US 3,987,784 AGranted

Solar energy absorber panel

AssigneeKennecott Copper Corporation

InventorJoseph A. Godrick

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Abstract

Disclosed is a solar energy absorber panel comprising a heat absorbing and conducting sheet and an array of fluid conduits in thermal contact with the sheet. For a given efficiency, the weight of the panel is minimized by providing a sheet thickness of between about 0.001 inch and about 0.006 inch and a conduit density of between about 3 and about 7 conduits per foot. To precisely accomplish the weight minimization, for given operating parameters (i.e., effective insolation level per unit area, S.sub.eff and sheet internal temperature difference, T.sub.L -T.sub.O), the sheet thickness, t.sub.s, is chosen to minimize the panel weight per unit area, WA, where ##EQU1## WHERE P.sub. S IS THE SHEET MATERIAL'S DENSITY, W.sub.T IS THE WEIGHT PER UNIT LENGTH OF CONDUIT, K.sub.S IS THE SHEET'S THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY, AND W is the conduit width in contact with the sheet. For the value of t.sub.s thus determined, the conduit spacing, L, is determined as L = (8(T.sub.L - T.sub.O)k.sub.s t.sub.s /Seff)1/2.

Claims8

Dependent claims

In a solar energy absorber panel comprising

a sheet of material having a surface for exposure to solar radiation, a thickness t.sub.s, a thermal conductivity of k.sub.s, and a density of p.sub.s, and
a plurality of fluid conduits in thermal contact with said sheet and extending thereacross for conducting an energy transfer fluid across said sheet, said conduits having an average separation of L, and an average conduit width in contact with said sheet of W, and a weight per unit length of conduit of w.sub.t ;
the improvement wherein t.sub.s has a value that substantially minimizes the expression ##EQU4## yielding an optimum sheet thickness t.sub.o , where T.sub.L = the sheet temperature midway between the two adjacent conduits, T.sub.0 = sheet temperature at a sheet portion aligned with a conduit, and S.sub.eff = the effective insolation level;
and
wherein L is L = (8[T.sub.L - T.sub.0 ]k.sub.s t.sub.o /S.sub.eff)1/2;
whereby for a given S.sub.eff and (T.sub.L - T.sub.0), the weight per unit area of the solar energy absorber panel will be substantially minimized.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.