Potential of solar ponds in hot climates

The lumped parameter model is used to study the potential of the solar ponds in a hot climate. This model is used to study the transient energy behaviour in the storage zone, the pond surface temperature fluctuation and the effect of various parameters on the temperature of the storage zone. Various parameters affecting the behaviour of the solar pond in a hot climate were thoroughly investigated. They are: side wall shading effect, top insulation effect, solar incident angle effect, initial conditions of the pond, thickness of the storage zone and thickness of the nonconvective zone. The results indicate that the solar pond in a hot climate has a high potential. The temperature is fairly high and can reach boiling point, so the solar ponds may be used efficiently in many applications, e.g. desalination, air conditioning and space heating.