Patent ID: 9068756
Filing Date: 2015-06-30
Classification: F23J,F24D,F24S,Y02B,Y02E,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A solar collector assembly for a hot water heating system, the solar collector assembly including a solar energy absorber and a mirror for reflecting solar energy onto the solar energy absorber; the solar energy absorber comprising an elastically deformable metal hot water pipe having a non-circular transverse cross section with opposed wide and flat sidewalls and opposed short sidewalls joining the wide and flat sidewalls, and two metal solar energy absorbing plates, each absorbing plate extending along the length of the pipe and comprising a first elongate solar energy absorbing panel located to one side of the pipe and having a minimum thickness at the center of a pipe wide and flat sidewall and an increasing thickness to either side of the center of the pipe wide and flat sidewall and an elongate elastically deformable solar energy transfer portion, the transfer portion in surface-to-surface heat flow physical connection with one wide and flat pipe sidewall for transfer of solar energy to the pipe, the solar collecting panel and the solar energy transfer portion of each solar absorber plate including a solar energy absorbing surface for receiving solar energy from the mirror, wherein when water in the pipe freezes and expands the pipe wide and flat sidewalls are elastically deformed outwardly and the solar energy transfer portions of the solar absorbing plates are elastically deformed outwardly by the long sidewalls, and when ice in the pipe melts the deformed long sidewalls and the elastically deformed solar energy transfer portions of the solar absorbing plates elastically contract and return to their initial positions without impairing transfer of solar energy to the pipe or forming leaks in the pipe.