Performance test of a box‐type solar cooker: effect of load on the second figure of merit

In this paper thermal performance test experiments for first figure of merit (without load) and second figure of merit (with load) of a box‐type solar cooker were conducted as per Bureau of Indian Standards. The values of second figure of merit (F₂) were determined for different loads of water and the results show that F₂ depends on the quantity of water loaded in a solar cooker. Therefore, it is recommended that the performance test method should specify the amount of water which is to be taken. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Novel solar cookers: suitable for small families

This paper presents the fabrication details and on-field experimental studies of two novel solar cookers, suitable for cooking requirements of small families; these are named as small family solar cookers (SFSC-1 and SFSC-2). Small size, good thermal performance, light weight, low-cost and short payback periods are some important features of these cookers. The values of some essential thermal performance parameters, first figure of merit (F₁), second figure of merit (F₂) and standard cooking power suggested by Bureau of Indian Standards and International Standard for box-type solar cookers, have been evaluated by experimental studies and found to be 0.116°C m²/W, 0.466, 30 W and 0.118°C m²/W, 0.488, 50 W for SFSC-1 and SFSC-2, respectively. A comparative analysis of the thermal performances of SFSCs with the solar cookers, developed by many authors, has also been presented here. The payback periods with respect to different cooking fuels for SFSCs have been found to be reasonably short.     

Estimation of design parameters for thermal performance evaluation of box-type solar cooker

The paper presents a simple test procedure for determination of design parameters to predict the thermal performance of a box-type solar cooker. A series of out-door experiments were performed on the double-glazed solar cooker of aperture area 0.245 m² with a fibre body to obtain two figures of merit, F₁ and F₂. The necessary design parameters—optical efficiency, F′η_o and heat capacity, (MC)′ of the cooker are calculated using the linear regression analysis of experimental F₂ data for different load of water. Based on the experimental results, a correlation for F₂ as a function of quantity of water (load) is proposed. The close agreement between experimental and calculated F₂ indicates the validity of the correlation. The proposed procedure is then applied to predict the heating characteristic curves of the solar cooker for different load of water. The predicted heating characteristic curves are validated by comparing with the experimental data from a series of cooker testing experiments. The results of present study reveal that F′η_o and (MC)′ are the critical design parameters required for the prediction of thermal performance of the solar cooker.     

Evaluating the optimum load range for box-type solar cookers

This paper introduces a new concept of Optimum Load Range (OLR) for solar cookers. OLR gives the load values for which cooker preferably shows good thermal as well as good cooking performance; it may be considered a crucial parameter for solar cookers. This OLR concept is based on the dependence of rate of rise of load temperature on different heat transfer processes between load and cooker interior. This concept illustrates solar cooking in two simple steps. The total time required to complete these steps puts an essential constraint for cooking of any load amount. The maximum value of load (upper limit of OLR) till which cooker shows satisfactory cooking may be determined from this constraint. This constraint requires determination of two OLR parameters which are t_{step I} and t_{step II}. The load for which cooker remain almost 30% efficient, may be referred as lower limit (minimum value) of OLR. For the verification of OLR, experimental studies have been conducted with a solar cooker named SFSC. The OLR parameters along with different thermal performance parameters (TPPs) (second figure of merit (F₂), utilization efficiency (η_u) etc.) suggested by different researches for solar cookers in water load condition have been computed from the measured thermal profiles of different loads (0.8–3.0 kg). From the curve analysis of different TPPs with load, the existence of upper limit of OLR is observed. The values of rate of rise of load temperature at water temperatures 80, 85 and 90 °C for different loads also confirm the same. The OLR of SFSC is found to be 1.2–1.6 kg.     

