the receivers configuration and operational conditions. As shown in Fig. 3, the convection loss from
the absorber tube to supporting structures is the largest. It is in

0.65

Percent of Energy to Total Collected

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1.10

Loss due to Conduction to Brackets

Loss due to Convection to Ambient
Loss due to Radiation to Sky

0.60

0.55

50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Average Temperature above Ambient (C)

400

Fig. 4. Variation of parabolic trough collector efficiency with solar

radiation

accordance with in decreasing order the radiation loss from the

glass envelope to ambient air, while the smaller loss is the convection loss from the glass envelope to ambient air. Thermal losses are
always present if there is a temperature difference between receiver
and ambient whether solar radiation is available or not.
Increased solar radiation results in increased solar energy
absorbed by the collector. Thermal losses also increase due to the
increased collector temperature. However, this increase is smaller
than the enhanced absorbed solar energy. As shown from Fig. 4,
PSTC efficiency increases with increasing solar radiation.
The angle of incidence modifier is a very significant factor
impacting on the solar efficiency. It can be approximately estimated
as the cosine of the angle of incidence. The IAM depends on time
of day, date, the location and orientation of the aperture, and
whether the collector is stationary or tracks the sun movement
about one or two axes. Collector efficiency reaches a maximum
value only at zero angle of incidence. The efficiency of a PTSC
decreases when the angle of incidence of solar beam increases,
as shown in Fig. 5. The effect of the angle of incidence is to reduce
radiation arriving at the absorber tube. Therefore, at noontime
PTSC has the smallest angle of incidence and the highest efficiency.
When the annulus between the receiver surface and the glass
envelope is in vacuum state, conduction and convection across the
annulus are effectively eliminated. Once air is introduced into the
vacuum space, measured losses increase significantly since conduction and convection begin to transfer heat to the glass envelope
as shown in Fig. 6. Radiation loss from the heated receivers metal
surface to the glass envelope does not change significantly when air
is allowed into the annulus.

0.50

Case Study
0.45
0

50

100
150
200
250
300
350
Receiver Operating Temperature (C)

Fig. 3. Heat loss from an absorber tube

ASCE

400

Energy use in buildings represents a significant part of final

energy end-use, making building energy efficiency a top priority.
Buildings are typically responsible for a significant part of the total
primary energy consumption. Net-zero energy building (NZEB) is
the building which, on an annual basis, produces energy from renewable sources that equals the amount of consumed energy from

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0.60
0.55
0.50

Efficiency (-)

0.40
0.35
0.30
Incident angle=0 deg
Incident angle=25 deg
Incident angle=45 deg

0.25
0.20

50

100
150
200
250
300
350
Average Temperature above Ambient (C)

400

Fig. 5. Variation of collector efficiency with angle of incidence

the building. If the produced energy from the building is slightly

less than consumed, such building is called nearly-net-zero energy
building (NNZEB). So, it is the aim objective of scientists and
building constructors to develop economical buildings which will
use the energy generated by renewable energy systems.
In the future NNZEB principle can be expanded to lifecycle
zero-energy target is suggested (Hernandez and Kenny 2010).
An early zero-energy house was introduced (Voss et al. 1996). Several zero-energy constructions have been manufactured throughout
the world (Reijenga 2000; Gilijamse 1995). Carbon emissions,
net primary energy consumption, as well as net energy cost are usually adapted to examine NZEB performance (Tsoutsos et al. 2010).
Several standards have been published to lead designer controls
different processes of building (Marszal et al. 2011; Rahman et al.
2010). Nowadays plenty of emerging and established buildings

0.75

0.70
Percent of Energy to Total Collected

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0.45

Optical Losses
Vacuum
Air

0.65

0.60

0.55

0.50

0.45

0.40

50

100
150
200
250
300
Receiver Operating Temperature (C)

350

Fig. 6. Collector efficiency with air in annulus

ASCE

400

integrate renewable energy systems to achieve green advantages.

