Performance and Analysis of Thermal Energy on Solar Reflector Cooker - Application of an Alternative Source of Energy in Cyprus

Abstract

This paper proposes a solar cooking device made of a flat array of concentric mirrors tilted to focuson a small area. The mobile array of mirrors is mounted on a stand to be movable around a ball joint and with acarrier for a cooking vessel held by a double crank at the focal area of the mirrors. Current solar cookerinventions comprise a reflector that is constructed from a plurality of reflective concentric rings arranged in aplanar configuration. The term planar configuration, as used herein, is defined as a configuration in which flatrings are arranged with some part of each ring lying in a plane that includes some part of each other ringalthough each ring has a different tilt. This configuration is to be distinguished from a parabolic configuration.The tilt of the flat concentric rings of the cooker permits sunlight to be focused at an area, about 5 inches indiameter, obviating the need for the more expensive and difficult-to-manufacturer parabolic reflector, and ismore conducive to heating a cooking vessel.