Thermal performance analysis of the parabolic trough solar collector in the Sub-Saharan climate of the Central African Republic

Sensitivity analysis of the thermal performance of a parabolic trough concentrator using Al2O3 and SiO2/Vegetable oil as heat transfer fluid

“…The mathematically validated PTSC model from Ref. [ 33 ] is used in this study with different HTF configurations. Al 2 O 3 and SiO 2 nanoparticles, being the most widely used in the literature according to Ref.…”

“…In the simulation procedure, the Gauss-Seidel method is applied, based on a numerical code written in the Matlab software, with a convergence criterion set at 0.001 °C according to the literature [ 19 , 33 ]. Note that the simulation is carried out for each hour of the day.…”

“…Other conditions or assumptions considered in this numerical simulation study are described in Ref. [ 33 ]. The flowchart followed in this study is shown in Fig.…”

“…Referring to the work of Ref. [ 32] , Chara-Dackou et al [ 33 ] tested vegetable oils against the synthetic oil Therminol VP-1 and concluded that they can be used at high temperatures and also as a substitute for conventional HTFs in PTSCs. All this without a validation test of their performance and without, however, proposing an optimal condition for improving their thermal performance in PTSCs.…”

“…A sensitivity analysis of the thermal effects of using vegetable oils and nanofluids as HTFs on the performance of the PTSC system derived from Ref. [ 33 ] is carried out from a quantitative and qualitative point of view. Two vegetable oils (jatropha and rapeseed) as base fluids and Al 2 O 3 and SiO 2 nanoparticles are chosen to obtain six (6) HTFs configurations.…”