TY - JOUR
T1 - A study of solar collector aging, installation and materials problems
AU - Rudnick, A.
AU - Kaplan, Y.
AU - Kudish, A. I.
AU - Wolf, D.
N1 - Funding Information:
connections studied (intermediate-tie-down, fective for detecting poor pipe-to-plate thermal straps, "omega-under", and "omega-over") none bonding, blockage of flow in risers, and areas of was found to provide truly continuous thermal con-extensive heat loss. tact. Although effects on efficiency were not mea- sured directly, improved thermal contact can re- duce heat losses and thereby increase efficiency. Poor contact between pipe and plate in the "omega- under"-type construction was found to encourage corrosion. 4. Galvanized steel collector housings generally hold up well, except for the lower edge which can corrode completely away in less than five years, especially if in contact with a whitewashed and tarred roof. 5. Seals between the glass cover plate and the Acknowledgements--The authors wish to express their gratitude to their colleagues for their help and encouragement during the course of this study. We are especially grateful to the Department of Energy Conservation, Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure of Israel for funding this project. We also wish to acknowledge the assistance of the Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Connecticut, where one of the authors (A.I.K.) is presently on sabbatical, in the typing and preparation of this manuscript.
PY - 1986/1/1
Y1 - 1986/1/1
N2 - Numerous experimental and theoretical studies have been performed on flat plate solar collectors, but relatively little effort has been applied to investigating the manner in which they age. We have exploited the long-time and extensive use of solar energy for domestic hot water (DHW) heating in Israel to study how aging affects the physical conditions and thermal behavior of collectors. The scope of this study was limited to individual thermosiphonic DHW solar systems in the Tel-Aviv region and to collectors constructed from galvanized steel absorber plates and pipes. The study included visual inspections, owner interviews, thermographic analysis of collectors, standard efficiency tests, thermosiphonic efficiency tests, experiments relating degradation to performance, and dissection of solar collectors, including longitudinal sectioning of pipes, to observe the condition of the various internal components. Two of the major conclusions from this study are: (1) well made solar collectors can operate satisfactorily for periods in excess of 15 years with minimum maintenance. (2) Many of the more serious problems found were either present at the time of the installation (i.e. manufacturing defect) or resulted from poor installation techniques.
AB - Numerous experimental and theoretical studies have been performed on flat plate solar collectors, but relatively little effort has been applied to investigating the manner in which they age. We have exploited the long-time and extensive use of solar energy for domestic hot water (DHW) heating in Israel to study how aging affects the physical conditions and thermal behavior of collectors. The scope of this study was limited to individual thermosiphonic DHW solar systems in the Tel-Aviv region and to collectors constructed from galvanized steel absorber plates and pipes. The study included visual inspections, owner interviews, thermographic analysis of collectors, standard efficiency tests, thermosiphonic efficiency tests, experiments relating degradation to performance, and dissection of solar collectors, including longitudinal sectioning of pipes, to observe the condition of the various internal components. Two of the major conclusions from this study are: (1) well made solar collectors can operate satisfactorily for periods in excess of 15 years with minimum maintenance. (2) Many of the more serious problems found were either present at the time of the installation (i.e. manufacturing defect) or resulted from poor installation techniques.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0022440853&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/0038-092X(86)90138-6
DO - 10.1016/0038-092X(86)90138-6
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0022440853
SN - 0038-092X
VL - 36
SP - 227
EP - 240
JO - Solar Energy
JF - Solar Energy
IS - 3
ER -
