Numerical analysis on flow and performance characteristics of a small-scale solar updraft tower (SUT) with horizontal absorber plate and collector glass

A numerical analysis has been performed to examine and assess the flow and performance characteristics of the solar updraft tower (SUT) power plant. A realistic domain (geometry and mesh) of the flow model was generated and simulations were run with the help of ANSYS FLUENT 16.0 CFD package. A turbulent, realizable (k–ε) and discrete ordinates radiation techniques were taken into consideration to solve the governing equation. The maximum air velocity of 3.27 m s−1 was noticed at 200 mm above the chimney base (CB). The mean velocity at CB was 1.8 m s−1. The highest air temperature of the absorber plate was 323 K, and it was at the centre of the absorber plate. The average air temperature inside the setup was 306.7 K. The power generated from the plant, chimney efficiency and overall efficiency of the SUT setup were evaluated to be 0.38 W, 0.018% and 0.005%, respectively. 24% velocity increase and 70% power output increase were noticed when solar flux increased from 650 to 1150 W m−2. Exergy analysis was performed. The results were compared with existing studies and were found to be in good agreement.