Modeling and Analysis of Zenith based Passive Solar Tracking Mechanism

Abstract

A novel gravity-based, power-free solar tracking mechanism is being developed to track the movement of the sun across day length. A compound parabolic collector having 3 parabolic segments is chosen due to its high intercept factor and suitability to the current tracking as compared to a cylindrical parabolic collector. Used to concentrate the incident solar radiation to the focal point, the Compound Parabolic Collector accumulates heat at the central coil, which is in turn used for process heating applications. The working of the tracking mechanism is studied to find the tracking loads in the east and the west sides of collector. We intend to simulate the tracking motion from the sunrise to sunset, in order to validate the empirical findings. The identified design variants are sprocket wheel diameter, suspension, solar collector’s weight, counter balance and loading on the shaft. The recommended diameter for the sprocket wheel and shaft is 2500mm and 50mm respectively.