Experimental Data on a Solar-Powered Ice Maker Using Activated Carbon and Methanol Adsorption Pair

Abstract

The solar-powered ice maker has been described in a previous article [1]. The present article draws conclusions from experiments conducted on this prototype. Some specific effects appear: the end of desorption is delayed, a chimney effect takes place between collectors, and heat transfers within the collectors are pointed out. The experimental heat balances of each component are analyzed. First, the effective thermal loss coefficients of collectors are calculated in every configuration; their efficiencies lies betweeen 30 and 40 percent. But the nightly cooling is not as efficient as expected. Secondly, the heat transfer coefficient of condensers is very low. Thirdly, the evaporator is efficient and variations of evaporated flow-rate are presented. Supercooling is observed. Finally, the measured Net Solar C.O.P. is 0.12 when Qi is 22 MJ/m2 (a nice summer day in Paris) and 0.10 when Qi is 19 MJ/m2. In conclusion, major improvements are proposed.