OPTIMIZATION OF THIN-FILM TRANSPARENT PLASTIC HONEYCOMB COVERED FLAT-PLATE SOLAR COLLECTORS

摘要

An analytical and experimental program was conducted to develop an optimized transparent plastic honeycomb for use in a flat-plate solar collector system'.- Analysis was performed on both low- and high-temperature candidate plastics from the point of view of ease of manufacture, performance, and total cost. Detailed testing was performed on two candidate honeycomb materials — Mylar and Lexan — using Glass, Tedlar, and Teflon as the cover materials. Although a Teflon system gave a high collector performance, difficulty in manufacture and high material costs ruled out the possible economical use of the system at present. The Lexan/Glass and Lexan/Tedlar system of honeycomb/cover gave similar results which were higher than those for the Mylar systems. A thermal protection technique was developed for the "coolant stagnation" situation, in which the honeycomb was raised above the absorber plate surface.