Experimental study on an indoor scale solar chimney setup in an artificial environment simulation laboratory

An artificial environment simulation laboratory (AESL) was built and successfully applied to the experimental study of a solar chimney setup for the first time. A solar simulator and a temperature control system are included in the laboratory to achieve active control of environmental parameters. An indoor scale solar chimney setup with a collector diameter of 1.22 m and chimney height of 1 m was constructed in the testing area of the AESL. The airflow temperature and updraft velocity were measured for the solar chimney setup with varying radiation intensities and chimney heights. The measured data were used to validate a thermal model for the collector. The thermal characteristics of the solar collector were investigated through the temperature field in the collector. The upper limitations on the collector radius and chimney height were discussed based on experimental results. The experimental work on the basic solar chimney setup performance helped in understanding the thermodynamic characteristics of the solar chimney power plant (SCPP), thereby serving as the basis for the design of large-scale commercial SCPPs.