Experimental study of a new technique for improving the performance of the parabolic solar cooker

In our experimental study, our objective is to optimize the performance of a parabolic solar cooker, which harnesses solar radiation by concentrating it onto a focal point and convert it into heat. The cooker's efficiency is determined by several factors, including the optical efficiency of the reflector, sun tracking accuracy, charge nature and size, wind velocity, and ambient temperature. To mitigate the impact of wind speed and ambient temperature, we placed the pot inside a glass box. Temperature measurements were taken at various points on the cooker during the experiment, including the reflector surface, pot outer surface, and water temperature inside. Tests were conducted both with and without the glass box. On April 10, 2022, we initiated a test on the cooker with the glass box at 09:50, under clear weather conditions with an average wind speed. During this test, we achieved a maximum water temperature of 102.03°C at 10:40, with an irradiance of 803W/m
²
and a wind speed of 3.33m/s. The reflector surface temperature was 39.98°C, and the pot surface temperature was 115.98°C. On December 29, 2021, we performed a test on the cooker, excluding the glass box, at 09:45 under clear sky conditions with a weak wind speed. During this examination, the water attained its highest temperature of 102.55°C by 11:40, when solar radiation reached 834W/m2 and a wind speed of 0.81m/s. The reflector surface registered a temperature of 40.20°C, while the pot surface reached 117.75°C.Our investigation revealed that the water in the solar cooker equipped with a glass box reached the boiling point approximately 60 minutes earlier than the cooker without a glass box. This suggests that the utilization of a glass box enhanced the boiling speed by 52.63% based on the maximum value achieved.