Abstract

This paper presents an optical analysis and comparative study of external concentrating single-sided absorber CPC (SSACPC) and double-sided absorber CPC (DSACPC)collectors designed to enhance the collection of solar radiation. This analysis forms part of a much larger study aimed at reducing system losses, improving thermal performances and temperature enhancement of evacuated heat pipe collectors for use in higher temperature applications such as solar powered refrigeration systems. Ray trace analysis using different incident angles of solar radiation, optical efficiency and related optical losses, angular acceptance and flux distribution of the designed external concentrating reflectors for the full and truncated SSACPC collectors were computed using a two dimensional ray-trace technique and compared to that of a full and truncated DSACPC collectors