Performance Testing Of a Truncated Pyramid Solar Thermal Cooker
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Date
2013
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Abstract
This paper presents the results of performance
testing of a truncated pyramid solar thermal
cooker developed in the Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Kaduna Polytechnic, Kaduna,
Nigeria. The truncated pyramidal geometry
concentrates the incident solar energy radiations
towards the absorber placed at the bottom, and the
glass glazing material at the top facilitates the
trapping of energy inside the cooker. During
testing, the highest plate stagnation temperature
achieved, under no-load condition and reflector
covered with black cloth, was 145 oC. In full-load
condition the temperature of 5.2 kg of water inside
the cooker rose from 60 oC to 90 oC in 72 minutes.
The First Figure of Merit, F1, was calculated to be
0.120 and the Second Figure of Merit, F2, was
found to be 0.410, thus meeting the standard
prescribed by the Bureau of Indian Standards for
box-type solar cookers. The relatively high
absorber plate temperature developed during
testing demonstrates that the cooker can be used
for all the four major methods of cooking, viz:
boiling/ steaming, baking, roasting/grilling, and
frying (of eggs).