Transient simulation of buried pipe residential heating system using solar energy

The present communication details a transient simulation for a buried pipes residential heating system using TRNSYS software. The system is simulated for the climatic conditions of the New Delhi (India) to evaluate the feasibility of such system for residential buildings using solar energy. The solar collector module of 2 m
²
area has been tested for the flow rate of 40kg/hr. The heat thus transferred is computed with respect to the temperature of the fluid in colder and hotter sides and the minimum rate of fluid. Both the primary as well as secondary circuits use forced circulation with the help of pumps having same characteristics/specifications. Further, the buried pipes of aluminium were analysed with varying depths of their installations under the ground and using ethyl alcohol, glycol and water as primary circuit fluids. From the results, it is concluded that the water has the maximum thermal losses in all the cases as it has high thermal energy storage capacity as compared to other two fluids. Results also quantify that the heat transfer rate is not substantially influenced by the pipe material but the weather conditions and the heat exchanger specifications has a larger impact on the system.