Sensitivity analysis on the effect of key parameters on the performance of parabolic trough solar collectors

Solar troughs are amongst the most commonly used technologies for collecting solar thermal energy and any attempt to increase the performance of these systems is welcomed. In the present study a parabolic solar trough is simulated using a one dimensional finite element model in which the energy balances for the fluid, the absorber and the envelope in each element are performed. The developed model is then validated using the available experimental data . A sensitivity analysis is performed in the next step in order to study the effect of changing the type of the working fluid and the corresponding Reynolds number on the overall performance of the system. The potential improvement due to the addition of a shield on the upper half of the annulus and enhancing the convection coefficient of the heat transfer fluid is also studied.