Experimental study for the enhancement of heat transfer characteristics and development of thermal correlations of a roughened solar collector

The thermal performance of the flat plate solar collector is very low. The most beneficial and worthwhile method for increasing the thermal performance of a solar-powered air heater (SPAH) is to include a roughness element in the working zone of heat transfer that is located beneath the shear layer of the absorber surface. In this research work, efforts are made to enhance thermal performance and develop thermal correlations for the estimation of the Nusselt number and friction factor of a roughened SPAH. Experiments are performed for various ranges of flow, Reynolds numbers, and roughness parameters. The experimental technique of liquid crystal thermography is utilized to assess the dispersal of Nusselt number over the roughened surface for all roughness parameters. A maximum thermal performance enhancement index of 2.69 is obtained with the optimum value of the roughness parameter at a relative roughness pitch (RRP) of 9, a relative staggering distance (RSD) of 4, and a relative roughness length (RRL) of 6.15. Second, a mathematical correlation is developed using a regression model to estimate the Nusselt number and friction factor in terms of nondimensional roughness and flow parameters operated as RRP, RSD, RRL, and Re. The degree of discrepancy between the established the relationships and the findings from the experiment reveals incredibly satisfying results. Hence employing twisted V-ribs as an artificial roughness element no doubt increases the Nusselt number, and thermohydraulic performance enhancement index, but it also exerts less frictional power across the SPAH duct.