Performance Test of a Flat-Plate Solar Collector

Johannes Bruce Llausas de Guzman1

Abstract: The flat-plate solar collector is one of many solar energy collection system which is designed for operations in low to medium
temperature range, from ambient to 60 to 100. The solar thermal energy can be used in solar water-heating systems, solar pool heaters, and
solar space-heating systems. The heat absorbed and carried by the water can be utilized in several ways, such as a hot water supply for hotels,
heat for domestic use and even clean hot water for coffee. This experiment aims to determine the efficiency of the flat-plate solar collector in
the Mechanical Engineering Laboratory of the University of San Carlos, and to determine the appropriate weather condition to fully utilize the
flat plates ability to capture solar irradiation. The students also obtained a temperature against time graph for both the water and the plate. The
maximum efficiency obtained was 103%. This abnormal efficiency was due to the solarimeters faulty reading. The experiment was performed
by 5th year Mechanical Engineering students of the University of San Carlos Talamban Campus.

Author keywords: Performance Test, Flat-Plate Solar Collector, Collector Effiency

Introduction analyse and improve the thermal efficiency of the collector (Pandey
and Chaurasia 2016).
With the continuing increase in the worlds population and the A Solar thermal energy system, converts the energy of the sun
expansion of modernization, the worldwide demand for energy directly into heat, which is stored using water, air as a working fluid.
doubled in the first half of the twenty-first century, and it is expected The typical solar heating system consists of a collector, a heat transfer
to be tripled before the end of this century. Unfortunately, the circuit that includes the fluid and the means to circulate it, and a
reserves of fossil fuels are not vast or renewable; the supply is storage system including a heat exchanger. Flat-plate collectors have
constrained. Renewable energy technologies are those technologies been and may remain the most popular type of solar collectors for
that can be used to produce energy from direct and indirect effects on general or residential applications. They are simple in design, operate
the Earth from the suns energy (e.g., solar energy, wind, and at medium to low temperatures, and have few mechanical parts. In
waterfalls), gravity effects (ebb and flow), and the high temperature climates where there is a potential for freezing temperatures during
of the Earths center (geothermal). A future blend that incorporates part of the year, or in climates where fluids are exposed to high
renewable energy sources will help people thrive and ensure their temperatures, anti-freeze/anti-boiling (coolant) is used to protect
wellbeing. Based on the desirable environmental and safety features solar systems against corrosion, freezing temperatures, and
of solar energy, it is generally accepted that it can be used to a greater overheating. There are many different types of antifreeze like
extent with the least environmental effects than other sources of propylene-glycol, ethylene-glycol, triethylene glycol etc. Propylene-
renewable energy (Verma and Kundan, 2013). glycol has basic properties like: non-toxic, low specific heat capacity,
Solar energy is one the most popular renewable energy sources freeze protection, boil-over protection, and anti-corrosion and rust
that can be used in a thermal or photovoltaic system. Solar collectors protection. At particular concentration they aid for enhanced heat
play a key role in solar thermal systems. They convert solar radiation transfer applications (Ranjith and Karim 2015).
into heat and transfer the heat to working fluids such as water or air.
Flat-plate collectors are the most common type of solar collector and
are typically used as a water heater or air heater. These collectors
have a low efficiency and low outlet temperature (Noghrehabadi et
al. 2016).
Solar collector is a kind of heat exchanger wherein heat exchange
takes between a distance source and a heat transfer fluid flowing in
the collector. Solar radiation from sun hits the absorber plate of the
collector and the thermal energy is then transferred to the fluid. Based
on their design, solar collectors can be classified as concentrating and
non-concentrating type. Nonconcentrating type can be further
divided in flat plate collector and evacuated tube collectors. Flat plate
collectors are the most common type of collectors and the most
primitive too. Work of Hottel and Woertz in 1942 and by Hottel and
Whiller in 1958 can be looked as a first work on solar flat plate
collector. They had developed the collectors consisting of a black flat
plate absorber, a transparent cover, heat transfer fluid and an Fig. 1 Schematic drawing of a flat-plate solar collector
insulating case. Tabor in 1955, employed selective black surfaces to (FPSC). Image courtesy of Sarsam et al. 2015.
increase collector efficiency. His experiments on optical
concentration revealed the ability of optical concentration to produce Figure 1 shows a schematic drawing of a standard flat-plate solar
high pressure steam. Many studies have been done after that to collector (FPSC). Solar collectors are a special type of heat
exchangers that convert solar energy to thermal energy. Numerous
1
Student, Dept. of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, types of solar collectors have been used to collect solar energy. The
Univ. of San Carlos, Cebu City 6000, Philippines. E-mail: flat-plate solar collector (FPSC) is the most common type, and it
johannesyap18@gmail.com
converts solar energy to thermal energy using a solid surface called Other thermal insulation material that could have been used in the
an absorber plate (Okujagu et al. 1989). The surface of the construction of the solar flat plate collector include: polyurethane,
absorber plate is usually black matte painted or selectively coated glasswool and rockwool. The last two mentioned are usually applied
spectrally to achieve high absorptivity of the solar spectrum with low in air- and water tide appliances due to their physical characteristics.
emissivity (Bogaerts and Lampert, 1983). The received solar
radiation is absorbed by the collectors absorber plate, and then, it is
transformed into heat and transferred to the heat transfer medium that
is flowing through the collectors tubes. The major fraction of the
incident solar radiation passing through the FPSCs transparent cover
is absorbed by the absorber plate. The bottom and sides of the
collectors absorber plate are fully insulated to minimize heat losses
by conduction. The collectors glass cover diminishes heat losses by
convection via containment of an air layer and by radiation in that it
is transparent to the suns shortwave solar radiation but practically
non-transparent to the long-wave thermal radiation emitted by the
absorber plate (greenhouse effect) (Sarsam et al. 2015).

