Modeling of Heat Transfer and Airflow Inside Evacuated Tube Collector With Heat Storage Media: Experimental Validation Powered by Artificial Neural Network

Solar air heater (SAH) is a widely employed technology for harnessing solar thermal energy in numerous applications. Contemporary research optimizes designs within identical spatial constraints to maximize energy output. However, there is a recognized need to conduct analytical validation to stimulate the experimental setup and formulate an artificial neural network (ANN) model to govern and predict the operation system. This investigation involved developing and assessing an evacuated tube solar air heater (ETSAH) integrated with annulus-filled heat storage media. Furthermore, this study introduced an ANN model and analytical solution to predict performance parameters, representing a noteworthy contribution. The proposed ANN model achieved its optimal validation performance with a mean square error of 5.4018 × 10⁻⁶ after 11 epochs within 31 of training. Also, correlation findings show that the optimal architecture of a feed-forward backpropagation is achieved when the 5-40-40-40-2 model architecture is used. In this case, there are five neural nodes in the input layer that represent timing, temperature, radiation, and airflow rate. The power output of the ETSAH device shows a strong correlation with the flow rate, reaching its peak at 0.05 kg/s with a value of 2261 W and dropping to 368 W at 0.006 kg/s. Correspondingly, the greatest energy efficiency was measured at airflow rates of 0.05, 0.01, and 0.006 kg/s, accounting for 48.38%, 27.32%, and 19.65%, respectively.