Applied Energy 86 (2009) 14651469

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Applied Energy
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/apenergy

Integrated collector storage solar water heater: Temperature stratication

C. Garnier *, J. Currie, T. Muneer
Scottish Energy Centre, Napier University, SoEBE, 10 Colinton Road, Edinburgh EH10 5DT, UK

a r t i c l e

i n f o

a b s t r a c t
An analysis of the temperature stratication inside an Integrated Collector Storage Solar Water Heater (ICS-SWH) was carried out. The system takes the form of a rectangular-shaped box incorporating the solar collector and storage tank into a single unit and was optimised for simulation in Scottish weather conditions. A 3-month experimental study on the ICS-SWH was undertaken in order to provide empirical data for comparison with the computed results. Using a previously developed macro model; a number of improvements were made. The initial macro model was able to generate corresponding water bulk temperature in the collector with a given hourly incident solar radiation, ambient temperature and inlet water temperature and therefore able to predict ICS-SWH performance. The new model was able to compute the bulk water temperature variation in different SWH collectors for a given aspect ratio and the water temperature along the height of the collector (temperature stratication). Computed longitudinal temperature stratication results obtained were found to be in close agreement with the experimental data. 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Article history: Received 1 September 2008 Received in revised form 3 December 2008 Accepted 6 December 2008 Available online 29 January 2009 Keywords: Solar energy Energy modelling Thermal stratication Solar water heater Collector storage

1. Introduction In February 2008 the UK Government established a review of current and future targets to reduce the UKs CO2 emissions. The new climate change bill [1] set a target reduction of at least 60% by 2050. Low and Zero Carbon Technologies (LZCT) have the potential to meet the important concern with respect to economical, ecological and social issues of sustainable development. The domestic sector accounted for 29% of UKs energy consumption in 2006 with nearly three quarters of that energy used for space and water heating [23]. LZCT such as integrated collector storage solar water heater (ICS-SWH) have the potential to substantially reduce domestic energy use. Although this type of system has been the subject of much research in the past, the study of their effective use in a domestic hot water supply system has not been subjected to much research. Renewable energies are possible solutions to important concern in economical, ecological and social issues of sustainable development. These systems can achieve high energy output if a suitable drawoff regime makes good use of the water stratication inside the tank. Stratication in a water tank is an essential factor for good performance of a SWH; it refers to the degree of temperature difference between the top and the bottom portions of the collector. Stratication has been a subject of numerous researchers in the past and is an important parameter when looking at SWH performance. Several authors [46] highlighted the importance of stratication in

detached vertical storage tanks of solar water heating systems. Hollands and Lightstone [7] also demonstrated that solar hot water systems operating with a thermally stratied storage tank have substantially improved performance, particularly at low ow rates. However, only one study [8] focussed on stratication occurring in ICS solar water heater. This article explores the modelling of stratication inside an aluminium solar collectorstorage system and its validity by comparing results with experimental data. 2. Experimental assembly of ICS-SWH 2.1. Experimental test facility ICS-SWH systems are one of the simplest forms of solar water heater on the market and became a popular choice when choosing solar water heaters as they possess several advantages. ICS-SWH incorporates the solar collector and thermal storage tank in a single unit as illustrated in Fig. 1. In furtherance of published research [914] on ICS systems that refer to systems with at type storage tank, an experimental investigation of one ICS-SWH was performed simulating local weather conditions of Edinburgh, UK (56 N, 3.4W). Past studies [14] show a peak value of solar radiance for Edinburgh of around 900 W/m2 on a bright sunny summer day. However in winter conditions for the majority of time the representative values for solar radiance are around 400 W/m2 or less and were taken as testing conditions. Henderson et al. [12] in their study recommended an angle of inclination of 45 for the ICS-SWH system for Edinburgh which was the value used for this study.

