International Journal of Academic Research and Development

International Journal of Academic Research and Development

ISSN: 2455-4197
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Volume 3; Special Issue 2; March 2018; Page No. 73-78

Optimization of tilting angle of parabolic solar dish for effective steam generation
Sachin Kardile1, Dr. Ravindra R Navthar2, Shrikant Kathwate3
1, 3
Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering, Savitribai Phule Pune University, GHRCEM, Ahmednagar Maharashtra, India
2
Professor Mechanical Engineering, Savitribai Phule Pune University, PDVVP COE, Ahmednagar, Maharashtra, India

Abstract
This paper on Optimization of tilting angle of Solar parabolic dish is based on the experimental work done in Ahmednagar city.
Sun is the source of enormous amount of energy. Solar rays after falling on surface of solar plate will create energy generation in
form of electricity and other, like steam generation. It will depend on Sun’s intensity of producing heat and will vary with the
temperature. In this experimentation we have taken readings from 09.00 am to 05.00 pm, every day, to find out the maximum
steam generation. We used solar concentrated solar parabolic collector/dish, instead of flat plate collectors to get more amount of
power generation, steam generation. To find and decide the optimum tilting angle three methods has been used. After deciding the
tilt angle, to give the rotation to parabolic dish and to set it at specific angle, small worm gear box is used. Our aim was, to find the
Optimum tilt angle of Solar Parabolic Dish, for effective steam generation, and to reduce the cost of conventional fuel used, i.e.
high speed diesel and also to increase the life of the plant.

Keywords: concentrated solar parabolic dish, tilt angle, latitude, steam generation 4-7 kg/hour

1. Introduction focusing type is line, which is having one tracking axis and
Sunlight is a renewable energy source which can converted concentration ratio is 10 to 40 %.
into usable energy by solar panels. There are two main types It gives temperature between 60 to 250 0C. Second type is
of solar energy. Solar photovoltaic panels, which directly parabolic trough, having one tracking axis, focusing line type,
convert solar energy into a usable form of energy using a PV which gives concentration ratio of 10 to 85% and maximum
cell containing a semiconductor material. Concentrating solar temperature range is 60 to 400 0C (Danny et al., 2007).Third
power concentrates energy from sun to a heat receiver which type is parabolic dish type in which focusing type is fixed
coverts energy from receiver into mechanical energy, and in which is point, at one point, we get all energy and tracking
turn, solar thermal electricity (Chang et al. 2010) [4]. axis is two, which is generally used in various applications,
At any moment, the sun emits about 3.86 x 1026 watts of with concentration ratio of 600 to 2000% and due to that
energy. Most of that energy goes off into space, but about 1.74 temperature range is also high which is 100 to 1500 0C. Forth
x 1017 watts strikes the earth. The Earth receives type is solar tower point type focus has two tracking axis with
174,000 terawatts of incoming solar radiations at the upper concentration ratio 300 to 1500% and gives temperatures of
surface atmosphere. Approximately 30% is reflected back to 150 to 2000 0C.
space while the rest is absorbed by clouds, oceans and land
masses. An increase in solar radiation of 28.76% results in the 2. Objective and Investigation
increase in power of 24. 78% (Pavlović et al., 2010) [3]. Experiment we have conducted in Ahmednagar city it is found
The statistical data with which we have taken readings at out tilt angle for getting maximum solar energy in month May
every hour and evaluated maximum output energy at specific and minimum in December because of winter season. The sun
angle. In this Experiment we have studies variation and effect radiates about 3.8 x 1026 W of power in all the directions. Out
of tilting angle in Ahmednagar city which has, latitude 19.090 of this about 1.7 x 1017 W is received by earth.
N, the optimum tilt angle for solar panels during winter will The average solar radiation outside the earth’s atmosphere is
be 19.09 + 15 = 34.090. 1.35 kW/m2 varying from 1.43 kW/ m2 (in January) to 1.33
For maximum output energy we changed angle with respect to kW/m2 (in July).
time and observe that steam produced which may be We have carried out this work for Gajraj Drycleaners, whose
beneficial to cost consumption as well as time consumption. present status of steam generation is as - Fuel used for 50 – 60
Solar radiations are dependent on geography of location. kg steam generation - HSD - 50 liter/day, maximum
Since, Ahmednagar is closer to equator, we get greater amount temperature of steam generated – 1400 C, maximum pressure
of solar energy. of steam discharged – 05 – 07 bar and maximum temperature
In this experiment we have used parabolic type dish collector. of steam discharged – 1200 C.
Basically there are four types of parabolic dish collector. They We has to change it to, maximum temperature of steam
are Linear Fresnel, Parabolic Trough, Parabolic Dish, and generated – 1800C and maximum pressure of steam
Solar Tower respectively. In linear Fresnel, which has discharged – 07 – 10 bar.