Surface passivation at a SiO2/n-layer interface

Effects of surface passivation at a SiO₂/phosphorus-doped layer (n⁺-layer) front interface were investigated. Two kinds of cells with different surface concentration were fabricated. Surface potential at the interface was changed by applying bias voltage (V_F). Both open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current of the cell with n⁺-layer concentration of 3 × 10¹⁸ cm⁻³ depended on V_F. Internal quantum efficiency of this cell in short- and medium-wavelength range was changed by applying V_F. It was shown that cell performance was improved by the accumulation of electrons at the interface. To consider the work function difference between a material on the SiO₂ film and the n⁺-layer is important, and cell performance can be further improved by applying V_F to passivate the SiO₂/n⁺-layer interface.     

Experimental testing of a box-type solar cooker using the standard procedure of cooking power

A box-type solar cooker with one (Model I) or four (Model II) cooking pots was constructed and tested under Tanta prevailing weather conditions. Experiments were performed during July 2002 using the cooker with or without load. The obtained results were employed to calculate the two figures of merit, F₁ and F₂, as well as the utilization efficiency η_u and the specific t_s and characteristic t_c boiling times. The obtained values of F₁ indicate that the cooker can be used twice a day for consecutive cooking. F₂ was found to increase almost linearly with the mass of the cooking fluid M_f. The cooker is able to boil 1 kg of water in 15 min when its aperture area equals 1 m². Furthermore, experiments also considered the requirements for the international standard test procedure for solar cookers. The cooking power P was correlated with the temperature difference ΔT between the cooking fluid and the ambient air. Linear correlations between P and ΔT had correlation coefficients higher than 0.90 satisfying the standard. The obtained values of the initial cooking power, heat loss coefficient and the cooking power at a temperature difference of 50 °C agree well with those obtained for small solar cookers. The present cooker is able to cook most kinds of food with an overall utilization efficiency of 26.7%.     

Crystal structure and composition of polycrystalline CuInSe2

This work presents and analyses the X-ray diffraction data for the semiconducting compound CuInSe₂, synthesized by the vertical Bridgman method. The (Cu/In) ratio was varied to produce a stoichiometric CuInSe₂ ingot. Structure factors (F_hkl) equations for the (hkl) reflections, which are available for the ternary chalcopyrite-structured semiconductors, were deduced analytically and have been used to calculate the relative peak intensities for CuInSe₂ diffraction planes.CuInSe₂ thin films were also prepared by flash evaporation of a stoichiometric CuInSe₂ powder, onto different substrates. Structural characterization of these films was carried out by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy studies. The composition of the different samples has been determined by energy dispersive spectrometry. The results obtained indicate the presence of the chalcopyrite phase and nearly stoichiometric compositions.     

Effect of selective surface degradation on the performance of solar water heating systems

Selective surface often degrade in the field. Their solar absorptivity α_s and thermal emittance change with time in service by some amount, say Δα_s and Δ, from their starting values. It is important to quantify the effect this degradation has on the annual fraction solar F_s. A given relative change in F_s can be caused by different combinations of Δα_s, and Δ. In this paper we use computer simulation of solar domestic hot water systems to graph these combinations, in a plot of Δα_s versus Δ, for relative changes in F_s, of 10% and 5%. The slope and intercepts of this plot, which is found to be linear, are studied for their dependence on a wide range of solar system parameters, such as geographical location, collector area, and set point temperature. We find that the slope, and - for starting values of F_s less than about 0.5 - the intercepts, are relatively insensitive to the system parameters. We show that this result is consistent with a simple model. For F_s 0.5, the intercepts rise sharply with F_s, in a way that is strongly (and to some extent, only) dependent on the geographical latitude of location. These results have direct application to projecting the useful service life of a selective surface.     

Construction and testing of a large-area CPC-collector and comparison with a flat plate collector

A 13.6 m² east-west aligned CPC-collector (compound parabolic concentrator) with flat absorbers, proposed for use in large-area applications, has been built and tested and compared with a flat plate collector. The performance of the CPC at a working temperature of 50°C over ambient can be described by F′η_O = 0.75 and F′U_L = 2.5 W m⁻² K⁻¹ while the flat plate collector is described by F′η_O = 0.80, and F′U_L = 3.3 W m⁻² K⁻¹. The large difference in heat loss coefficient is to a large degree explained by absorption of solar radiation in the reflectors in the CPC-collector. The incidence angle dependence of the optical performance of the two collectors showed a similar appearance. Both collector constructions are based on the LGB (long ground based) technology, which allows them to be built in large modules up to 170 m².     

