PARAMETRIC ANALYSIS OF A SUSPENDED FLAT-PLATE SOLAR AIR HEATER

Parametric analysis of a suspended flat plate solar air heater is pres ented following a transient approach. An explicit expression for air t emperature has been derived as a function of time and the space coordi nate. Apart from this, explicit expressions are also presented for the glass cover temperature, absorber plate temperature, useful energy an d efficiency of the proposed system. The effects of several parameters , e.g. space coordinate, mass flow rate, flow velocity, air depth, abs orptivity and inlet air temperature on the performance of the proposed system have also been studied. For appreciation of the analytcal resu lts, numerical calculations have been made, and the results are shown graphically.