Performance analysis of solar updraft tower using Ansys fluent

The solar updraft tower (SUT) is a renewable energy power plant design concept for generating electricity by utilizing convective air flow due to low temperature heat absorption from incoming solar radiation. A parametric study on the performance power output of the SUT at various canopy angles and different insolation levels were carried out to investigate the relationship between them with respect to key parameters i.e. in terms of updraft tower velocity, temperature, pressure and height to choose turbine position for maximum air velocity absorption and energy conversion using Ansys-fluent software version 15 for analysis. The results obtained were analyzed comparatively to draw conclusions. The results identified using simulation software mentioned above were validated with earlier results and identified significant improvement in the power generated at various collector angles, when compared with the earlier works on SUT.