Solar prototype making

First thing we need is a spec'
Are we talking solar thermal? Solar electric? Domestic? What latitude do you want it to work at?

There have been several good solar energy threads, cookers & hot water.

If you click on my username you'll see a link to my DIY domestic hot water system.

Del

I did look at Del the cat's panels... Very nice!!

I have been working on this myself and could use as much help as possible.

www.solarthermalelectric.org

Never enough time. The page is last summers work. Our experiments have been encouraging to the point of expansion.

We are working on a 22 foot dish frame at this time. Thanks for checking this out,

Nick

Interesting stuff...nice to see some one actually doing stuff.
How does the thermal storage work? Is it oil filled?
What temperature are you hoping to get it up to?
I havn't done any calculations but I'd guess you need a pretty huge thermal mass and V high temperature difference to store enough heat to be useful over winter?

I've been considering ground heat pumps but the outlay is high and the output is fairly lowgrade heat best suited to underfloor heating more easilly incorporated into a new build.

I do have a 15' square room which is full of junk, musical instruments & Mrs Cat's rowing machine at the moment, it's part of an extension to the house and I've been toying with the idea of making it into a self sufficient mini flat or workroom.... probably just an armchair project tho' .

Del

The thermal storage will utilize a phase change material. Like sodium sulfate which at 90 deg. F holds over 100 times more energy than water in the same space. We have not decided on which phase change materials we will test. Finding them at a reasonable price is causing problems. Paraffin's are another pcm. A heat pump can be used to increase the stored heat if needed. We have overbuilt much of this system so that we can do higher temperature testing up to 350 F max. Even a small tank in a basement could store heat efficiently with a pcm and at low cost. Nick

Parick, fully behind you.

My Sons and I went past talking some six years back.

Since then our developsments have created some disbeleif but their working negates such opposition.

All mechanical energy arives from an applied force be it to turbine, or piston.

Man made forces usualy convert a liquid into heated vapour.

Water into Steam, or liquid into Hot air vapour.

Both steam and Hot air have a recorded pressure at different temperatures.

Co2 raises in pressure with less heat and is behavouraly well known as refrigerant.

Both the compressor and absorption fridge work by turning Co2 liquid to vapour then back to liquid.

This is done by taking Co2 from high to low pressure.

Wikipedia and other gas sites publish the temperature/pressure chart of Co2.

University Amercia publishes the pressure flow needed by a 80% hydro turbine, 1 litre 9 bar pressure er second, 720 watts.

Mutilipication of either bar pressure or flow rate so raises the wattage output.

Co2 can easily be brougt to 9 bar pressure by surrounding air temperature 0 degrees Celsius.

Cooling 9 degree pressure using a turbine in place of a restrictor absorbs energy in place of wasting it to force an entry into the fridge condenser.

Private copy of our work is encouraged.

It has yet to be confirmed if electric output is sufficient to supply heat requirements to power operation.

25 litres Co2 gas per second heated by +5 degrees Celsius delivers 35 Kw.

Cheers

Peter