The objective of this work is to investigate the impact of the geometric dimensions of parabolic trough collector (PTC) in the optical, energetic and exergetic efficiency. The module of the commercial LS-3 PTC is examined with SOLIDWORKS FLOW SIMULATION in steady-state conditions. Various combinations of reflector widths and receiver diameters are tested. The optical and the thermal performance, as well as the exergetic performance are calculated for all the examined configurations. According to the final results, higher widths demands higher receiver diameter for optimum performance. For inlet temperature equal to 200 °C, the optimum design was find to be 3000 mm width with 42.5 mm receiver diameter, with the focal length to be 1840 mm (this is kept constant in all the cases). The results of this work and the presented methodology can be used as guidelines for the design of optimum PTC in the future.
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Bellos E. , Tzivanidis C., Zisopoulou E., Mitsopoulos G., Antonopoulos K. A. (2016), An innovative Trombe wall as a passive heating system for a building in Athens–A comparison with the conventional Trombe wall and the insulated wall. Energy and Buildings, 133, 754–769.
Bellos E. , Tzivanidis C., Korres D., Antonopoulos K. A. (2015), Thermal analysis of a flat plate collector with Solidworks and determination of convection heat coefficient between water and absorber. In: Proceedings of “The 28th International Conference on Efficiency, Cost, Optimization, Simulation and Environmental Impact of Energy Systems”, 30th June–3rd July, 2015, Pau, France
Bellos E. , Tzivanidis C., Antonopoulos K. A. (2015), Thermal performance of a direct-flow coaxial evacuated tube with solidworks flow simulation. In: Proceedings of “6th International Conference on Experiments/Process/System Modelling/Simulation/Optimization”, Vol II, pp. 505–513, July 8–11, 2015, Athens, Greece
Bellos E. , Korres D., Tzivanidis C., Antonopoulos K. A. (2016), Design, simulation and optimization of a compound parabolic collector. Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments, 16, 53–63.
Tzivanidis C. , Bellos E. (2016), The use of parabolic trough collectors for solar cooling–A case study for Athens climate. Case Studies in Thermal Engineering, 8, 403–413.
Bellos E. , Mathioulakis E., Tzivanidis C., Belessiotis V., Antonopoulos K. A. (2016), Experimental and numerical investigation of a linear Fresnel solar collector with flat plate receiver. Energy Conversion and Management, 130, 44–59.
Pavlovic S. R. , Bellos E., Stefanovic V. P., Tzivanidis C., Stamenkovic Z. M. (2016), Design, simulation and optimization of a solar dish collector spiral-coil thermal absorber. Thermal science, 20(4), 1387–1397.
Pavlovic S. R. , Stefanovic V., Bellos E. (2016), Design and simulation of a solar dish concentrator with spiral-coil smooth thermal absorber. In: Proceedings of “8th International Symposium on Renewable Energy Exploitation of Energy Sources”, pp. 88–95, 31th March –2nd April, 2016, Subotica, Serbia
Pavlovic S. R. , Vasiljevic D. M., Stefanovic V. P., Stamenkovic Z. M., Bellos E. A. (2016), Optical analysis and performance evaluation of a solar parabolic dish concentrator. Thermal Science, 20(S5), 1237–1249.
Bellos E. , Tzivanidis C., Antonopoulos K. A., Gkinis G. (2016), Thermal enhancement of solar parabolic trough collectors by using nanofluids and converging-diverging absorber tube. Renewable Energy, 94, 213–222.
Bellos E. , Tzivanidis C., Daniil I., Antonopoulos K. A. (2017), The impact of internal longitudinal fins in parabolic trough collectors operating with gases. Energy Conversion and Management, 135, 35–54.
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