Self-draining solar collector systems and associated methods

Abstract

A self-draining solar collector system includes one or more solar collector assemblies, a manifold connecting assembly, and a crossover connecting assembly. Each solar collector assembly includes a collector support subsystem, one or more heating pipes, and one or more parabolic reflectors. The manifold connecting assembly connects the heating pipes of each solar collector assembly to a manifold disposed at a lower elevation than the heating pipes of the solar collector assemblies when the solar collector assemblies are oriented in respective draining positions. The crossover connecting assembly connects the heating pipes of each solar collector assembly to a crossover pipe disposed at a higher elevation than the heating pipes of the solar collector assemblies when the solar collector assemblies are oriented in their respective draining positions.

1 . A self-draining solar collector system, comprising:
 one or more solar collector assemblies, each solar collector assembly including a collector support subsystem, one or more heating pipes, and one or more parabolic reflectors, the one or more parabolic reflectors and the one or more heating pipes of each solar collector assembly configured to rotate with respect to the collector support subsystem of the solar collector assembly;   a manifold connecting assembly connecting the one or more heating pipes of each of the one or more of solar collector assemblies to a manifold disposed at a lower elevation than the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies when the one or more solar collector assemblies are oriented in respective draining positions, the manifold connecting assembly configured to have a downward slope toward the manifold to allow fluid within the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies to gravitationally drain into the manifold when the one or more solar collector assemblies are oriented in their respective draining positions; and   a crossover connecting assembly connecting the one or more heating pipes of each of the one or more solar collector assemblies to a crossover pipe disposed at a higher elevation than the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies when the one or more solar collector assemblies are oriented in their respective draining positions, the crossover connecting assembly configured to have a downward slope toward the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies to allow fluid within the crossover pipe to gravitationally drain into the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies when the one or more solar collector assemblies are oriented in their respective draining positions.   
     
     
         2 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 1 , wherein the crossover connecting assembly has a different structural configuration than the manifold connecting assembly. 
     
     
         3 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 1 , the crossover connecting assembly comprising (a) a crossover end pipe and (b) a flexible crossover hose connected between the crossover end pipe and the crossover pipe. 
     
     
         4 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 3 , further comprising a crossover flexible expansion hose connected between the crossover end pipe and the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         5 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 1 , the manifold connecting assembly comprising a flexible manifold hose connected between the manifold and the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         6 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 1 , the manifold connecting assembly comprising (a) a rotary joint connected to the manifold and (b) a flexible manifold hose connected between the rotary joint and the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         7 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 1 , the crossover connecting assembly comprising (a) one or more crossover spherical joint connectors connected to the crossover pipe and (b) a spherical joint crossover end pipe connected between the one or more crossover spherical joint connectors and the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         8 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 1 , the manifold connecting assembly comprising (a) one or more manifold spherical joint connectors connected to the manifold and (b) a manifold end pipe connected between the one or more manifold spherical joint connectors and the one or more heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         9 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 1 , the one or more solar collector assemblies comprising a plurality of solar collector assemblies, the self-draining solar collector system further comprising one or more shared connecting assemblies connecting the one or more heating pipes of adjacent ones of the plurality of solar collector assemblies such that the one or more heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies are connected in series, each shared connecting assembly configured to allow fluid within the one or more heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies to drain into the manifold when the plurality of solar collector assemblies are oriented in respective draining positions. 
     
     
         10 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 9 , each of the one or more the shared connecting assemblies capable of being changed between a normal operating mode and a draining operating mode. 
     
     
         11 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 10 , wherein each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies comprises:
 a shared pipe; and   first and second flexible shared hoses each having proximal and distal ends, proximal ends of each of the first and second flexible shared hoses being connected to respective ends of the shared pipe, and distal ends of each of the first and second flexible shared hoses being connected to respective heating pipes of the plurality solar collector assemblies.   
     
     
         12 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 11 , each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies further comprising a clamping subsystem configured to:
 secure the shared pipe of the shared connecting assembly to a pipe support having a fixed position with respect to the one or more heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies, in the normal operating mode of the shared connecting assembly; and   secure each of the first and second shared flexible hoses of the shared connecting assembly to respective rotation supports, in the draining operating mode of the shared connecting assembly.   
     
     
         13 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 11 , each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies further comprising a mode changing subsystem configured to change the operating mode of the shared connecting assembly between its normal operating mode and its draining operating mode. 
     
     
         14 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 10  wherein each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies comprises:
 one or more shared spherical joint connectors; and 
 first and second spherical joint shared pipes each having proximal and distal ends, proximal ends of each of the first and second spherical joint shared pipes being connected to the one or more shared spherical joint connectors, and distal ends of each of the first and second spherical joint shared pipes being connected to respective heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies. 
 
     
     
         15 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 14 , wherein the one or more shared spherical joint connectors are collinear with rotational axes of the parabolic reflectors of each of the plurality of solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         16 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 1 , each of the one or more of solar collector assemblies further including a tracking subsystem configured to rotate the one or more parabolic reflectors and the one or more heating pipes of the solar collector assembly with respect to the collector support subsystem of the solar collector assembly, to track an incident light source and reflect light from the incident light source onto the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         17 . A self-draining solar collector system, comprising:
 a plurality of solar collector assemblies, each solar collector assembly including a collector support subsystem, one or more heating pipes, and one or more parabolic reflectors, the one or more parabolic reflectors and the one or more heating pipes of each solar collector assembly configured to rotate with respect to the collector support subsystem of the solar collector assembly; and   one or more shared connecting assemblies connecting the one or more heating pipes of adjacent ones of the plurality of solar collector assemblies such that the one or more heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies are connected in series, each shared connecting assembly capable of being changed between a normal operating mode and a draining operating mode, each shared connecting assembly configured to allow fluid within the one or more heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies to drain into a manifold when the plurality of solar collector assemblies are oriented in respective draining positions and each shared connected assembly is operating in its draining operating mode.   
     
