DESIGN, FABRICATION, AND TESTING OF A BOX- TYPE SOLAR STOVE

Abstract

The aim of this study was to develop a modified box –type solar stove that can be used by family for cooking and keeping food warm and healthy. The system had been designed, constructed and tested in the workshop of the Energy Research institute, Ministry of Science and Technology at Soba, Sudan. The design is expected to solve the problem of environment and scarcity of fire wood in both rural and urban areas. Also it is a real application of renewable energy usage. The design was simple, economic, durable and efficient. It consists of the following components: 1- Outer and inner boxes with the following dimensions. a. Outer box: 900 mm × b. Inner box: 40 mm 850 mm × 350 mm 2 - Two reflectors, the outer face of each one has a plane mirror of 2mm thick the inclination angle is adjustable. It can range from 150 to 450 according to the movement of the sun rays during the day time and the season. 3- A double layer glass cover to allow sun rays passing through. 4- An absorber plate made of metal sheet of 2mm thickness. It was painted in black to increase solar energy absorption. 5- A fibre glass of 5cm thickness was used as an insulator. The test revealed that higher average body temperature of 63(‫ه‬C) was obtained compared with 41(‫ه‬C) for conventional stoves.