Experimental Methods

Figure 2 shows the Flat-plate solar collector cross-section, giving

highlight to its basic components for operation. These components
includes the glass cover, absorber, insulation, housing case, the
supporting structure, the cold water inlet and the hot water outlet. The
Flat-plat collectors cover was made to be weather-resistant and was
made to withstand exposure to the suns ray due to its high tolerance
for heat. The glass used as cover however is a known brittle material
is and can easily shatter when it is subjected to sudden impact or
collision to hard objects. Fig. 3 shows the actual flat plate collector
assessed during the performance of the experiment and it can be seen
that the glass cover has already been damaged.

Fig. 3 Solar Flat-plate Collector in the Mechanical Engineering

Laboratory, USC-TC, Philippines. Image courtesy of Fernandez et al.
BSME 2016).

Fig. 2 Solar Flat-plate Collector basic components.
The Flat-plat collectors cover was made to be weather-resistant and
was made to withstand exposure to the suns ray due to its high
tolerance for heat. The glass used as cover however is a known brittle
material is and can easily shatter when it is subjected to sudden
impact or collision to hard objects. Fig. 3 shows the actual flat plate
collector assessed during the performance of the experiment and it
can be seen that the glass cover has already been damaged. The
absorber is characterized by the type of material in the form of tube
fins or an absorption coat. The absorber used in the construction of
the solar flat plate collector used fins covered in black paint to
increase solar absorption. There are other materials for construction
that can be used to substitute the absorber with the most common
being: copper and aluminum.The thermal insulation reduces heat
losses by minimizing the heat transfer between the absorber and the
housing case. Fig. 3 shows the insulator used in the experiment being
made of aluminum in the form of foil. Although the aluminum foil
have already shown signs of damage as some parts have been torn.
The housing case grips all the other components of the solar flat
plate collector making a significant part of the set-up. It is constructed
using materials that have high resistivity to all types of weather
conditions and to solar radiation intensity. The design and
construction of the housing case is vital to ensure stability, tightness
and proper fitting of the solar flat plate collector assembly.
The cold water inlet shown in fig. 1 is where the supply cold
waters enters the flow tubes while the hot water outlet is where the
supply water exits after it has gained heat from passing the flow tubes
of the solar flat plate collector. However in the experiment, both the
inlet and outlets were closed to limit the water circulation within the
flow tubes. The purpose supporting structure is to orient the solar
plate collector at a specified angle with respect to the ground. Since
the solar plate collector used is fixed, the angle the plate makes with
the solar radiation affects the amount of heat that can be absorbed. In
the performance of the experiment, the solar flat plate was oriented
to make an angle of 20 with the ground. No other orientation was
investigated to establish a comparison. The pump used to circulate
the water inside the flow tubes can be seen in fig. 3. No specifications
were found that could have identified the pumps power rating or its
relation to the water flow rate. A 110 V axial pump was used to
circulate the water in the tubes, and a mercury thermometer was used
to measure the temperature of the water inside the tubes. The
temperature of the plate was obtained by means of a pyrometer
provided by the Mechanical Engineering laboratory.
Gathering of Data = (1)
The Flat-plate collector was placed in a non-enclosed area clear from
where = input energy, = irradiance, = area of the flat plate,
anything that would obstruct the solar irradiation to the surface of the
1.4726 m2. The irradiance is the flux of radiant energy per unit area
plate. The initial temperature of the plate and water was recorded.
(normal to the direction of flow of radiant energy through a medium).
The experiment was performed in between the Mechanical
Irradiance is also known as the density of radiation incident on a
Engineering Laboratory and the Chemical Engineering laboratory.
given surface, and is usually expressed in watts per m2. The
The solar flat plate collector was too heavy to be carried by the author
irradiance was obtained by means of a solarimeter.
and other two colleagues so help was requested in transporting the
set-up to the desired testing location. When the solar flat plate
collector has been positioned and properly oriented at 20 with
respect to the ground, the hose connections were used to fill the solar
flat plate collector with water from one of the faucets of the
