Optical Modeling and Thermal Behavior of a Parabolic Trough Solar Collector in the Algerian Sahara

This study is concerned with transfer of solar energy to thermal energy by using a parabolic trough collector (PTC) in the Algerian Sahara region. The water used a heat transfer fluid. A mathematical model drawn from the energy balance equation was applied on the absorber tubes. Finite difference method was used to solve the non-linear system resulting from the numerical analysis of mathematical equations. Matlab was used as a programming language. This study was able to get the variation of the optical performance, the thermal efficiency, the outlet temperature of fluid, the temperature of the absorber tubes, the glass’s temperature and the coefficient of thermal losses for the concentrator. With the results obtained, the thermal efficiencies had spent 80% to up to 82%, and outlet temperature fluid has exceeded 515k. The results obtained in this paper are an honorable and very encouraging for investment in this field of clean technology.