Transient Heat Transfer Characteristics of a Receiver for a Dish-Type Solar Thermal System

A numerical and experimental studies are carried out to investigate the transient heat transfer characteristics of 5kWth dish-type solar air receiver. Measured solar radiation and temperatures at several different locations are used as boundary conditions for numerical simulation. Many parameters’ effects (reflectivity of the reflector, the thermal conductivity of the receiver body, transmissivity of the quartz window, etc.) on the thermal performance are investigated. Discrete Transfer Method is used to calculate the radiation heat exchange in the receiver. A transient heat transfer model is developed and the rate of radiation, convection and conduction heat transfer are calculated. Comparing the experimental and numerical results, good agreement is obtained. Using the numerical model, the transient heat transfer characteristics of volumetric air receiver for dish-type solar thermal systems are known and the transient thermal performance of the receiver can be estimated.