Untitled

Abstract

In this study, the thermal performance of a newly designed solar air heater was examined using a thoughtfully designed and analysed experimental methodology. In the analysis, three factors (collector type, bed height, and airflow rate) were adjusted and their effects on the performance of the system were evaluated; additionally, mesh layers were used to act as absorber plates. The single and counter flow collectors were also examined using different bed heights (3 cm, 5 cm, and 7 cm) at various airflow rates (0.011 kg/s, 0.035 kg/s, and 0.043 kg/s). Subsequently, the results obtained from this experiment were analysed using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) method. According to the data obtained from the ANOVA method and pairwise mean comparisons, the best configuration that yields the highest thermal performance was the one with counter flow passage (3 cm bed height, and 0.043 kg/s air flow rate). Moreover, a 99% confidence interval was utilized in estimating the lower and upper bounds of thermal performance for each system setup.