The main issues in these standards are avoiding toxic gas emissions
in addition to minimizing greenhouse gases pollutants. In this
concern, building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) is viewed as the
greatest economic option of renewable energy with respect to both
prevented CO2 emissions and energy payback time. These systems
are estimated to achieve extensive marketing in nearby future
(Oliver et al. 2001). Solar energy subsequently has a significant
part to perform in the building energy technique.
Zhai et al. (2008) stated that in the climate situation of Shanghai,
China, vacuum tube collector arrays of area 150 m2 can be utilized
to fulfill air conditioning and heating for 460 m2. Furthermore,
collectors able of producing airflow providing hot water needs
for an office building. Feasibility of NZEB systems for single house
in southern European climate was examined (Da Graca et al. 2012).
In order to meet energy requirements, solar thermal and photovoltaic systems were sized. Their results showed that implementation of NZEB is feasible. Raja et al. (2012) reviewed existed
solar vapor absorption cooling system using LiBrH2 O for residential buildings. In addition, they explored update ideas for reducing
operational cost and at the same time increasing coefficient of
performance (COP) for better cooling performance. A solar
operated cooling and heating building is studied (Jing et al.
2012). They concluded that building performance depends primarily on operational strategy. They adapted a relation to examine
the advantages attained by solar system using different operation
strategy.
Yin et al. (2013) created a building that incorporated a multipurpose ceiling system to collect solar energy using photovoltaics
(PVs) while reducing PV productivity loss. Thermal resistive
constructive base added to supply architectural help for PV components. The performance evaluation reveals that the recommended
solar ceiling system offers important benefits in excess of the conventional available systems. An explanation of net-zero energy
buildings was introduced (Bourrelle et al. 2013). They presented
graphs and equations that help in recognizing the significance of
various energy equilibrium processes suggested for NZEBs, and
by offering an option, environmentally inspired the energy payback
equilibrium for NZEBs. They stated that the energy return balance
uses a feature perspective that guarantees NZEBs solely need no net
conventional energy and not just avoid an improve in the requirement for traditional grid energy. Furthermore, the return balance
delivered sufficient reply to the meaning of nearly ZEBs implemented by the European Union. Numerical model is introduced
(Kharseh et al. 2014) to study the effects of heating on HVAC
for different climatic conditions. The results revealed the great effect of warming on yearly generated energy. Cellura et al. (2014)
expanded NZEB method to include lifecycle calculations for an
Italian building to determine discrepancy from net zero energy. The
building moves to NNZEB condition due to the great difference
between conversion factors of imported electricity and generated
PV. A study was introduced (Eicker et al. 2014) to judge the most
suitable and feasible energy technology. Three different weather
conditions are explored. Same construction configurations are utilized for the different cases. The PV production fulfills a significant
part of energy consumption.
In the research reported in this paper, a midsize existing
institutional building is considered as a model for existing public
buildings that can be moved towards NZEB in Kuwait. So, the
main objective is to design building integrated parabolic trough
collectors in Kuwait to achieve net-zero/near-net-zero energy
building. In addition, the performance and environmental impact of the building integrated parabolic trough collectors are
evaluated.