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Optimization of Tilt Angle for Solar Collector to Receive Table 1: Tilt angle for Solar parabolic dish in Ahmednagar
Maximum Radiation examined the theoretical aspects of Summary - Solar Panel Angle Calculation for Ahmednagar
choosing a tilt angle for the solar flat-plate collectors used at Angle / tilt Angle / tilt
ten different stations in the world and makes recommends on Season Method 1 Method 2
calculation calculation
how collected energy can increased by changing the tilt angle. (Latitude x 0.9)
Winter Latitude + 150 34.09° 46.18°
(Ahmed et al., 2009). + 290
Average optimum tilt angle at New Delhi for the winter Summer Latitude - 150 4.09°
(Latitude x 0.9)
6.32°
months is 47.5o (latitude + 19°) and for the summer months - 23.50
13o (latitude -16°). They found, Monthly based optimum tilt is Spring
Latitude - 2.50 17.090 Latitude - 2.50 17.090
different for different stations (M. Jamil et al., 2009) [2]. and Fall
Season based optimum tilt is also different for different
stations. Annual based optimum tilt is approximately equal to
Optimum Tilt angle at different
latitude of the location.
For achieving high efficiency, the collector is designed such locations
as the angle of tilt can easily be changed on seasonal basis, not
60 Optimum Tilt
monthly (Navneet et al., 2014).
angle Delhi

0
Comparative approach for the optimization of tilt angle to
40

Tilt Angle
receive maximum radiation showed that, the optimization tilt
angle for other cities can be carried out for India and other Optimum Tilt
location exterior of India and for optimization of tilt angle 20 angle Mumbai
(Abhishek Agarwal et al. 2012) [5, 6] concluded that, the solar
radiation output of solar collector is investigated at various tilt
0 Optimum Tilt
between angles 0° to 90° for south facing to calculate daily angle

Jan

Mar

May
Jun
Apr
Feb
and monthly optimum tilt angles, seasonal optimum tilt angles Ahmednagar
and yearly optimum tilt angle for different locations in India.
Fig 1: Theoretical Tilt angle values at different locations
3. Experimental setup and procedure
To get maximum power output from the solar collector system 4. Design Calculations
it is desirable to tilt the collector to that tilt angle at which the The assembly of the parabolic shaped dish solar steam
incident solar radiations are maximum. To find the Optimum generator is done, with following design specifications -
tilt angle of Solar parabolic dish, we have used three methods,  Diameter of the sun - 1.39 x 106 km
for optimization.  Average distance of the sun from the earth-1.5 x 108 km
 Radius of the earth (re) - 6400 km
1. Method 1 - for calculating approximate solar panel angle  Effective temperature of the surface of the sun - 57620K
according to latitude.  The sun's central interior region temperature (estimation) -
The optimum tilt angle is calculated by adding 15° to latitude 8 x 106 K to 40 x 106 K
during winter and subtracting 15° from latitude during  Density of the sun - 80 to 100 times that of water
summer. For Ahmednagar, latitude is 19.09° N  Solar constant (Isc) - 1353 w/m2
The optimum tilt angle for solar panels during winter will be =  Extra-terrestrial radiation (Io) -1398 w/m2 (maximum),
34.09° (Srinivas et al., 2012) [7]. 1310 w/m2 (minimum)
The summer optimum tilt angle on the other hand will be  Geographical location of Ahmednagar -
= 4.09°. - Latitude = 19.09°N - Longitude = 74.75°E
 On average yearly total solar energy incident on a
2. Method 2 - This is an improvement over general method horizontal surface in Ahmednagar : 2300 kwh/m2.
which gives better results. Solar Parabolic Dish dimensions –
The optimum tilt angle for solar panels during winter - Surface area of Collector – 16m2.
= 46.18°. Diameter -2.25 meter (7.52 feet), 02 mm thick mirror.
In summer season, this angle is = 6.32°. Focal Point - 180 cm (1800 mm)
For required tilt angles during seasons-spring and fall, 2.5° is Steam generation capacity - 7 kg/hour
subtracted from the latitude. Nominal Temp - 1800 at 7 bar pressure
Reflectivity - more than 90 %.
3. Method 3 - Taguchi Method of Optimization - By Solar radiations received by parabolic solar dish, concentrates
considering the parameters, like, ambient temperature, it and concentrated radiations are allowed to fall on receiver,
theoretical angle, steam generation, by Taguchi method where temperature reaches to 170 to 180 0 C.
optimized tilt angle is found out, for Summer and Winter Water passing through container is converted in to steam,
season.Which is, Summer angle 4.70 to 7.10 and winter angle because of this high temperature obtained.
370.

