A novel solar water heater was designed using plastic as an inexpensive alternative to the conventional solar water heaters that are commonly found on the market. The unique design feature of this plastic solar water heater is the use of a black plastic sheet as the thermal energy absorber/insulator instead of a metal plate. The performance of this plastic solar water heater was compared to a conventional one, with respect to the volume of flow and increase in temperature. The test results showed that the plastic solar water heater can generate 43°C water at 21 L/hour. This performance is comparable with the conventional solar water heater. The two heaters were then compared with respect to the cost and the impact on the environment. The estimated manufacturing cost of the plastic solar water heater was 25% of the cost of the traditional solar water heater of comparable size. In nearly every category, except natural resource depletion, the plastic solar water heater was less detrimental to the environment. Hence the plastic solar water heater provides comparable performance to that of a metal solar water heater while proving superior performance with respect to the cost and environmental impact.
Author(s): Duytam Vu,Jay N. Meegoda,Jitendra A. Kewalramani