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +44 131 455 2271. E-mail address: c.garnier@napier.ac.uk (C. Garnier). 0306-2619/$ - see front matter 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2008.12.009

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Nomenclature Twb Th Tbottom water bulk temperature, K water temperature at local point, K bottom collector water temperature, K dimensionless temperature (h T h T wb =T wb ) depth of the collector, m vertical length in the collector (h H Sina), m total length of the collector, m local length in the collector, m dimensionless length, (h* = h/H) heat ux applied to the (solar) collector surface, W/m2 tilt angle of the absorber plate, rad buoyancy force, N

qb

H
D h+ H h h* Q

a
FB

density of the water at the bottom of the collector, kg/m3 qt density of the water at the top of the collector, kg/m3 g the standard gravity of 9.81 N/kg ICS-SWH integrated collector storage solar water heater LZCT low and zero carbon technologies MBE Mean bias error RMSE Root mean square error SWH Solar water heater UK United Kingdoms VBA visual basic for application

In order to measure the water stratication along the height an array of 22 K-type thermocouples were calibrated and connected to a data-acquisition system. Accuracies of the experimental components suggested a systems accuracy of 0.6 C. Positions of thermocouples in the water tank along length are illustrated in Fig. 2. A silicone rubber electric heating pad was connected to a variable transformer which was used to control power input on the top surface of the water tank. The heating pad simulated constant and uniform heat ux over the at plate collector. Tests were carried out for heat uxes from 100 to 400 W/m2 reproducing Scottish winter conditions with increasing intervals of 50 W/m2. Temperatures were recorded at 10 min intervals over 8 h simulating a typical day and then for 22 h which gave the system enough time to reach a state of quasi-equilibrium. A visual basic for application (VBA) model [15] was developed in order to generate corresponding water bulk temperature in the collector with a given hourly incident solar radiation, ambient temperature and inlet water temperature. Numerical equations that were transformed from their differential Eq. (6) counter parts were added to the macro model to compute water temperature stratication along the height. 2.2. Experimental measurements In order to determine dimensionless stratication, experimental temperature proles were scaled and hence the ratio Th/Tbottom was introduced where Th is the local and Tbottom is the minimum recorded temperature in the water tank. Stratication proles for different hours are plotted for a heat ux of 200 W/m2 in Fig. 3. The overall collector temperature increases with time until reaching steady-state. The rst 3 h show a rapid increase in temperature stratication decreasing later with time until reaching equilibrium. This is explained by the buoyancy effect. Water at a given temperature will settle down at an appropriate height in the ICS-SWH in accordance with the prevalent density of the uid. Hot water of low density will naturally be at upper layers while cold water of high density will drop down to the bottom layers. During the rst three hours of the charging process,

high temperature stratication occurs in the ICS-SWH. With time, the temperature of the upper layers is established and reaches an equilibrium which results in the lower layer achieving a similar temperature. This therefore decreases the density gradient inside the ICS-SWH. A temperature stratication prole is thus build up. This variation in density results in differential buoyancy forces in the uid causing convection by gravity. Pressures increases with depth, therefore the pressure within the collector will see different pressures at the top and bottom, with the pressure on the bottom being higher. The difference in pressure causes upward buoyancy

Fig. 2. Geometric parameters of the SWH (nodes denote uid temperature measurements locations).

1.14 1.12 1.10

Th /T bottom

1.08 1.06 1.04 1.02 1.00 0.98 0.0

1hr 3hr 5hr 7hr 10hr

2hr 4hr 6hr 8hr 16hr

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

HSin, m
Fig. 1. Cross-sectional representation of the SWH. Fig. 3. Temperature stratication prole for a 200 W heat ux.

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9.0 Temperature gradient 8.0 Buoyancy Force 3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0 0.0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 1.5 1.0 0.5 0.0 4.0

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7.0 6.0 5.0

Time, hrs
Fig. 4. Buoyancy forces with time.

