Study on optimizing the energy gradient and temperature regulation of flat plate solar collectors with advanced hybrid nanofluids

Abstract

The objective of this research study is to enhance the performance of a flat plate collector by using various cooling fluids, as an increase in solar panel temperature can decrease its efficiency. The experiment utilized three different fluids: distilled water, zinc sulfide nanofluid, and copper zinc sulfide nanofluid. FTIR analysis revealed a pronounced peak at 1133 cm⁻¹, indicating the presence of Cu²⁺ ions in ZnS. Three key parameters were systematically examined to optimize the solar panel's energy gradient and temperature variance. The flow rate of the cooling fluid varied from 0.5 to 2.0 L min⁻¹. Notably, the use of copper zinc sulfide nanofluid resulted in improvement in the energy gradient, reaching a peak value of 1112 W m^–2. The temperature difference showed a significant increase, peaking at 4.73 °C when using CuZnS nanofluid at a flow rate of 1.5 L min⁻¹. The incorporation of copper particles in the nanofluid notably enhanced the thermal conductivity of the cooling fluid. This improvement significantly boosted the efficacy of heat transfer processes, thereby increasing the overall efficiency of the solar panel system.