Comprehensive Thermal and Environmental Investigation of An Enhanced Evacuated Tube Solar Water Heater with Wavy Tape and Latent Heat Storage

Year : 2025 | Volume : 12 | Issue : 02 | Page : 1 16
    By

    Punam Kumar Agade,

  • Nitin Dubey,

  • Rahul Agrawal,

  1. Research Scholar, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Madhyanchal Professional University, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India
  2. Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Madhyanchal Professional University, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India
  3. Senior Master Technician, Department of Thermal Energy Storage, Iberian Energy Storage Research Center (CIIAE),, Caceres, Spain

Abstract

Evacuated tube solar collectors (ETSCs) are widely used for thermal energy applications; however, enhancing their thermal and exergetic efficiency remains a challenge. This study investigates performance enhancements through structural and material alterations. Four ETSC cases were tested experimentally, case-1: a standard ETSC, case-2: Wavy tape (WT) inserted ETSC, case-3: Phase change material (PCM) integrated ETSC, and case-4: Dual-Enhanced ETSC (PCM + WT). A binary eutectic PCM was utilized for latent heat storage, and the combined effect of PCM and WT was analysed under identical environmental conditions. Performance was evaluated based on thermal efficiency, exergy efficiency, and environmental impact through CO₂ mitigation. The case 4 with hybrid mode demonstrated the maximum hourly efficiency at 71.75%. This was followed by the case 3 at 67.63%, case 2 at 65.5%, and case 1, which showed the lowest efficiency at 60.61%. In terms of daily average efficiency, the hybrid system (PCM + WT) reached 45.92%, compared to 40.32% (PCM), 39.90% (WT), and 35.17% (conventional). Exergy efficiency followed a similar pattern, with the highest average recorded for the PCM + WT configuration at 6.11%, while the conventional collector achieved only 3.48%. The environmental assessment showed that the PCM + WT configuration resulted in the highest CO₂ emission reduction per ton of water heated. The integration of PCM and WT in ETSCs significantly enhances thermal and exergy performance while contributing to greater environmental sustainability. These findings offer practical insights for improving solar thermal systems in residential and industrial heating applications.

Keywords: Energetic, Exergetic, Environmental, Performance, Eutectic PCM, Solar Water Heater

[This article belongs to Journal of Refrigeration, Air conditioning, Heating and ventilation ]

How to cite this article:
Punam Kumar Agade, Nitin Dubey, Rahul Agrawal. Comprehensive Thermal and Environmental Investigation of An Enhanced Evacuated Tube Solar Water Heater with Wavy Tape and Latent Heat Storage. Journal of Refrigeration, Air conditioning, Heating and ventilation. 2025; 12(02):1-16.
How to cite this URL:
Punam Kumar Agade, Nitin Dubey, Rahul Agrawal. Comprehensive Thermal and Environmental Investigation of An Enhanced Evacuated Tube Solar Water Heater with Wavy Tape and Latent Heat Storage. Journal of Refrigeration, Air conditioning, Heating and ventilation. 2025; 12(02):1-16. Available from: https://journals.stmjournals.com/jorachv/article=2025/view=222122


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Regular Issue Subscription Original Research
Volume 12
Issue 02
Received 26/06/2025
Accepted 30/06/2025
Published 10/07/2025
Publication Time 14 Days
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