Thermal performance enhancement of micro-grooved aluminum flat plate heat pipes applied in solar collectors

Gong Chen, Yong Tang, Longhua Duan, Heng Tang, Guisheng Zhong, Zhenping Wan, Shiwei Zhang and Ting Fu

Renewable Energy, 2020, vol. 146, issue C, 2234-2242

Abstract: Micro-grooved aluminum flat plate heat pipes (MFPHPs), fabricated by hot extrusion and subsequent inner surface treatment via chemical corrosion, were developed to improve the thermal efficiency and reduce the costs of solar collectors. Thermal performances of MFPHPs, including temperature distribution, maximum heat transfer capability, and thermal resistance, were experimentally conducted. The effects of treatment time and solution concentration on the thermal performance enhancement of MFPHPs were also investigated. The experimental results show that inner surface treatment can substantially enhance the thermal performance of MFPHPs, and different treatment morphologies of inner surfaces result in differences in thermal performance enhancement. The optimal treatment parameters were determined to be a treatment time of 10 min with a solution concentration of 1.5 moL/l. This resulted in the optimal thermal performance enhancement: an increase of approximately 80% in heat transfer capability and a decrease of more than 44% in thermal resistance, compared to the untreated MFPHP. This study provides a convenient, effective, and low-cost method to enhance the thermal performance of MFPHPs applied in solar collectors.

Keywords: Thermal performance enhancement; Micro-grooved aluminum flat plate heat pipes; Surface treatment; Capillary performance (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:renene:v:146:y:2020:i:c:p:2234-2242

DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2019.08.083

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