1.14 1.12 100W 200W 400W

T h/T bottom

1.10 1.08 1.06 1.04 1.02 1.00 0.0

model was a solar water heaters (SWH) thermal energy simulation model. It was developed to compare the temperature variation in different SWH material, internal temperature and external weather conditions for a given aspect ratio. The model was an iterative computer program which generates corresponding bulk water temperature in the collector with a given hourly incident solar radiation (W/m2), ambient temperature and inlet water temperature. Iterations were made until an energy balance was achieved. An interval of one hour was used to display results. After each interval the temperature values of the water and absorber plate were updated. Heat losses were then recalculated for the corresponding, new absorber plate temperature. Using the experimental data for the stratication proles, polynomials were developed. The objective of developing these polynomials was to evaluate the temperatures at various points in the collector based on the mean temperature given by the simulation and the total time of exposure. In order to obtain a generalised equation for any heat ux, dimensionless temperature, h, and dimensionless length, h* = h/H, were calculated and plotted for each location of temperature measurement for the aluminium SWH for a given hour. Polynomial relationships related to the heat ux are shown in Fig. 6. The polynomial function for a given time, for each wattage is provided below:

Temperature gradient, C

Buoyancy force, N

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

h ah bh c

HSin , m
Fig. 5. Temperature stratication prole after 8 h of operation.

force. The buoyancy force, FB, is then the difference between the forces at the top and bottom in the one square meter collector and can be expressed as below:

A single function was then developed incorporating both the change of stratication with position and heat ux. The following equations were developed to produce temperature stratication prole for an average day-length of 8 h. Polynomial functions for heat ux of 100, 200 and 400 W/m2 are expressed below:

h8hrs;100W 0:1212h 0:1867h 0:0540 h8hrs;200W 0:2075h 0:3122h 0:0887 h8hrs;400W 0:2531h 0:3848h 0:1102
2 2

3 4 5

F B gqb qt h

=(Th-Twb)/Twb

where qb is the density of the uid at the bottom of the collector, qt is the density of the uid at the top of the collector, h+ is the vertical length from top to bottom of the collector, g is the standard gravity of 9.81 N/kg. The phenomenon described above can be represented through the buoyancy forces acting in the collector. During the charging period buoyancy forces increase from 3.2 N to 8.3 N generating buoyancy driven ows within the cavity. This resulted in an increase in thermal stratication within the cavity from 2.6 to 3.6 C. With time the temperature differences between top to bottom decreases. This decrease can be associated to a reduction in buoyancy forces operating within the cavity reducing therefore uid motion and natural convection occurring in the collector. After 4pm, the temperature gradient decreased to 1.9 C associated to a buoyancy force of 4.6 N. These results are presented in Fig. 4. The stratication prole was simulated for 8 h of operation of the ICS-SWH at different voltages. One such prole is shown in Fig. 5. A relationship between the temperature at any point of the SWH and the applied heat ux was noted. The higher the heat ux imposed the higher the water temperature ratio Th/Tbottom. Temperatures are thus dependent on the longitudinal position within the solar water heater, imposed heat ux, and time. A polynomial function for the stratication prole for each hour was then developed taking heat ux and longitudinal location in the solar water heater as main parameters. 3. Modelling stratication A macro model for uid ow and heat transfer in the ICS-SWH using VBA was developed in an earlier paper [15]. This macro

A nal global expression was then developed for each hour as a function of the heat ux input and the longitudinal location in the SWH. The expression for the stratied temperature at the end of 8 h of operation is given as:

h8hrs ah bh c

Where a, b and c are the variation of the polynomial coefcient with heat ux for each hour were noted and modelled in a more generalised function and are provided below:

a 2 106 Q 2 15 104 Q 7:4 103 b 3 10 Q 2:1 10 Q 1:7 10

6 2 3 3

7 8 9

c 0:8 106 Q 2 0:6 103 Q 3:3 103

The same approach was used for each hour. Results comparing computed with experimental stratication are shown in Figs. 710.

0.04 0.02 0.00

0.0

100W 200W 400W

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

0.9

1.0

-0.02 -0.04 -0.06 -0.08

h*=h/H
Fig. 6. Dimensionless temperature stratication after 8 h of operation.

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50

70

40
60

T computed, C

T computed, C
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

50

30

40

30

20

20

10
10

0 0 10 20 30 40 50

T measured, C
Fig. 7. Computed vs. experimental water temperature stratication after 8 h of operation for all heat inputs.

T measured, C
Fig. 9. Computed vs experimental water temperature stratication after 8 h of operation for a 200 W/m2 heat input.

