Abstract
The initial heating of a solar pond can be accelerated if the nonconvective zone (NCZ) of the pond is installed gradually. Simulations are compared for a solar pond in which the NCZ is either installed immediately at the beginning of heating, or is installed gradually over the time it takes for the storage zone (SZ) to reach its operational temperature. In the gradually installed case the NCZ is thickened at a rate to optimize the heat gain by the SZ. Two solution techniques are presented which lead to similar conclusions. Results indicate that the reduction in time to heat a pond with an upper convective zone (UYCZ) of 0.3 m, NCZ of 1.4 m, SZ of 2.5 m, a GZ of 5.0 m, and of moderate clarity is in the range of 35 to 45 days. The benefits of gradually installing the NCZ are most pronounced in the early stages of pond heating.
| Original language | English |
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| Pages | 413-418 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Publication status | Published - 1989 Dec 1 |
| Event | Solar Engineering 1989 - Proceedings of the Eleventh Annual ASME Solar Energy Conference - San Diego, CA, USA Duration: 1989 Apr 2 → 1989 Apr 5 |
Conference
| Conference | Solar Engineering 1989 - Proceedings of the Eleventh Annual ASME Solar Energy Conference |
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| City | San Diego, CA, USA |
| Period | 89-04-02 → 89-04-05 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Energy Engineering and Power Technology
- Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
- Mechanical Engineering