Bio-hydrogen production and the F0F1-ATPase activity of Rhodobacter sphaeroides: Effects of various heavy metal ions

Rhodobacter sphaeroides MDC 6521 isolated from Arzni mineral springs in Armenia is able to produce bio-hydrogen (H₂) in anaerobic conditions upon illumination in the presence of various metal ions. The significant aspect in regulation of H₂ production by these bacteria and its energetics is the requirement for F₀F₁-ATPase, the main membrane enzyme responsible for generation of proton motive force under anaerobic conditions. In order to determine the mediatory role of F₀F₁ in H₂ production, the effects of various metal ions (Mn²⁺, Mg²⁺, Fe²⁺, Ni²⁺, and Mo⁶⁺) on N,N′-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide inhibited ATPase activity of R. sphaeroides membrane vesicles were investigated. These ions in appropriate concentrations considerably enhanced H₂ production, which was not observed in the absence of Fe²⁺, indicate the requirement for Fe²⁺. The R. sphaeroides membrane vesicles demonstrated significant ATPase activity. In the absence of Fe²⁺ inhibition (∼80%) of ATPase activity was observed, which was increased by addition of metal ions. A higher ATPase activity was detected in the presence of Fe²⁺ (80 μM) and Mo⁶⁺ (16 μM). These results indicate a relationship between the F₀F₁-ATPase activity and H₂ production that might be a significant pathway to provide novel evidence of a requirement for F₀F₁-ATPase in H₂ production by R. sphaeroides.     

Cleavage fracture behavior of a C–Mn vessel steel at various loading rates in notched specimens

In this paper, the cleavage fracture behavior of a C–Mn vessel steel at various loading rates was studied by experiments and FEM calculations. The results show the cleavage fracture mechanism of this steel in two types of notched specimens loaded in two loading modes (four-point bending and three-point bending) at a temperature of −110 °C does not change with loading rates. This leads to the independence of the measured the local cleavage fracture stress σ_f and the macroscopic cleavage fracture stress σ_F on loading rate, notch geometry and loading mode. The macroscopic notch toughness characterized by the ratio of fracture load to general yield load (P_f/P_gy) of the notched specimens with two notch geometries loaded in the two loading modes at various loading rates can be predicated by the maximum normal stress criteria (σ_yymax?σ_F). The σ_F can be regarded as an engineering notch toughness parameter of materials, and may be used for assessing integrity of structures with notch defects by the criteria σ_yymax?σ_F. The σ_F values of steels can be simply measured by the Griffiths–Owen's notched specimens loaded in four-point bending or three-point bending at a test temperature and a loading rate.     

Relationship between molecular hydrogen production,proton transport and the F0F1-ATPase activity in Rhodobacter sphaeroides strains from mineral springs

This article aims to study hydrogen production and proton transport in two strains of purple non-sulfur bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides isolated from mineral springs of Armenia. This bacterium is able to grow and produce molecular hydrogen (H₂) in anaerobic conditions upon illumination. Along with H₂ production, a marked decrease in redox potential and the alkalization of the medium have been observed; the latter might be the evidence of proton influx. H₂ production and alkalization of the medium by whole cells both are suppressed by the F₀F₁-ATPase inhibitors – N,N′-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCCD), sodium azide (NaN₃) and protonophore – carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP). Membrane vesicles of two strains of R. sphaeroides demonstrate ATPase activity, inhibited by DCCD and NaN₃, but not by CCCP. These results indicate a relationship between H₂ production, proton transport and the F₀F₁-ATPase activity that might be a pathway to regulate bacterial activity under anaerobic conditions.     