100 90

70

50W
60

150W 250W 350W

80 70 50

600W

T computed, C

60 50 40 30

T computed, C
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

40

30

20 20 10 0 10

0 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

T measured, C
Fig. 8. Computed vs experimental water temperature stratication after 22 h for all heat inputs.

T measured, C
Fig. 10. Validation of the model Computed vs. experimental water temperature stratication after 8 h of operation.

4. Computations and experimental data comparison The simulation was carried out for a wide range of heat inputs (50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400 and 600 W/m2) for a period of 8 h simulating a typical day of operation. Computed water temperatures at any given height were plotted as a function of experimental data to examine the validity of the simulation. It was demonstrated that experimental and computer simulation results are in good agreement as they follow a oneto-one relationship shown in Fig. 7. However, it was observed in Fig. 8 that variation between experimental and computed results for extreme time of exposure occurs and is displayed graphically by a deviation from the uniform one-to-one relationship. It suggests that as temperatures increase towards boiling bulk uid movement is breaking down the stratication. Based on the assumption that water temperatures to be achieved in a Scottish

climate are unlikely to exceed 70 C and that a typical day is of 8 h make this model suitable for Scottish conditions. Six different statistical indicators were used to evaluate the reliability of the macro model to predict temperature stratication in the ICS-SWH for a typical day of 8 h. They can be observed in

Table 1 Statistical indicators values total data. Statistical indicator Slope R2 MBE (C) RMSE (C) Skewness (C) Kurtosis (C) Values 1.00 0.99 0.47 0.83 0.17 3.39

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Table 1. The slope of the best-t line between the computed and measured variable is desired to be equal to one. Slope value was found equal to one suggesting no over or under estimation of the computed variable. The coefcient of determination, R2, is the ratio of explained variation to the total variation that lies between zero and one. The high value of R2 indicates a low unexplained variation showing a good capability of the regression model. Errors were quantied statistically by four parameters. The mean bias error, MBE, provides a measure of the trend of the model, whether it has a tendency to under-predict or over-predict its modelled values. An MBE nearest to zero is desired. The MBE value of 0.47 shows that the model has a tendency to over predict its computed values by nearly half of one degree Celsius temperature. The root mean square error, RMSE, gives a value of the level of scatter that the model produces by providing a comparison of the actual deviation between the predicted and the measured values. A lower absolute value of RMSE indicates a better model. The RMSE value of 0.83 shows an acceptable actual deviation. The two last methods used in this study were Skewness and Kurtosis of the error histograms. Skewness represents a measure of the lack of symmetry in a distribution. A distribution is symmetric or normal if it looks the same to the left and right of the centre point, resulting in skewness statistic of zero value for perfect symmetry. This would indicate a robust model. The negative skewed distribution tails off the low end of the scale, while its low value of 0.17 close to zero indicates a robust model. Kurtosis is dened as a measure of the degree of peakedness in the distribution, relative to its width. The kurtosis statistic will be zero for a normal distribution, positive for peaked distributions and negative for at distributions. The high positive kurtosis of 3.39 indicates a desirable peaked distribution of the errors and suggests that there are fewer outliers in the estimation. The stratication model was developed using experimental data for 100, 200 and 400 W/m2. A detailed picture of the stratication model results for a heat input of 200 W/m2 applied to the system for up to 8 h is showed in Fig. 9. Each wattage followed a one-toone relationship showing good agreement between experimental and computed data. Different heat inputs outside the normal experimental range were then simulated in order to validate the model. Results for 50, 150, 350 and 600 W/m2 were plotted for a typical day of 8 h in Fig. 10. The gure conrms a good agreement between experimental and computed data follows a one-o-one relationship with a MBE and RMSE of 1 and 1.4, respectively and a slope and coefcient of determination of 0.97 and 0.99, respectively, validating the stratication method used. 5. Conclusions The objective of this study was to model stratication proles with time in an ICS-SWH when subjected to solar radiation representing a Scottish climate. This solar water heater design was constructed to obtain heated water as cheaply as possible without interfering signicantly with its performance. Three-month full-scale experimental laboratory tests were employed to validate the model. A constant tilt angle of 45 was used in the present study, as this is near optimum for the Scottish climate. The heating pad was used to simulate Scottish solar conditions on the ICS-SWH. Stratication inside ICS-SWH is an important and desirable phenomenon that improves the effectiveness of the collector. Stratication is signicant when trying to optimise the collector

