Monday, May 2, 2016
Updates with PV Solar Panel
Two Collectors with 20W PV Solar Panel installed on the roof.
Set of two 12V batteries, the Solar Charger Controller and the Differential Controller.
The differential Controller showing the temperature readings and the status of the the pump and the heating element of the Backup Electric Heater
Layout of the Solar Tank reservoir (gray), the backup heater tank (white) and the Controller panel
12V DC low power and low noise water pump.
The solar Charge Controller. It provides 12V DC for the pump and 5V DC for Arduino.
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Sunday, April 3, 2016
Collector Fabrication and Controller update
Fabrication of the collector:
CPVC pipe has been used since working with CPVC is easier than Copper pipe. Also the CPVC efficiency is closed to Copper efficiency; it is only 4% or 5% less than Copper. To compensate for this, we can make larger Collector or increasing the number of Collectors.
Frame and Base:
Putting insulating foam with aluminum sheet on the base and the insides of the frame to reduce heat loss.
The base has been painted. It is not necessary.
Cutting the pipes to fit inside the frame.
Collector after gluing the CPVC parts together:
Collector after being painted. The metallic strips will be used to hold the glass on the top of the Collector:
Collector Work has been completed. The water inlet is located on the left. The water outlet is on the lower right and the sensor connection is on the upper right.
Updated Differential Controller: Digital temperature sensors are being used instead of analog sensor for more accuracy and using only one digital input for multiple sensors.
Water proved Box is used to protect the electronic boards and also give nice looking to the Controller.
Digital Sensors with 1/2 inch adapter. The adapted does not come with the sensor. It was bought from Home Depot and was modified to fit the sensor.
Solar Panel to feed the electronic boards.
The batteries will be charged from the solar panel via the charge controller to keep the electronic boards on during the night.
The 12V DC water pump will circulate the water from the collector to the water tank.
CPVC pipe has been used since working with CPVC is easier than Copper pipe. Also the CPVC efficiency is closed to Copper efficiency; it is only 4% or 5% less than Copper. To compensate for this, we can make larger Collector or increasing the number of Collectors.
Frame and Base:
Putting insulating foam with aluminum sheet on the base and the insides of the frame to reduce heat loss.
The base has been painted. It is not necessary.
Cutting the pipes to fit inside the frame.
Collector after gluing the CPVC parts together:
Collector after being painted. The metallic strips will be used to hold the glass on the top of the Collector:
Collector Work has been completed. The water inlet is located on the left. The water outlet is on the lower right and the sensor connection is on the upper right.
Updated Differential Controller: Digital temperature sensors are being used instead of analog sensor for more accuracy and using only one digital input for multiple sensors.
Water proved Box is used to protect the electronic boards and also give nice looking to the Controller.
Digital Sensors with 1/2 inch adapter. The adapted does not come with the sensor. It was bought from Home Depot and was modified to fit the sensor.
Solar Panel to feed the electronic boards.
The batteries will be charged from the solar panel via the charge controller to keep the electronic boards on during the night.
The 12V DC water pump will circulate the water from the collector to the water tank.
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Arduino Circuit Bench test
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
Week 3 (January 31st-February 6th)
Copper pipe and fittings were purchased and cut to size. Soldering could not be completed due to lack of sufficient material. This will be completed in the week to come.
It was determined that 1" copper pipe was needed to fit the heating element. The element will screw into a threaded female fitting, which will then fit into a "T" fitting. This "T" fitting will also be the water inlet location. At the other end of the fitting, and 1" to 1/2" bushing will be used to downsize the pipe. An exploded view of this setup can be seen in image 3 below.
It was determined that 1" copper pipe was needed to fit the heating element. The element will screw into a threaded female fitting, which will then fit into a "T" fitting. This "T" fitting will also be the water inlet location. At the other end of the fitting, and 1" to 1/2" bushing will be used to downsize the pipe. An exploded view of this setup can be seen in image 3 below.
Image 1
Image 2
Image 3
Monday, February 1, 2016
Week 2 (January 24th-30th)
-During this week, we have begun building the collector. The frame was constructed using the 2x4x8 and the dimensions are 2.5'X1.5'. A piece of plywood was cut and fitted to the under-side of the collector as well. A light cream color paint was applied for a more appealing visual appearance.
-It was also determined that using PVC piping (and fittings) for the heating element section may not work as well as we had hoped. The concern lies in the potential for the plastic melting where the element will be fitted. Even with cold water running through the pipe at the time of use, it is feared that it will not provide sufficient cooling to prevent catestrophic failure. To be on the safe side, copper piping will be used instead.
-The fittings and piping may need to be enlarged from 3/4" to 1" in order to compensate for the size of the element. (This will be determined in the week to come)
-We also decided this week, due to costs, that 1/2" copper piping will be used for the remainder of the collector, rather than 3/4". This will not change the integrity of our presentation, but will allow for a most cost effective design.
-Adapter fittings will be utilized to go from 1", where the element ends, into 1/2" for the rest of the piping network.
-Arduino code is continuing to be worked on at this time as well
***Pictures of the collector are not available at this time, but will be posted within the next few days***
Week 1 (January 17th-23rd)
-Created a detailed blueprint of the collector, and purchased some of the materials for piping. Materials included:
-Created a detailed blueprint of the collector, and purchased some of the materials for piping. Materials included:
- Fittings (PVC-necessary to assemble the section that will hold the heating element)
- PVC pipe
- Heating element (120V/2000W)
- Wood 2X4X8 for collector framing
- Plywood for backing
-Arduino code was also worked on during this week.
Note: The collector's wood frame and heating element are being used solely for presentation purposes. It would be difficult to capture enough of the sun's radiation to use for demonstration.
The following image shows the blue print of the collector design. This is a rough draft copy however, as dimensions may change in the following week.
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