In this research, design of advanced material for sunlight conversion requires focused research to obtain efficient photocatalytic system. Nanostructured ZnO was synthesized using spin coating technique. The structural, morphological and optical properties of annealed nanostructured ZnO thin film at 390 Co for 3 hours were characterized by x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscope AFM and UV-VIS spectrophotometer. Nanostructured ZnO was applied for removal Methylene Blue (MB) dye from water using sunlight induced photocatalytic process. Overall degradation of MB/ZnO was achieved after 120 minutes of sunlight irradiation while it needs more time for MB alone. The reaction rate constant fit pseudo first order for MB/ZnO degradation was 0.031 min−1 compared to 0.018 min-1 using blank sample. Annealed nanostructured ZnO thin film was considered as an excellent candidate to enhance photocatalytic system to convert sunlight to chemical energy based on interfacial charges transfer.
Flat-plate collector considers most common types of collectors, for ease of manufacturing and low price compared with other collectors. The main aim of the present work is to increase the efficiency of the collector, which can be achieved by improving the heat transfer and minimize heat loss experimentally. Five types of solar air collectors have been tested, which conventional channel with a smooth absorber plate (model I), dual channel with a smooth absorber plate (model II), dual channel with perforating “V” corrugated absorber plate (model III), dual channel with internal attached wire mesh (model Ⅳ), and dual channel with absorber sheet of transparent honeycomb, (model Ⅴ). The dual channel collector used for
... Show MoreIn solar-thermal adsorption/desorption processes, it is not always possible to preserve equal operating times for the adsorption/desorption modes due to the fluctuating supply nature of the source which largely affects the system’s operating conditions. This paper seeks to examine the impact of adopting unequal adsorption/desorption times on the entire cooling performance of solar adsorption systems. A cooling system with silica gel–water as adsorbent-adsorbate pair has been built and tested under the climatic condition of Iraq. A mathematical model has been established to predict the system performance, and the results are successfully validated via the experimental findings. The results show that, the system can be operational
... Show MoreIn this research, the seasonal Optimal Reliable Frequency (ORF) variations between different transmitter/receiver stations have been determined. Mosul, Baghdad, and Basra have been chosen as tested transmitting stations that located in the northern, center, and southern of Iraqi zone. In this research, the minimum and maximum years (2009 and 2014) of solar cycle 24 have been chosen to examine the effect of solar activity on the determined seasonal ORF parameter. Mathematical model has been proposed which leads to generate the Optimal Reliable Frequency that can maintain the seasonal connection links for different path lengths and bearings. The suggested ORF parameter represented by a different orders polynomial equation. The polynom
... Show MoreTo reduce solar radiation transmittance into buildings through windows facing east or west during summer, a window inclination from vertical position is suggested. The inclination of the window glazing and the rate of unwanted solar radiation during summer can be calculated knowing the dialy inclination of the sun rays. The inclination of window glazing depends on the latitude of the position required. For instance in Baghdad which is at about 33o north latitude a slope of 15o for window glazing is sufficient to prevent about 419 MJ/m2 of total solar radiation energy from penetration during summer for clear glazing of window facing east. This value drops to about 96 MJ/m2 during winter. Therefore the ratio between the energy saved for co
... Show MoreThe current research illustrates experimentally the effect of series and parallel connection (Z-I Configurations) of flat plate water solar collectors array on the thermal performance of closed loop solar heating system. The study includes the effect of changing the water flow rate on the thermal efficiency. The results show that, the collector's efficiency in series connection is higher than the parallel connection within flow rate level less than (100) ℓ/hr. Moreover, the collector efficiency in parallel connection of (I-Configurations) is more than the (Z- Configurations) with increasing the water flow rate .The maximum daily efficiency for parallel (I-Configurations) and (Z- Configurations) are (55%) and (51%) at w
... Show MoreArtificial roughness on the absorber plate of a Solar Air Heater (SAH) is a popular technique for increasing its effective efficiency. The study investigated the effect of geometrical parameters of discrete multi-arc ribs (DMAR) installed below the SAH absorber plate on the effective efficiency. The effects of major roughness factors, such as number of gaps (Ng = 1-4), rib pitch (p/e = 4-16), rib height (e/D = 0.018-0.045), gab width (wg/e = 0.5-2), angle of attack ( = 30-75), and Reynolds number (Re= 2000-20000) on the performance of a SAH are studied. The performance of the SAH is evaluated using a top-down iterative technique. The results show that as Re rises, SAH-effective DMAR's efficiency first ascends to a specified value o
... Show MoreSloped solar chimney system is a solar chimney power plant with a sloped collector. Practically, the sloped collector can function as a chimney, then the chimney height can be reduced and the construction cost would be reduced.The continuity, Naver-stockes, energy and radiation transfer equations have been solved and carried out by Fluent software. The governing equations are solved for incompressible, 3-D, steady, turbulent standard model with Boussiuesq approximation to develop for the sloped solar chimney system in this study and evaluate the performance of solar chimney power plant in Baghdad city of Iraq numerically by Fluent (14) software with orking conditions such as solar radiation intensity (30
... Show MoreMeta stable phase of SnO as stoichiometric compound is deposited utilizing thermal evaporation technique under high vacuum onto glass and p-type silicon. These films are subjected to thermal treatment under oxygen for different temperatures (150,350 and 550 °C ). The Sn metal transformed to SnO at 350 oC, which was clearly seen via XRD measurements, SnO was transformed to a nonstoichiometric phase at 550 oC. AFM was used to obtain topography of the deposited films. The grains are combined compactly to form ridges and clusters along the surface of the SnO and Sn3O3 films. Films were transparent in the visible area and the values of the optical band gap for (150,350 and 550 °C ) 3.1,