for draw-off as it helps to provide temperatures closer to those required for domestic hot water systems. The stratication prole changes with time and thus, to effectively predict the collector performance, needed to be modelled. The macro model previously developed by Currie et al. [15] was used in order to model stratication. The model generated corresponding bulk water temperature in the collector with given hourly incident solar radiation (W/m2), ambient temperature and inlet water temperature. A stratication model was then added to the previously developed macro model by using polynomial functions. Improvements to the previous model were incorporated allowing longitudinal stratication of temperature within the solar collector to be determined according to a given heat ux and exposure time. Computational results from the model were found to be in close agreement with the experimental data with a tendency of the model to over predict its computed values by nearly half of 1 C temperature at high heat uxes. Results were validated by using the model with different wattages not used in the development phase of the program. Extreme range tests showed the suitability of the program to display temperature stratication. Future work would include the testing this model in real weather conditions. The present analysis and modelling procedure is valid for all ICS-SWH systems. However, the particular set of coefcients that have been developed are valid for the heater that was built for the present study. Other researchers can use this form of analysis to develop their own tted functions to describe the relevant thermal behaviour. References
[1] DEFRA, Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs. New Bill and strategy lay foundations for tackling climate change; 2008 <http:// www.defra.gov.uk/environment/climatechange/uk/legislation/index.html> (accessed July 2008). [2] DTI, Department of Trade and Industry. Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on energy. TSO Publication, 2007. [3] BERR, Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. UK Energy in Brief, National Statistics Publication; 2007. [4] Van Koppen CWJ, Thomas JPX, Veltkamp WB. The actual benets of thermally stratied storage in a small and medium size solar system. In: Proceedings of ISES solar World congress, Atlanta, USA; 1979, p. 579580. [5] Furbo S, Mikkelsen SE. Low ow operation an advantage for solar heating systems? In: Bloss WH, Psterer F, editors. Advances in Solar Energy technology. Oxford: Pergamon Pres; 1987. p. 9626. Vol. 1. [6] Van Berkel J, Rindt CCM. Mixing in thermally stratied energy stores. Solar Energy 1996;58:20311. [7] Hollands KGT, Lightstone MF. A review of low ow, stratied-tank solar water heating systems. Solar Energy 1989;43:97105. [8] Junaidi HA, Henderson D, Muneer T, Grassie T, Currie J. Study of stratication in a (ICSSWH) integrated collector storage solar water heater: In: Proceedings of the 9th AIAA/ASME joint conference, San Francisco; 2006. [9] Garg HP, Rani U. Theoretical and experimental studies on collector/storage type solar water heater. Solar Energy 1982;29:46778. [10] Muneer T. Effect of design parameters on performance of built-in storage solar water heater. Energy conserv Manage 1985;25:27781. [11] Muneer T, Maubleu S, Asif M. Prospects of solar water heating for textile industry in Pakistan. Renew Sustainable Energy Rev 2004;10:123. [12] Henderson D, Junaidi H, Muneer T, Grassie T, Currie J. Experimental and CFD investigation of an ICSSWH at various inclinations. Renew Sustainable Energy Rev 2007;11:1087116. [13] Grassie T, Junaidi H, Muneer T, Currie J, Henderson D. Study of the modied built-in-storage (integrated collector storage) solar water heater for Scottish weather conditions: In: Proceedings of Eurosun 2006 Conference, Glasgow, 2006. [14] Muneer T, Younes S, Lambert N, Kubie J. Life cycle assessment of a mediumsized photovoltaic facility at a high latitude location. Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part A. J Power Energy 2006;220:51724. [15] Currie J, Garnier C, Muneer T, Grassie T, Henderson D. Modelling bulk water temperature in integrated collector storage systems. Build Serv Eng Res Technol 2008;29:20318.