SOLAR COLLECTOR/REGENERATOR PERFORMANCE BASED ON EXPERIMENTAL HEAT AND MASS TRANSFER CORRELATIONS

ABSTRACT One of the most promising concepts for economical solar cooling is the open cycle absorption refrigeration (OCAR) system. In the OCAR system, a solar collector/regenerator (C/R) is used to concentrate a liquid absorbent solution by evaporating water to the atmosphere. This research utilizes a C/R model based on experimentally determined heat and mass transfer correlations. The validated computer model is used to test the effects of various climatic, operational and collector design variables on evaporation rate.