Vol. 337 No. 10 (2026)
DOI https://doi.org/10.18799/24131830/2026/10/5736
Thermal and ventilation performance of a corrugated absorber solar chimney under hot-arid climate conditions
Relevance. In hot-arid regions, reducing the energy consumption of ventilation and cooling systems remains an important issue in building engineering. Passive cooling technologies are widely used to improve energy efficiency under such climatic conditions. Under the climatic conditions of Uzbekistan, summer air temperature can reach 40–45°C, while solar radiation intensity often exceeds 1000 W/m². In such conditions, conventional air-conditioning systems require high electrical energy consumption. Aim. To investigate thermal and ventilation characteristics of a solar chimney system operating under hot summer conditions of Uzbekistan. The analysis was carried out for a small-scale room with an area of 20 m2 using a mathematical modeling approach in order to estimate the airflow generation and ventilation performance caused by solar heating inside the chimney channel. Methods. The study was performed using theoretical calculations based on heat transfer and airflow principles. The analysis included the ideal gas law, Bernoulli equation, and buoyancy-driven airflow relations to estimate the thermal and ventilation performance of the solar chimney system. The effect of daily solar radiation and ambient temperature variation was also considered. The investigated solar chimney had a length of 3 m, a width of 0.7 m, an air channel height of 0.2 m, and an inclination angle of 45°. The effect of the corrugated absorber surface on heat transfer enhancement and airflow generation inside the chimney was also evaluated. Results. Under maximum solar radiation conditions of about 1000 W/m², the air temperature inside the chimney increased up to approximately 70°C. As a result of the temperature-induced density difference, the buoyancy-induced pressure difference reached about 1.8–2.5 Pa, which provided an airflow rate close to 600 m3/h. For a room volume of 60 m3, the calculated air change rate varied within 8–10 h–1. The corrugated absorber surface improved the heat transfer and contributed to higher airflow generation compared to a flat surface configuration. Conclusions. The obtained results show that the proposed solar chimney system can provide stable natural ventilation under hot climatic conditions. The use of a corrugated absorber increased the airflow generation and improved the thermal performance of the system. The obtained results also suggest that the proposed system can reduce the use of mechanical cooling under hot climatic conditions.
For citation: Yarashov S.K. Thermal and ventilation performance of a corrugated absorber solar chimney under hot-arid climate conditions. Bulletin of the Tomsk Polytechnic University. Geo Assets Engineering, 2026, vol. 337, no. 10, pp. 30–42. http://doi.org/10.18799/24131830/2026/10/5736
Keywords:
solar chimney, natural ventilation, passive cooling, hot-arid climate, airflow rate, stack effect, natural airflow
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