Abstract

Parabolic solar trough receivers are used to collect heat via the mean of a heat transfer fluid. This component is one among a myriad of the Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) devices. Parabolic troughs reach high temperatures around 400 ºC. improving the Parabolic Solar Trough's receiver with an IR selective coating will increase the heat transfer absorbed by the heat transfer fluid and reduce the radiative heat loss. Thus, optimizing the receiver will ameliorate the efficiency of the electrical production for a CSP. The parabolic solar receiver existing in industry currently are made of stainless steel with no specific coating for IR solar rays spectrum selection. Therefore, the heat transferred through the absorber is limited to certain light spectrum. Furthermore, numerous receivers proposed are made from materials that contaminates their optical properties when oxidized such as aluminum [1]. The heat transfer and optical analysis of the PTC are essential to optimize and understand its performance under high temperatures and reduce the heat loss. In this paper, our focus is on presenting a super-lattice IR selective coating to minimize the radiative heat loss. Making use of the power of metamaterials to confection optical properties that are inexistent in nature, the coating will serve to maximize the tube's reflectance above 70% in the IR. Not only does the selective coating enhance the optical properties of the receiver, but also it ensures performance stability for high temperatures.

Thesis Completion

2020

Semester

Spring

Thesis Chair/Advisor

Putnam, Shawn

Degree

Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (B.S.M.E.)

College

College of Engineering and Computer Science

Department

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Degree Program

Mechanical Engineering

Language

English

Access Status

Campus Access

Length of Campus-only Access

3 years

Release Date

11-1-2023

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