Solar collectors and their use. Scheme, description

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ENCYCLOPEDIA OF RADIO ELECTRONICS AND ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
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Solar collectors and their use. Encyclopedia of radio electronics and electrical engineering

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Encyclopedia of radio electronics and electrical engineering / Alternative energy sources

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Since ancient times, man has been using solar energy to heat water. The basis of many solar energy systems is the use of solar collectors. The collector absorbs light energy from the sun and converts it into heat, which is transferred to a coolant (liquid or air) and then used to heat buildings, heat water, generate electricity, dry agricultural products or cook food. Solar collectors can be used in almost all processes that use heat.

For a typical residential building or apartment in Europe and North America, heating water is the second most energy intensive domestic process. For a number of houses, it is even the most energy-intensive. The use of solar energy can reduce the cost of domestic water heating by 70%. The collector preheats water, which is then fed to a traditional column or boiler, where the water is heated to the desired temperature. This results in significant cost savings. This system is easy to install and requires almost no maintenance.

Today, solar water heating systems are used in private homes, apartment buildings, schools, car washes, hospitals, restaurants, agriculture and industry. All of these establishments have something in common: they use hot water. Homeowners and business leaders have already seen that solar water heating systems are cost-effective and able to meet the need for hot water in any region of the world.

People have been heating water with the help of the Sun since ancient times, before fossil fuels took the lead in the world's energy. The principles of solar heating have been known for thousands of years. A black-painted surface heats up a lot in the sun, while light-colored surfaces heat up less, white ones less than all the others. This property is used in solar collectors - the most famous devices that directly use the energy of the sun. Collectors were developed about two hundred years ago. The most famous of these, the flat collector, was made in 1767 by a Swiss scientist named Horace de Saussure. It was later used for cooking by Sir John Herschel during his expedition to South Africa in the 30s.

The technology of manufacturing solar collectors reached almost the modern level in 1908, when William Bailey of the American "Carnegie Steel Company" invented a collector with a heat-insulated body and copper tubes. This collector was very similar to the modern thermosyphon system (see below). By the end of World War I, Bailey had sold 4 of these collectors, and the Florida businessman who bought the patent from him sold almost 000 collectors by 1941. Copper rationing introduced in the US during World War II led to a sharp decline in the market for solar heaters.

Until the global oil crisis in 1973, these devices were neglected. However, the crisis has awakened a new interest in alternative energy sources. As a result, the demand for solar energy has also increased. Many countries are keenly interested in the development of this area. The efficiency of solar heating systems has steadily increased since the 1970s, thanks to the use of low-iron tempered glass to cover the collectors (it transmits more solar energy than ordinary glass), improved thermal insulation and a durable selective coating.

The total immediately exploitable potential for solar collectors is, according to some estimates, 360 million m2, which in monetary terms corresponds to 50 billion US dollars with an annual growth rate of 23%. In 2005, the area of glazed solar collectors in the EU amounted to 28 million m2. In addition, unglazed solar collectors for pool heating are likely to reach a total area of 20 million m2.

Due to the simplicity of solar water heating systems, maintenance is minimal. It depends on the type of system. It is necessary to check the amount of fluid in the system and pressure once or twice a year. Once a year, you need to check if the coolant fluid has oxidized. You can use indicator paper for this. If the liquid in the system boils, you need to change it, as it could lose its properties from boiling.

Frost protection requirements must be taken into account when designing the system.

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