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Fig 3: Installed Solar Parabolic Type Dish.

Fig 2: Solar parabolic dish

Table 2
Sr. Name of part Dimension
10 Dish Support 100 x 5 mm
20 Tracking Stem Reduction Gear
30 Parabolic Dish Support 50 x 10 mm
40 Focal Point Support Arm 180 x 5 mm Fig 4: Tilting angle arrangement
50 Seasonal Adjustment 100 x 5 mm
60 Clearance 200 mm Tilting arrangement for Solar Parabolic Dish – Small speed
70 Top face - 16 m2 area 1500 mm reducer gearbox is used to change the angle of solar parabolic
80 Focal point / Aperture 1800 mm dish, daily, monthly, etc.

Fig 5: Solar insolation data with average temperature at Ahmednagar.

Experimentation - In this experiment we have taken readings the month of March, April and May2017. They are given as
of ambient temperature, focal point temperature, steam below
generated, by tilting angle setting for solar parabolic dish, in

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Table 2: Solar Steam generation for March 2017

09.00 am 10.00 am
MARCH Date /Time Tilt Angle Ambient Focal Pt. Steam Generation Ambient Focal Pt. Steam
Tilt Angle
(0) Temp. ( 0 C ) Temp ( 0 C ) ( kg/hr) Temp. Temp Generation
1 5 26 75 4 5 27 85 4
2 5 26 80 4 5 28 95 4
3 5 27 90 4 5 27 95 4
4 5 27 90 5 5 28 100 5
5 5 27 95 4 5 27 95 4
6 7 28 100 5 7 28 100 5
7 7 28 105 4 7 28 100 5
8 7 27 100 4 7 27 95 6
9 7 28 90 5 7 28 95 5
10 7 28 85 4 7 29 90 5

Steam generation for March 2017

200

150

100

50

0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Day of March

Tilt Angle (0) Ambient Temp. ( 0 C )

Focal Pt.Temp ( 0 C ) Steam Generation ( kg/hr)

Fig 6: Steam generation for March 2017

These readings and results are compared with the diesel with the help of solar parabolic dish is more cost effective and
engine steam generation, which is already in use from last 05 electrical energy is saved.
years. After comparison we found that the steam generation
Table 3: Comparison of Steam generation by Diesel generator and Solar Parabolic dish in Ahmednagar.
Sr. System Diesel Steam Generation Solar Steam Generation Remark
1 Fuel Required HSD – High Speed Diesel Solar Radiation / Energy
2 Fuel Consumption 10 Litre / Hour Nil
3 Temperature 130 – 1400 C 170 – 1800 C Solar Radiation
or Solar Energy
4 Steam Generation 7 – 8 kg / hour 7 – 10 kg / hour
is Pollution free,
5 Cost of fuel 55 Rs / hour Nil
radially available
6 Cost / day 275 Rs / day Nil and free of cost
7 Cost / month 275 x 25 = 6875 Nil
8 Yearly cost 6875 x 12 = 82500 Initial Installation cost is high
Life 05 years & requires lubrication and
9 Pay back period 300000 - 03.63 Years ~ 04 Years Life 25 Years
maintenance

Fig 7: Comparison of HSD and Solar Steam Generation.

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5. Test Results the temperature of output and evaluated best angle for every
By changing the tilt angle of parabolic dish and the month in Ahmednagar.
observations in months March, April and May, we summarize

Table 4: Average Tilt Angle, Ambient Temperature, focal point temperature and Steam generation in Ahmednagar, Maharashtra (India)
Month Tilt Angle 0 Ambient Tempera- ture 0C Focal Point Tempera- ture 0C Steam Generation Kg/hr
Jan 7 29.9 135 4
Feb 7 31.9 150 4
Mar 5 35.4 165 5
Apr 5 39.7 180 6
May 3 40.5 185 7
Jun 1 32.7 150 5
Jul 1 28.4 135 4
Aug 15 27.4 125 4
Sept 20 29.4 120 5
Oct 30 31.4 120 5
Nov 35 30.1 115 4
Dec 37 28.9 110 4

7. Conclusion
Based on Experimental observation following conclusion can
be established:
1. Tilting angle for Solar Parabolic dish in Ahmednagar for
summer season is 70 to 50 and for winter season 350 to 370.
2. Parabolic dish with 16m2 gives output steam generation of
50 kg/day, at 4 to 6 kg/hr.
3. By using solar parabolic dish for steam generation,
running cost of plant is reduced with payback period of 04
Years.
4. Steam generation by Solar parabolic dish depends on solar
insolation received by the dish.

8. References
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