Thermal Performance of a Thermosiphon with a Step-Change Elevation for Medium-temperature Solar Thermal Applications

중온 태양열 응용을 위해 수평 단차를 갖는 열사이펀의 열적 성능

Thermal performance of a thermosiphon for medium-temperature solar thermal application was investigated. The working fluid was Dowtherm A and the container was made of STS 316L. The thermosiphon had a outer diameter of 12.7 mm and a total length of 2 m, where the evaporator and the condenser had the same length of 0.3 m and the adiabatic section was 1.4 m. Both the evaporator and the condenser were aligned horizontal with an elevation difference of 0.18 m to utilize the gravitational force for the working-fluid return. The optimum fill charge ratio of the working fluid was investigated to obtain the maximum heat transport with the lowest thermal resistance. The maximun input thermal load was 500 W and thermal resistance was $0.60^{\circ}C/W$.