The challenge
A solar flat collector is designed to absorb energy from the electromagnetic radiation of the sun and to transmit the absorbed energy to an energy-carrying fluid. In order to fulfill this purpose, a solar flat collector comprises a transparent cover, an absorbing layer and a hydraulic system, in which the heat transfer fluid is guided, as well as rear insulation embedded into the collector casing. Evacuated thermal tube collectors have a minimal heat loss, whereas the state of the art flat plate collector loses a lot of heat. How would a new flat plate collector have to look like, which loses a minimum of absorbed heat and which easily can be incorporated into common glass support structures?
The invention
The RES-Vacuum Flat Plate Collector uses a hydraulic structure between two panels of vacuum-insulated glass to transfer absorbed solar heat to a pipe system with forward and return flow.
The advantages
- Vacuum insulation for a flat plate collector
- Compatibility with common glass support structures due to a low stack height
- High solar thermal yield
The applications
- Translucent solar thermal flat plate collector
- Solarthemal panel to back up heating and cooling systems for buildings