Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02393273 2002-07-22
Specification:
This invention relates to a solar collector device, which uses air as the
medium of
collecting solar energy.
Existing solar collectors utilizing air as the medium do so in ane of four
methods:
I . External air is heated in an air space created by a panel and such air is
drawn into
the building from the solar panel;
?. Pressurized air inside one half of a divided manifold is used to create a
tlow of
heated air and this heat is transferred by a heat exchanger;
3. Heat sinks mounted in an enclosed space are used to heat air, which flows
outside
the heat sink, such air being heated in the process;
4. Air passes through a column of energy absorbing material and is heated as
it
passes through the column.
This invention is of type four above and dit?ers in the existing art in that
the air in the
column is treated by the design of the individual solar collectors (4) in that
the air is
forced into a turbulence by the design of the top opening of the collector
(4). This
turbulence causes the air in the solar collector to collect: the energy more
fully and
et~iciently and creates an intimate contact with the collector for more of the
air passing
through than would be the case for an airflow that was not restricted and not
turbulent.
This is the principal difference between this solar collector and the previous
art. Higher
internal temperatures are created inside the solar panel and therefore higher
output
temperatures can be achieved with the air released into the area to be heated.
As Pressurized air enters the bottom of the vertical or horizontal column, the
angled fins
cause centrifugal force to begin to induce migration of thecolder, relatively
heavier air.
The majority of the flow of air through the column is unimpeded, but at each
neck
restriction, the angled fan blades conduct heat to the outer layer of air in
the column, and
force it to spin around inside the collector core. This insures forced
intimate contact of
the final outer boundary layer of air with the hot collector surface. The back
panel of the
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CA 02393273 2002-07-22
collector and sides are insulated and have reflective foil to focus and
contain the heat
within the collector core environment- Several revolutions are induced within
the space
between the restrictive fan blades, ensuring a more complet<: retrieval or
washing away if
you like, of the available heat energy conducted through the collector core
wall.
Centrifugal force acts like gravity in its effect on separating elements of
different
viscosities. An example would be: an emulsion of oil and water will separate
into two
separate layers in a glass sitting on a table on earth, but in space it would
probably stay in
it's mixed Lip state until it was put into a centrifuge. The v~ater could be
tapped ofd the
outer edge of the centrifuge while it is spinning. Now consider the difference
in viscosity
of hot versus cold air and apply it to what is going on within this collector
core. Propeller
equipped aircraft perform better in winter than in summer. Both propeller
efficiency and
wing efficiency are enhanced due to the heavier denser air, therefore it
stands to reason
that hotter lighter air will be permitted to pass through this core
arrangement relatively
easily while heavier, denser, colder air will have a hard time staying at the
centre of the
rising column of air because of the spinning and encountering the gate
restriction or
bottleneck of the blade sections.
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CA 02393273 2002-07-22
Solar Air Heating Panel
The present invention relates to a Solar Air Heating Panel 'which patents are
included in
class 126, FurnacesiStoves, sub class 655, solar furnaces. The Solar .Air
Heating Panel
consists of a solar collector array in which a flow of air passes through a
series of solar
collector modules allowing a transfer of heat from the solar collectors to the
air which is
then passed into the area to be heated. This invention is a tubular type solar
panel which
utilities air as the medium and aluminium solar collectors as the collector of
the solar
energy. US Patent 3,952,724 and Canadian Patent 1075108 are examples of
tubular solar
energy collectors using air as the medium. Both the above patents use glass
tubes as the
solar collector. Glass tubes are also used as a solar collector in many of the
water type
solar collector systems.
The advantages of using air as the medium are fourfold. Firstly, the air in a
room is
ultimately to be heated in order to heat the room. Oil or other fuel is
consumed as the
energy source in conventional heating systems to heat the air in a room.
Secondly, in a
solar water heating system, the heat from the heated water is transferred to
the air by
some form of heat exchange, which makes the system more complex. Thirdly, the
use of
water as the medium is hampered by cold weather and frost protection is
required.
Fourthly, a water system involves a substantial plumbing, installation and is
a much
heavier system than the air medium system. Thus, an air medium system is less
complex
and should cost less for the energy delivered.
Summary of the Invention
This invention relates to a Solar Air Heating Panel consisting of a solar
collector device
having several solar collector modules, each solar collector module having an
attachment
frame or unit (2) for mounting each solar collector array (3).
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CA 02393273 2002-07-22
Each solar collector array ( 13) shall consist of tubular columns made up of
individual
solar collector modules (4), Figure l, attached in longitudinal fashion to
form a solar
collector column ( 12), Figure 2, through which air shall be permitted to
pass, either by
means of a forced air flow or by natural convection. A solar collector array
can be made
of several solar collector columns to suit the application (Figure 3) or the
desired thermal
output. Each solar collector module (4) shall have design features including
an opening
(5) at the bottom end of the unit and a smaller opening (6) at the top of the
unit. OpeIllllg
(6) at the top of the unit shall be equipped with a fin or fan arrangement (7)
which has the
effect of creating a turbulent air flaw in the solar collector module. Such
turbulent air
flow increases the ability of the solar collector module to generate heat and
improves
thermal efficiency over that achieved in previous art. (Example given is
Patent 2311287).
Walls of the solar collector module(8) shall be thin aluminium coated with
high solar
absorbent black paint (9) and joined to the solar collector module below and
above with a
silicon glue ( 1 Q). The tap and bottom of the solar collector column shall be
reinforced at
the edges ( 11 )
Brief Description of the Drawings
Figure 1 is a drawing of an individual solar collector. It consists of a small
cylinder with
a hole at the top and another hole at the bottom of the cylinder. The top edge
of the
cylinder is modified with a fin type arrangement
Figure 2 is a drawing of a solar collector array which consists of a multitude
of solar
collectors (Figure 1 ) arranged in such a way as to form a column. Each solar
collector is
stacked on another until the desired size of column is achieved. in the case
shown a
column of eight is constructed. An array is formed when several such columns
are placed
side by side to expose several columns to the solar source. In the case shown
in Figure
there are eleven columns.
Figure 3 is a drawing of the frame details of the solar panel, showing the
manifolds at the
top and bottom of the frame and the positioning of the solar array.
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CA 02393273 2002-07-22
Figure 4 is a drawing of the completed solar panel.
Detailed Description
Figure 1 illustrates the solar collector module. Each module, and there could
be hundreds
of these modules in a typical solar panel, consists of an interior chamber, a
tubular wall
surrounding the chamber, a round top and a round bottom. The bottom contains
an
opening which is approximately one half the diameter of the module and the top
contains
an opening which is approximately one third of the diameter of the module. In
addition,
the top is modified by creating a fin or fan effect, which is a feature
designed for the
purpose of creating a turbulent air flow in the module and in the solar
collector column.
This tin or fan creates an air flow similar to that created by a turbine and
the air moves in
a centrifugal fashion making contact with all of the wall of the solar module
increasing
the transfer of heat from the module. Each module is connected in tubular
fashion (top of
one to the bottom of the next making a solar collector column of 1 S or so
modules, the
number of modules being determined by the size of the Solar Collector Panel
Each solar collector column is then assembled in an array of columns of
various sizes,
again depending on the size of the Solar Collector Panel. ~s an example in one
of the
Solar Collector Panels constructed by the applicant, there exists 240 solar
collector
modules arranged in I 6 solar collector columns of 1 S solar collector modules
each, all of
which are enclosed in a Frame of approximately four feet by seven feet.
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