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Building Load
The 2-story building under consideration is the main building in the
College of Technological Studies, Kuwait. The building load is the
total energy consumption in the building and it is assumed to be
time-dependent. On average, 800 people use the building with
irregular occupancy from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., 5 days=week during
the academic semesters. The building wall construction can be considered heavy mass, with an overall heat transfer coefficient of
0.487 W=m2 K, which is a common practice in very hot climates
(such as those in the state of Kuwait). The roof of the building is
constructed from light-mass construction that is well-insulated with
an overall heat transfer coefficient of 0.189 W=m2 K. The windows
and entrance doors are aluminum-framed constructed from 6-mm
double-tinted glazing with an overall heat transfer coefficient of
3.49 W=m2 K. The HVAC system of the building consists of seven
air-cooled reciprocating chillers using R407c refrigerant and each
has a capacity of 223.52 kW. The integrated distribution system
consists of several air-handling units (AHUs) of constant air
volume that serve the staff offices, classrooms, and laboratories.
In dry, harsh, hot weather such as the case in the state of Kuwait,
the HVAC system is the most energy-consuming equipment in
buildings.
In building simulation, Type 56 included in TRNSYS is employed. This component models the thermal behavior of building
having multiple thermal zones. This component model is adapted to
describe the building construction from a set of external files. The
files can be generated based on user supplied information by running the preprocessor program called TRNBuild. The simulation is
done with the TRNbuild (Type 56) of TRNSYS to determine the
demand for air conditioning in the house understudy. Results indicate that this demand starts from April to October, with critical
periods in the months of June, July, and August in which occurs the
maximum load. In the research reported in this paper, the HVAC
system and its distribution system consume about 83% of the total
building energy consumption. The remaining energy consumption
is distributed between lighting system, 11%, and equipments, 6%.
Building Integrated Parabolic Trough Collectors
Parabolic trough systems with a high-temperature heat transfer
fluid are currently the most-proven concentrating solar power
(CSP) technology. Collector thermal efficiency (c ) is the ratio
of energy collected by the working fluid to the direct normal solar
radiation incident on the collector aperture. It is typically determined by testing a collector over a range of high temperatures.
Traditionally, the efficiency is plotted versus the difference between
operating temperature and ambient temperature. Parabolic trough
collector is assumed to be integrated with the building to satisfy
the cooling load which represents about 83% of the building load
(1.278 GWh). A performance model is developed for solar thermal
collector based on a linear, tracking parabolic trough reflector focused on a surface-treated metallic pipe receiver enclosed in an
evacuated transparent tube, a parabolic trough solar collector. This
steady-state, single-dimensional model comprises the fundamental
radiative and convective heat transfer as well as mass-balance and
energy-balance relations. It considers the effects of solar intensity
and incident angle, collector dimensions, material properties, fluid
properties, ambient conditions, and operating conditions on the
performance of the collector. The PTSC includes a parabolic reflective mirror, receiver pipe, steel support structure, and a single-axis
drive mechanism. It tracks the sun about a single axis during the
day. Once the sunlight strikes on the PTSC reflective mirror, it is
reflected to the PTSC receiver tube. The heat transfer fluid flows
from one end of the receiver tube to another end to convert solar
ASCE

energy into thermal energy, which drives any solar energy system
to provide space heating and cooling. The primary function of
the model is to predict solar collector efficiency that is the thermal energy output of PTSC. The model created predicts PTSC
performance by evaluating thermal losses involved in PTSC receiver tube.
The efficiency of PTSC can be expressed as
c FR

Ar
T i T a
F U
Aa R L
G

22

where Ar = receiver area; Aa = collector aperture area; G = incident

radiation on a horizontal surface; FR = heat removal factor;
( ) = transmittanceabsorptance product; U L = collector overall
heat transfer loss coefficient; T i = inlet collector temperature; and
T a = ambient temperature.
The storage tank is modeled as a stratified tank. The energy
balance of the water in the storage tank accounts for energy gain
from the collector, energy removed by the load, and energy lost to
the surroundings. The model created predicts PTSC performance
by evaluating thermal losses involved in PTSC receiver tube.
The developed PTSC model is a steady-state model and based
on the energy balance and heat transfer mechanism within PTSC
receiver tube. The model could calculate the fraction of the incident
solar energy recovered in the fluid circulating through the pipe
receiver, the detailed thermal losses from the collector, and the
pressure drop of that flowed over the receiver. Also, the model
can evaluate the temperatures of various collector components
and of the fluid throughout the receiver under different conditions
like including direct normal solar irradiation, incidence angle, and
wind speed. In addition, the model could be used for optimizing
PTSC design by varying the size of receiver tube, the size of
the glass envelope, receiver tube material, coating material, and
so forth.
Single-effect LiBrH2 O cooling absorption system is proposed
to supply cooling demand for sunshine hours from AprilOctober.
Fig. 7 shows a schematic diagram of solar absorption cooling using
PTC and the single-effect LiBrH2 O absorption chiller.
The main components of the absorption unit area are generator, condenser, evaporator, absorber, and low-temperature heat
exchanger. The lithium bromide solution is pumped from the
absorber to the generator where the water is boiled off. The heat

04015008-8

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Fig. 7. Schematic diagram of solar absorption cooling system

J. Energy Eng.

1000
990

Avoided Co2 emission (tonne/year)