     
         18 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 17 , wherein each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies comprises:
 a shared pipe; and   first and second flexible shared hoses each having proximal and distal ends, proximal ends of each of the first and second flexible shared hoses being connected to respective ends of the shared pipe, and distal ends of each of the first and second flexible shared hoses being connected to respective heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies.   
     
     
         19 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 18 , each of the plurality of shared connecting assemblies further comprising a clamping subsystem configured to:
 secure the shared pipe to a pipe support having a fixed position with respect to the one or more heating pipes of the plurality of collector assemblies, in the normal operating mode of the shared connecting assembly; and   secure each of the first and second shared flexible hoses to respective rotation supports, in the draining operating mode of the shared connecting assembly.   
     
     
         20 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 17 , each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies further comprising a mode changing subsystem configured to change the operating mode of the shared connecting assembly between its normal operating mode and its draining operating mode. 
     
     
         21 . A method for operating a self-draining solar collector system, comprising the steps of:
 (a) rotating one or more parabolic reflectors and respective heating pipes of each of one or more solar collector assemblies to track an incident light source;   (b) rotating the one or more parabolic reflectors and the respective heating pipes of each of the one or more of solar collector assemblies to respective draining positions such that a manifold is at a lower elevation and a crossover pipe is at a higher elevation than the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies; and   (c) opening a purge valve in the crossover pipe.   
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , step (a) comprising rotating the one or more parabolic reflectors and the respective heating pipes of each of the one or more solar collector assemblies independently of the one or more parabolic reflectors and the respective heating pipes of each other one of the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 22 , further comprising, after step (a) but before step (b), changing an operating mode of a shared connecting assembly connected between the one or more heating pipes of a first one of the one or more solar collector assemblies and the one or more heating pipes of a second one of the one or more solar collector assemblies from a normal operating mode to a draining operating mode. 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 23 , the step of changing the operating mode of the shared connecting assembly comprising:
 freeing a shared pipe of the shared connecting assembly from a pipe support having a fixed position with respect to the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies; and   securing each of first and second shared flexible hoses of the shared connecting assembly to respective rotation supports of the plurality of solar collector assemblies.   
     
     
         25 . A method for maintaining a self-draining solar collector system comprising executing the method of  claim 21  at least once per day. 
     
     
         26 . A self-draining solar collector system, comprising:
 one or more solar collector assemblies, each solar collector assembly including a collector support subsystem, one or more heating pipes, and one or more parabolic reflectors, the one or more parabolic reflectors and the one or more heating pipes of each solar collector assembly configured to rotate with respect to the collector support subsystem of the solar collector assembly;   a manifold connecting assembly connecting the one or more heating pipes of each of the plurality of solar collector assemblies to a manifold disposed at a lower elevation than rotational axes of the one or more parabolic reflectors of the one or more solar collector assemblies; and   a crossover connecting assembly connecting the one or more heating pipes of each of the one or more solar collector assemblies to a crossover pipe disposed at a higher elevation than the rotational axes of the one or more parabolic reflectors of the one or more solar collector assemblies;   wherein the crossover connecting assembly has a different structural configuration than the manifold connecting assembly.   
     
     
         27 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 26 , the crossover connecting assembly comprising (a) a crossover end pipe and (b) a flexible crossover hose connected between the crossover end pipe and the crossover pipe. 
     
     
         28 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 27 , further comprising a crossover flexible expansion hose connected between the crossover end pipe and the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         29 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 26 , the manifold connecting assembly comprising a flexible manifold hose connected between the manifold and the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         30 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 26 , the manifold connecting assembly comprising (a) a rotary joint connected to the manifold and (b) a flexible crossover hose connected between the rotary joint and the one or more heating pipes of the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         31 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 26 , the crossover connecting assembly comprising (a) one or more crossover spherical joint connectors connected to the crossover pipe and (b) a spherical joint crossover end pipe connected between the one or more crossover spherical joint connectors and the one or more solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         32 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 26 , the manifold connecting assembly comprising (a) one or more manifold spherical joint connectors connected to the manifold and (b) a manifold end pipe connected between the one or more manifold spherical joint connectors and the plurality of solar collector assemblies. 
     
     
         33 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 26 , the one or more solar collector assemblies comprising a plurality of solar collector assemblies, the self-draining solar collector system further comprising one or more shared connecting assemblies connecting the one or more heating pipes of adjacent ones of the plurality of solar collector assemblies such that the one or more heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies are connected in series, each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies having a different structural configuration than each of the manifold connecting assembly and the crossover connecting assembly. 
     
     
         34 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 33 , wherein each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies comprises:
 a shared pipe; and   first and second flexible shared hoses each having proximal and distal ends, proximal ends of each of the first and second flexible shared hoses being connected to respective ends of the shared pipe, and distal ends of each of the first and second flexible shared hoses being connected to respective heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies.   
     
     
         35 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 33 , wherein each of the one or more shared connecting assemblies comprises:
 one or more shared spherical joint connectors; and   first and second spherical joint shared pipes each having proximal and distal ends, proximal ends of each of the first and second spherical joint shared pipes being connected to the one or more shared spherical joint connectors, and distal ends of each of the first and second spherical joint shared pipes being connected respective heating pipes of the plurality of solar collector assemblies.   
     
     
         36 . The self-draining solar collector system of  claim 35 , wherein the one or more shared spherical joint connectors are collinear with the rotational axes of the parabolic reflectors of each of the plurality of solar collector assemblies.