The experimental set-up and technical aspects for charging a thermal energy storage (TES) of a proposed solar cooker at constant temperature and variable electrical power are presented. The TES is developed using a packed pebble bed. An electrical hot plate simulates the concentrator which heats...

A small glass tube containing oil and glass pebbles is constructed to evaluate rapidly the volumetric heat transfer characteristics during charging. An electrical hot-plate in thermal contact with a steel spiral coil is used to charge the oil/pebble-bed storage under different average charging...

A very small oil-in-glass tube thermal energy storage (TES) system is designed to allow for rapid heat transfer experiments. An electrical hot plate in thermal contact with a steel spiral coil (SSC) is used to charge the TES system under different hot plate temperatures and under different...

The spatial extent (SE) of the focal point (FP) of a parabolic dish reflector has been determined using a laser diode as a source of light. The laser diode measurements were compared with those taken using a Gardon radiometer where the sun is the source of light. This was done in order to...

A simplified one dimensional single phase model for an oil pebble thermal energy storage system is used to examine the thermal performance of three solid sensible heat pebble materials. These are fused silica glass, alumina and stainless steel. The model is validated with experimental results...