new selective coating materials are developed and used in advanced solar collector and absorber designs with improved efficiency. cobalt and copper sulfides nanoparticles are high interest for absorbers of solar thermal collectors due to their optical properties and high absorptance in the solar wavelength range (> 96%). in the present work, cobalt and copper sulfides nanoparticles were synthes...

The objectif of the present work is to determinate the potential of the solar parabolic trough collector (PTC) for use in the design of a solar thermal power plant in Algeria. The study is based on a mathematical modeling of the PTC. Heat balance has been established respectively on the heat transfer fluid (HTF), the absorber tube and the glass envelop using the principle of energy conservation...

The effect of the volume flow rate of the heat transfer fluid (air) on the thermal parameters of the solar air collector with a single air pass without using fins under the absorbing plate have been investigated experimentally and theoretically. We use a new design of solar air collector which aims to optimize these parameters in the region cited above. Our solar air collector was realized at t...

A high performance solar absorber using a 2D tantalum superlattice photonic crystal (PhC) is proposed and its design is optimized for high-temperature energy conversion. In contrast to the simple lattice PhC, which is limited by diffraction in the short wavelength range, the superlattice PhC achieves solar absorption over broadband spectral range due to the contribution from two superposed latt...

It is well known that the efficiency of thermodynamic solar plants increases with the working temperature. At present the main limit in temperature upscaling is the absorber capability to withstand high temperatures. The ideal solar absorber works at high temperatures, has a low thermal emissivity and a high absorptivity in the solar spectral range . The paper reports on the high temperature em...

Solar energy is the most “available”, ecological and clean energy. This energy can be used in active or passive mode. The active mode implies the transformation of solar energy into a useful energy. The solar energy can be transformed into thermal energy, using solar collectors. In these collectors, the active and the most important element is the absorber, material which performs the absorptio...

In this work, a selective solar absorber made of nanostructured titanium gratings deposited on an ultrathin MgF2 spacer and a tungsten ground film is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. Normal absorptance of the fabricated solar absorber is characterized to be higher than 0.9 in the UV, visible and, near infrared (IR) regime, while the mid-IR emittance is around 0.2. The high broadband ab...

The electrical and thermal performances of photovoltaic thermal (PVT) water collectors were determined under 500–800 W/m solar radiation levels. At each solar radiation level, mass flow rates ranging from 0.011 kg/s to 0.041 kg/s were introduced. The PVT collectors were tested with respect to PV efficiency, thermal efficiency, and a combination of both (PVT efficiency). The results show that th...

A solar thermoelectric generator (STEG) is a device which converts sunlight into electricity through the thermoelectric effect. A STEG is nominally formed when a thermoelectric generator (TEG), a type of solid state heat engine, is placed between a solar absorber and a heat sink. When the solar absorber is illuminated by sunlight, it heats up and the TEG is subjected to a temperature gradient. ...

We report on the preparation, room temperature spectral reflectance and high-temperature thermal emittance characterization of different boride and carbide Ultra-High Temperature Ceramics (UHTCs). The investigated samples are compared with a reference material for solar absorber applications, i.e. silicon carbide. We show that spectral and thermal emittance properties of UHTCs are promising for...