Analytical study of collector solar-gain enhancement by multiple reflectors

We have considered the general case of a collector with four reflectors. An analytical model is developed for study of the effect of an individual reflector on the collector. Reflectors R-1, R-2, R-3, and R-4 face south, north, west, and east, respectively. For a collector with two reflectors R-1 and R-2 on the southern and northern sides, up to 44% enhancement is achieved in the solar gain for December (winter) and up to 14% for May (summer). However, due to shadowing, two additional reflectors R-3 and R-4 on the eastern and western sides cause negligible additional solar gain. Without shadowing, enhancement in solar gain due to reflectors R-3 and R-4 is 14–36% for May and 44–56% for December for the Delhi climate.