Vol. 1, Issue 8, Part K (2015)

Abstract
A flat plate solar collector was designed, constructed and the performance with regards to suitability for use in a multi-effect humidification (MEH) system evaluated in Makurdi. 17.7o was used as the angle of tilt for the collector. A blackened storage tank was provided to supply slightly pre-heated water to the collector. 10 mm diameter copper pipes were formed into loops to serve as the water passages. A flow rate of 0.0034 kg/s was used for the passive system while 0.0039 kg/s was used for the active one. The hourly ambient temperature, initial and final water temperatures, the outer surface cover temperature of the collector and the incident radiation were measured daily from 08.00 to 17.00 hours for 8 days. The efficiencies of the collector were computed from the measured data. The experimental results showed that the mean temperature of the water from the collector was 48.440C for the passive option and 45.540C for the active one on hourly basis. These values are lower than the minimum required for the operation of a MEH system. The respective efficiencies on daily basis were 0.71 and 0.60. Further work will focus on increasing the resident time of the water within the collector.