%0 Journal Article
%T A Technical Note on Fabrication and Thermal Performance Studies of a Solar Pond Model
%A Abhishek Saxena
%A Varun Goel
%J Journal of Renewable Energy
%D 2013
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2013/475282
%X A solar pond has been fabricated to analyze the thermal behavior of it, in the climatic conditions of Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh. Sodium chloride (NaCl) has been used to form a salt gradient for better performance, and a dark-colored (blackened) rigid surface bottom with 1£¿mm irregularities has been considered for trapping the heat in a good amount. A solar pond with a surface area of 2.56£¿m2 and a depth of 1£¿m has been filled with salty water of various densities to form three salty water zones (upper convective, nonconvective, and heat storage). A few investigations have been carried out to evaluate the thermal efficiencies of three different zones of the solar pond. An attempt is also made to improve the thermal performance of the salt gradient solar pond. 1. Introduction On the Earth there is an abundant source of solar energy globally in which India has been counted for a good sunshine country. Since starting some of legendary contributors designed, modified, and developed many applications to utilize this source (sun) of energy for mankind. Various applications based on solar energy are solar water heater, solar cookers, solar stills, flat plate collectors, heat storage tank, solar thermal power plant, and solar pond for the purpose of water heating and other major requirements [1]. Water is an essential need of every living creature, which is used in a lot of manners or as a multipurpose supplement for a human being. There are some user-friendly and economical methods of water heating through utilization of solar energy. A solar pond is a body of water which is used to collect and store solar energy. The pond, either natural or man-made, contains salt water, which acts differently than fresh water. In a freshwater pond, sunlight inflowing the pond would heat up the water and by natural convection the heated water would rise to the top while the heavy cool water would sink to the bottom. Salt water, however, is heavier than fresh water and will not rise or mix by natural convection. This creates a larger temperature gradient within the pond which becomes hotter with depth¡ªas hot as 200 + F¡ã at the bottom. Solar-powered ponds are basically free to operate. They do not add any utility bill because all the power required for operation is generated by a solar panel that uses free energy from the sun. The maintenance of a solar pond is generally simple and of low cost. Apart from this, the pond is powered by solar energy instead of electricity and does not contribute to the environmental harm associated with other power sources, particularly coal and
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/jre/2013/475282/