Mechanical Engineering Laboratory. Once the flow tubes have been
filled with water, both the water inlet and outlet were closed to
contain the water within the flow tubes. A mercury thermometer was
inserted to a pipe opening as shown in fig. 3. It was made sure that
the thermometer was secured. The initial water temperature was then
recorded. The initial temperature of the solar flat plate collector was
also measured using the pyrometer provided by the Mechanical
Engineering Laboratory. Lastly, the solar irradiation was measured
using the provided solarimeter. However, the solarimeter reading is
defective and will give erroneous data. Once everything was set up
and initial readings were recorded, the pump was plugged to the 110
Volt outlet of the Mechanical Engineering Laboratory and the solar
flat plate collector was in operation. The aforementioned parameters Fig. 4 Water and Flat-plate temperature relationship over time. (De
were recorded at 15 minute intervals starting at the initial readings Guzman, Roma, Saut). BSME 2016.
until the 75th minute. The time provided for trial was limited because
the instructor had a discussion to make. After the necessary data was Figure 5 shows the temperature versus time graph constructed by the
collected, aid was again requested from the other groups to transport group of Fernendez et.al. (2016). The experiment was conducted on
the solar flat plate collector from the test site back to the Mechanical June 28, 2016. Given the availability of their time during this period,
Engineering Laboratory. A bucket was prepared to collect the water they were able to perform the experiment in a span of 120 minutes,
that was used in the flat plate collector. The water from the flat plate or 2 hours. At 0 minute mark, the temperature of water and the plate
collector was carefully transferred into the bucket and its weight was shows equality. However, for the rest of the duration of the
measured using a weighing scale. Finally, the dimensions of the solar experiment, the water temperature exceeds over the plate
flat plate collector were measured and its area was calculated. temperature. The profiliation of the water temperature can be seen,
given the cloudy weather conditions. Approaching the 100 minute
Results and Discussions mark, the weather traversed to fair. The group were able to attain
longer duration of experimentation period since they are the pioneers
Water and Flat-plate temperature over time of this experiment.

The temperature versus time graph for both water and the plate is
shown in figure 4. As can be seen in the graph, it can be seen that the
temperature of water for the first 10 minutes rose almost 10C. For
the plate, the temperature rise was not the significant in figure. At the
15 minute mark of the experiment, a notable overcoming of the
plates temperature is achieved by the water and this continues until
the 45 minute mark of the experiment. It is also important to note that
for the duration of the experiment, a fair weather was observed. It
was a good time to conduct the experiment given the availability of
the suns radiation.
The graph constructed in figure 4 may not be the actual
representation of the temperatures during experiment but serves as
the approximate of the temperatures of the said mediums. An
explanation that can be invoked in the increase of temperature of
water is that the water was recirculated in an enclosed system, where
heat losses are minimized. The flat-plate although painted such that
it could absorb most of the incident rays from the sun, was lagging
behind in terms of temperature. Another explanation for this is the
heat transfer via conduction that occurs from the plate to the water
passage then to the water itself.
The heat input, defined as the amount of heat which struck the Fig. 5 Water and Flat-plate temperature relationship over time.
area of the Flat-plate collector was obtained by the equation: (Courtesy of Fernandez, Lim, Munsayac and Ygnacio, BSME 2016).
Figure 6 shows a graph of temperature with respect to time for a minute mark, the efficiency dwindles over time until the end of the
variation of water flow rate in GPM. It can be seen from the graph experiment.
similarities in the trend of the water temperature with respect to the
duration of the experiment. In their study, it experimented the effects
of varying the flow rate circulating through the Flat-plate solar
collector and found out that increasing the mass flow rate in the
system would result to a slight decrease in the temperature of the
water. This is due to the larger mass of water absorbing the heat,
tending to dissipate the temperature vastly compared to the lower
volumes of water. The water absorbed or the heat output is the
amount of useful heat carried by the water circulating inside the tubes
and is obtained by the equation:

