Volume 56

Management of Greenhouse Solar Harvesting at Low Latitudes: Impacts of Slope, Curvature and Symmetry of the Envelope Rui Mao, Zilong Zhao, Wenjun Pan, Xinlei Wang

Abstract

Using passive solar energy for heating and lighting, greenhouses can be maintained at significantly lower energy consumptions. The design of the geometry of greenhouses, on the other hand, serves as a crucial factor that determines the effectiveness of solar energy absorption and thermal insulation depending on different indoor thermal conditioning requirements. This study conducts an analytical study regarding the impacts of greenhouse geometry on the intake of solar radiation. When altering the slope, curve, symmetry and the transparency of the greenhouse envelope, the light transmittance and the solar accumulation are found to be significantly varied. The overheating issue in summer and evaluated under different greenhouse configurations. The results of this study can be used to optimize the design of traditional greenhouses in different climate regions.

Keywords passive greenhouse, solar radiation, design optimization, roof slope, roof curvature