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source is passed in a counterflow arrangement through the generator to boil off water vapor from the LiBrH2 O solution. A cooling
water loop is needed to condense the water vapor boiled off from
the generator and to aid in the absorption of water vapor back
into the LiBrH2 O solution. This cooling water is passed first
through the absorber and then the condenser. The evaporator takes
in low-pressure cold water and produces a cooling effect by evaporating the water and passing it to the absorber. The chiller model is
based on a commercially available LiBrH2 O absorption chiller
system, Arkla Model WF-36. The Arkla chiller has a nominal
cooling capacity of 3 t (37,980 kJ=h). Units of different capacity
are approximated by scaling the Arkla performance. Hot water is
supplied to the air conditioner at a temperature of 87C (minimum),
93C (maximum) and leaves this unit 10C cooler than the supply
and returns to the storage (or to the auxiliary heater if storage is
below 77C). Whenever hot water from the storage is cooler than
87C, the auxiliary heat is supplied to raise its temperature to 87C.
When storage is cooler than 77C, it is not used, and the auxiliary
heater carries the full cooling load. The performance of air conditioning systems is expressed by their coefficient of performance.
The COP determines how many units of cooling/heating one gets
for every unit of energy that is input. The LiBrH2 O absorption
systems have a good performance at generator temperatures between 70 and 95C (Duffie and Beckman 2004) which can be provided by a parabolic trough collector with direct water. A computer
program is written to simulate and design a solar single effect
LiBrH2 O cooling absorption system to supply building demand
of cooling for sunshine hours from AprilOctober. The TRNSYS
program is employed to simulate the different components of the
solar cooling system. For hot thermal storage, a stratified liquid
storage tank, with two inlets and two outlet flows (Type 60), for
cold thermal storage Type 60f is used. Several data files of absorption chillers of single-effect employing LiBrH2 O solution as
working fluid were used. Other types used were types to simulate
pumps and weather data. The building studied has a floor area
of about 3,600 m2 and the maximum cooling load is 175 kW
(50 refrigeration tons) in August.

970
960
950
940
930
920
910
900
400

500

600

700

800

900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400

Collector Area (m2)

Fig. 8. Avoided CO2 emission variation with collector area; azimuth

angle = 0

inflation, and discount rate for the life of the investment. The unit
of measurement is net present value (NPV) or annual value dollars.
A comparison between the lifecycle cost (LCC) of the proposed
energy system to an alternative system determines if the system
in question is cost-effective or not. If the LCC is lower than that
for the base case and in other aspects is equal, it is considered costeffective and consequently considered the preferred investment.
In this concern, LCS over a conventional system can be defined
as the difference between the reduction in fuel costs and the increase in expenses resulting from the additional investment for
the solar system and is given by
LCS P1 CF LFt P2 CA Ac CE

Environmental Impact of PTC

The variation of annual avoided CO2 emission with collector area is
presented in Fig. 8. Fig. 8 again illustrates that the optimum area
which maximizes the avoided CO2 emission is 850 m2 .
At this optimum area, the avoided CO2 emission has been found
to be approximately equal to 980 t=year. This means that the cost
of CO2 saved by solar absorption system is US$29,400 considering
the average cost of CO2 reduction is US$30=t [49]. So, the cost of
CO2 saved per kilowatt hour can be obtained by dividing the cost of
CO2 saved by the annual energy generated by the solar system.
Present calculations revealed that the annual cost of CO2 saved
is US$0.024=kWh.
Economic Analysis
The profitability gained from that system determines the economic
feasibility of energy system. To be economically feasible an investment must promise a rate of return greater than the cost of capital
needed to finance it. This involves taking into account all costs
and revenues of the installed system. The economic evaluation in
the present study is based on lifecycle savings (LCS) method. In
LCS, all relevant present and future costs associated with an energy
system are summed in present or annual value during a given study
period. These costs include, but are not limited to, equipment cost,
installation, operations and maintenance (OM), repair, replacement,
ASCE

980

23

where P1 = factor relating lifecycle fuel cost to first year fuel cost
savings; P2 = factor relating lifecycle by additional capital investment to initial investment; CA = solar energy investment cost which
is directly proportional to collector area; CE = solar energy investment cost which is independent of collector area; CF = unit cost of
delivered conventional energy for the first year of analysis; L = total
load; and Ft = total solar fraction of the solar system. For a particular locality and set of economic conditions, the economic analysis can be used to evaluate the economic feasibility of the solar
system in terms of LCS. A subroutine compatible with TRNSYS
is developed to calculate LCS due to the solar system. The price
in kilowatt hours generated by utility is supplied to the program on
an hourly basis.
Fig. 9 shows the variation of solar fraction (F), overall system
efficiency (), and lifecycle savings with collector area. The cost of
the conventional fuel energy is the most important factor affecting
the economic feasibility of the solar system. The present results
revealed that for each ton of refrigeration, it is required to have
a minimum collector area of about 25 m2 with an optimal water
storage tank capacity ranging from 1,0001,500 L for a system
to operate solely on solar energy for about 7 h=day.
As seen from Fig. 9, the optimum area which corresponding
to maximum solar savings is nearly equal to 850 m2 . The optimum
area neither corresponds to maximum system efficiency nor to the