= (2)

where = output energy, = mass flow rate, = specific

heat of water 4187 J/kgK, and = change in temperature of
water at every 15 minute interval.

Fig. 7 Relationship of the Solar Flat-plates efficiency over time. (De

Guzman, Roma, Saut., BSME 2016).

Figure 8 shows the relationship of the Solar flat plates efficiency

plotted against the function of the difference of ambient temperature
over the the irradiance. The efficiency diminshes in a linear manner,
as the inlet temperature of the fluid increases. According to the author
of the paper, the useful energy gain depends strongly on the energy
losses from the top surface of the collector both due to the convective
and radiative heat transfer processes. Moreover, Losses from the
bottom and from the edges of the collector always do exist also. Their
contribution, however, is not as significant as the losses from the top
surface. This diminishing collector efficiency is due to the inability
of the collector to convert the input energy into a usable energy in the
form of heated water due to the energy losses over time, as explained
by Struckmann (2008). The heat losses due to radiation was
calculated using the equation:
Fig. 6 Effect of flow rate on the collector outlet temperature. (Courtesy
of Saleh et al. 2014). = + + (4)

where is the radiation energy loss, is the irradiance, is the area

Efficiency versus Time of the solar flat-plate collector, is the absorptivity, is the
reflectivity, and is the transmissivity.
Figure 7 shows the relationship of efficiency over time during the The abscissa in figure 8 has the unit reciprocal to the heat transfer
experimentation of the solar flat-plate collector. The flat-plate coefficient.
collector efficiency, as defined by Struckmann (2008), is defined as
the ratio of the useful energy gain Qout to the incident energy over a
particular time period and it is given by the equation:

= (3)

where is the Solar Flat-plate collectors efficiency, is the

output energy or the energy absorbed by the water, and is the
input energy or the incident energy that is provided by the heat of the
sun.
From figure 7, it can be seen that efficiency for a certain period
of time the collector efficiency was able to attain a significant
increase. However, the efficiency surpassed the maximum efficiency
which is 100%, which is very unlikely to happen. The efficiency at
the 15 minute marked reached over 103%. The culprit of this faulty
efficiency is the solarimeter reading in which, for the whole duration
of the experiment, was consistent in giving unstable readings, Fig. 8 Performance of a typical flat-plate collector (Graph courtesy of
Stucmann 2008).
rendering inaccuracy of the irradiance measurements. After the 15
Conclusions
A very scientific approach to describe the thermal performance of a
Flat-plate solar collector has been shown by plotting the collectors
efficiency over time. The Flat-plate collectors efficiency is the most
important measurement in evaluation its performance. It was also
found out that efficiency subsides over time, which is an indication
of the inability of the collector to utilize the available irradiation
energy and convert it to useful energy in the form of heated water.
Although no accurate readings were given by the solarimeter during
the experiment due to its faulty readings, resulting to erroneous
results in its efficiency, the important part here is that the author and
his colleagues were able to operate and understand the concept of
solar energy and the way our current technology utilizes its energy,
knowing its unlimited resource. It is recommended for the
department to purchase new digital solarimeter, in order to obtain
viable data during experimentation.
Notations
The following symbols are used in this paper:
= input energy (W)
= irradiance (W/m2)
= area of the flat plate (m2)
= output energy (W)
= mass flow rate (kg/s)
= specific heat of water (J/kgK)
= change in temperature of water (C)
= efficiency (%)
= heat loss (radiation loss) (W)
= absorptivity
= reflectivity
= transmissivity
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