The solubility of Ni in molten Li2CO3–Na2CO3 (52/48) in H2/H2O/CO2 atmosphere

In this work the solubility of a Ni–Al anode for MCFC has been studied at atmospheric pressure and two different temperatures using various gas compositions containing H₂/H₂O/CO₂. It is well known that nickel is dissolved at cathode conditions in an MCFC. However, the results in this study show that nickel can be dissolved also at the anode, indicating that the solubility increases with increasing CO₂ partial pressure of the inlet gas and decreasing with increasing temperature. This agrees with the results found by other authors concerning the solubility of NiO at cathode conditions. The dissolution of Ni into the melt can proceed in two ways, either by the reduction of water or by the reduction of carbon dioxide.     

Interface characterisation of ZnSe/CuGaSe2 heterojunction

The ZnSe/CuGaSe₂ heterojunctions were fabricated by flash evaporation technique of CuGaSe₂ onto the (110) surface of ZnSe crystals. CuGaSe₂ layers had thickness 2–4 μm and showed a hole concentration up to (1.5–18.0)×10¹⁸ cm⁻³ and mobility μ4–24 cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹ at 300 K. The charge carrier concentration in ZnSe crystals at 300 K was n=5.6×10¹⁶ cm⁻³ and their mobility μ=300 cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹. The investigated ZnSe/CuGaSe₂ heterojunctions have at the interface an intermediate layer with a thickness of 450–750 Å and a linear graded band gap as well as an i-ZnSe compensated layer with a thickness of 1–2 μm and resistivity ρ10⁸–10⁹ Ω cm. The i-ZnSe layer is highly compensated due to the presence of Cu acceptor impurities. In this layer the Fermi level position E_c−F₀690 meV and a trap level position E_t−F₀17 meV were determined. The total trap concentration in the i-ZnSe layer is N_t5×10¹⁴ cm⁻³. The mean free path of excited charge carriers in the graded band gap region was calculated as λ55 Å. On the basis of experimental data analysis of electrophysical properties of both ZnSe/CuGaSe₂ heterojunctions and constituent materials the energetic band diagram of the investigated heterostructures is proposed. The current transport mechanism through ZnSe/CuGaSe₂ heterojunctions is consequently elucidated.     

Growth characteristics and hydrogen production by Rhodobacter sphaeroides using various amino acids as nitrogen sources and their combinations with carbon sources

Some amino acids (alanine, asparagine, glutamate, glycine, proline, and tyrosine) were used as nitrogen sources in combination with carbon sources (succinate and malate) to study growth properties and H₂ production by purple non-sulfur bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides strains A-10 and D-3. Both strains produced H₂ in succinate–glutamate and malate–glutamate media. Succinate was a better carbon source than malate. In comparison with strain D-3, strain A-10 was able to utilize proline, alanine or tyrosine as nitrogen sources in succinate medium and to produce H₂. Both strains were unable to produce H₂ in the presence of asparagine or glycine as nitrogen sources. N,N′-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide, the F₀F₁-ATPase inhibitor, led to marked inhibition of H₂ production activity of R. sphaeroides. The results suggest that the R. sphaeroides cells growth can be achieved by the use of a large diversity of substrates but only some of them can increase the H₂ production rate.     

Effect of illumination intensity and temperature on the I–V characteristics of n-C/p-Si heterojunction