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1.0

In addition, the costs of renewable energy components have decreased significantly in the last years and continue to decrease more
which will enhance the economic aspects of solar cooling systems
much more making solar energy systems more feasible in Kuwait
climate.

2500

LCS
F

2000

0.6

1500

0.4

Conclusions
LCS ($)

Solar Fraction (-)

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0.8

1000

0.2

0.0

500

200

400

600

0
800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800
Area (m2)

Fig. 9. Variation of system parameters with collector area

maximum solar fraction. Also, the total solar fraction (F) for parabolic trough solar collector satisfies a significant portion of the
cooling load about 0.73. The collector efficiency () which is the
ratio of solar energy provided to the total incident radiation behaves
the same as the system efficiency with slightly higher numerical
values.
The coefficient of performance of the absorption chiller is
approximately 0.63 which is within the accepted, practical values
of the conventional lithium bromide system. The value of lifecycle savings is found to be US$2,300 per year for the optimum
conditions.
In addition, the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of the solar
absorption system is calculated to judge its feasibility. The LCOE
is a useful tool in comparing the true total cost of generating electricity from different technologies with different operating characteristics. In such an analysis, one should input initial cost of the
system, including all system component costs in addition to balance of system cost (installation, piping, electronic, engineering,
and so on) as well as operation and maintenance costs associated
with the system. The LCOE of renewable energy systems can be
highly sensitive to input assumptions and different assumptions can
significantly change the calculated value of LCOE.
Branker et al. (2011) introduced Eq. (24) for the evaluation of
LCOE
PT

Ct
t0 1rt
Et
t0 1rt

LCOE PT

24

where T = project lifetime (years); t = year; Ct = net cost of the

project (U.S. dollars); Et = energy produced (kWh) considering
degradation rate in system production; and r = percentage discount
rate. The discount rate is used to convert future costs to present
value. Based on the estimated initial total system cost and the
discount rate adopted by the Kuwaiti governments long-term
plan (6.5%), LCOE of the absorption system is found to be approximately equal to US$0.177=kWh. Hence, the solar system net
cost after deducting the CO2 cost (US$0.024=k) obtained from a
previous section is US$0.153=kWh, which is almost equal to
the current cost of producing electricity in Kuwait which is
US$0.15=kWh.
ASCE

This paper investigates the performance of parabolic trough collectors as well as the output of energy production of parabolic trough
collectors in Kuwait climate. Supported by current results, the following conclusions may be drawn:
The performance of parabolic trough collectors can be significantly enhanced by optimizing its parameters as well as
operating conditions. Reducing the heat transfer losses can significantly improve collector efficiency.
Convection loss from the absorber tube to the supporting structures is the largest among the other losses (conduction and
radiation).
The angle of incidence modifier is an important factor impacting
on the solar efficiency. At temperature 150C, parabolic trough
collector efficiency decreases from about 0.55 at an angle of
incidence 0 to about 0.35 at an angle of incidence 45.
At noontime, PTSC has the smallest angle of incidence and the
highest efficiency.
When the annulus between the receiver surface and the glass
envelope is in vacuum, conduction and convection across the
annulus are effectively eliminated.
Parabolic trough collectors of optimum area of 850 m2 can
satisfy about 73% of the total building cooling load.
Total avoided CO2 emission of about 980 t=year can be
achieved.
The LCOE of the solar system is almost equal to the current cost
of producing electricity in Kuwait.
Nearly NZEB can be achieved in existing buildings by integrating efficient parabolic trough collectors.
The results of the research reported in this paper should encourage governments for wide installation of solar energy systems
to keep the environment healthy and clean.

Acknowledgments
The writers would like to express their sincere gratitude to the
Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET),
Kuwait, for supporting and funding the research reported in this
paper, i.e., Research Project No. TS11-09, entitled, Assessment
of Parabolic Trough Collector Performance in Kuwait Climate.

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