Taiwan University has been devoted to the development of low-cost LHP (loop hat pipe). A new manufacturing process for low-cost LHP has been developed that leads to a cost down to less than 10 USD for a 100W LHP. The present study utilizes the low-cost LHP to develop a new type of solar water heater. A thermosyphon which is thermally bonded with a solar absorber plate is used to absorb solar energy and transfer the heat upward to the evaporator of the LHP. From that, the heat is conducted downward to the condenser of the LHP which is immersed in a hot water tank beneath the solar collector. The solar water heater thus can be designed in integral type with streamline shape which is easy to install and has a good outlook as well as high efficiency. A prototype was designed and fabricated in the present study. A preliminary heat transfer test for a single unit of thermosyphon-LHP combination shows that it is capable of transferring the absorbed energy downward to the LHP condenser immersed in a hot water tank. The overall thermal resistance from the absorber plate to water is 0.34oC/W, and the thermal resistance of the LHP is 0.16oC/W. Two prototypes of the solar water heaters with 50 liters and 80 liters hot water tanks were designed according to the results of the feasibility test. In addition, an automatic monitoring system was designed and set up for the performance test of these two solar water heaters based on the test standard CNS B7277. The measured overall thermal resistance from solar absorber plate to water is 0.369oC/W. The daily solar water heater efficiency is 0.503. The present study has shown that the application of low-cost LHP in solar water heater is feasible and cost competitive.
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