Krishna et al. (Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells 65 (2001) 163) have recently developed an heterojunction n-C/p-Si in order to achieve low cost and high-efficiency carbon solar cell. It has been shown that for this structure, the maximum quantum efficiency (25%) appears at wavelength λ (600 nm). In this paper, the dependence of I–V characteristics of this heterojunction solar cell on illumination intensity and temperature has been systematically investigated. An estimation of the stability of the solar cell with temperature has been made in terms of the temperature coefficient of I_sc and V_oc. The intensity variation study has been used to estimate the series resistance R_s of the solar cell.The effect of illumination intensity on I–V of n-C/p-Si heterojunction is more complex because the carrier lifetime and the carrier mobility of amorphous carbon are small and also because drift of carriers by built-in electric field plays an important role in these cells. Therefore, the conventional analytical expression for I–V characteristic is not applicable to such solar cells. These structures will not obey the principle of superposition of illuminated and dark current. The experimental results have been analysed by developing empirical relation for I–V.The temperature sensitivity parameters α, the change in I_sc and β, the change in V_oc per degree centigrade have been computed and are found to be 0.087 mA/°C and 1 mV/°C, respectively. This suggests that the heterojunction n-C/p-Si has good temperature tolerance. The value of series resistance has been estimated from the family of I–V curves at various intensities. The R_s is found to be ≈12 Ω, which is on the higher side from the point of view of photovoltaic application.     

Geometric optimization of trapezoidal thermoelectric heat pump considering contact resistances through genetic algorithm

An alternate option for improving the performance of the thermoelectric heat pump (TEHP) is the variation in thermoelectric leg configuration. In this paper, the thermodynamic model based on first and second law of thermodynamics for an exoreversible TEHP including influence of Thomson effect as well as leg geometry on the coefficient of performance and heating load of the device has been developed and optimized. Modified expressions have been derived analytically for dimensionless heating load, irreversibilities, figure of merit, energy, and exergy efficiency. The effects of operating and geometry parameters such as shape parameter (A_c/A_h), temperature ratio (T_c/T_h), Thomson effect, thermal and electrical contact resistances on the coefficient of performance, and heating load of the TEHP have been analysed. The results indicate that the Thomson effect has adverse effect on heating load of the system. The optimal parameters obtained through GA optimization process have been compared with the optimal parameters obtained through analytical method which proved the validity of GA optimization method for optimization of TEHP. After the testing, the GA optimization has been performed to determine the optimum parameters corresponding to maximum energy efficiency and maximum heating load. It was found that the GA population converges quickly after 20 runs only which proved the GA as time and cost‐effective optimization tool. This study will be useful for designing of practical TEHP systems of different leg geometries.     

Effects of auxiliary heater on annual performance of thermosyphon solar water heater simulated under variable operating conditions

A thermosyphon solar water heating system with electric auxiliary heater was simulated using the TRNSYS simulation program. Location of the auxiliary heater, inside the storage tank or connected in series between the system and the user, was studied using the TMY meteorological data for Los Angeles, California. Simulations were performed for two different water load temperatures (60 and 80°C) and for two types of daily hot water volumes (250 and 150 l). Four types of daily hot water consumption profiles were used in the present study, namely; the widely used Rand profile, continuous, evening and morning profiles. Also, the simulation is extended to cover the effects of thermal and optical properties of the flatplate collector and the volume of the storage tank. The results show that if water is drawn on a schedule corresponding to the Rand draw profile, the system operates with higher efficiency when the auxiliary heater is located in the storage tank than when the auxiliary heater is outside the storage tank. When operated with each of the other three draw schedules, however, better performance is achieved by locating the auxiliary heater outside the tank. The increase in solar fraction depends on the load profile and volume, temperature setting, as well as the quality of the collector and the storage tank volume. When the values of the parameters F_R(τα)_n and F_RU_L are changed from 0.8 and 16 kJ/h m²°C to 0.6 and 30 kJ/h m²°C, the solar fraction decreases by approximately 40–50%.     

A maximum power tracking algorithm based on Impp = f(Pmax) function for matching passive and active loads to a photovoltaic generator

In this paper, a method that forces a photovoltaic generator (PVG) to operate at its maximum power point under variable load and insolation conditions is developed. The method is based on closed loop current control, in which the reference current is determined from the fitted function of I_mpp versus P_max, points of a particular PVG. A simplified computer model of the PVG is given and computer simulations for demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm are presented. The method has also been applied using a PC with IO interface card in the laboratory. From the results of the simulations and experimental studies, it is concluded that the proposed approach can be used as a robust and fast acting maximum power point tracker.