Performance of solar vortex engine integrated with the PV panel: Experimental assessment

Solar energy is one of the most important options for humanity to face the danger of energy depletion and to address the problem of environmental pollution resulting from the use of fossil fuels. The primary goal of the current article study is to present a new design of a Solar Vortex Engine system integrated with a photovoltaic panel. System implementation and analysis were approached and discussed. The system consists of a 3.0 m2 solar collector inclined with a 36 degrees and a cylindrical vortex generator engine with an outer diameter of 40 cm and a height of 30 cm. The outcomes showed that the developed solar vortex engine could generate a circular updraft with the ratio of the tangent to the axial velocity of 2.83 m/s in the upper exit plane of the vortex generation engine. The electrical efficiency of the system containing a horizontal solar panel was higher than that of the system containing a vertical solar panel and reach its highest value of 14% at 10 a.m. Also, the highest thermal efficiency values were 45% for the system without a solar panel. The results confirmed that the presence of solar panels causes a clear decrease in the thermal efficiency of the system. The proposed solar vortex engine design presented and tested in this article is convenient for forming an artificial upward vortex.