An array of multiple modular units of directabsorbing and sun-tracking sun absorbers

Inventor name: Royi Katz. Address: 13 Harimonim St. Even-Yehuda, P.O.B. 59, Israel. Israeli I.D. number: 038710380. Date of birth: 16/04/1976.

Abstract
This patent document is about an array of multiple modular units of direct-absorbing sun absorbers [i.e. no mirrors are involved at all in this invention] - where each sun absorber unit, as a part of the array as a whole, has the ability to be rotated in two planes [i.e. to be rotated about two axes], so that it can always be positioned to be perpendicular to the direction of the sun`s rays, in order to achieve maximum absorbing of the sun`s rays. One of the distinguishing features of this invention is that it has a unique transparent isolation element that is placed on top of the sun absorbing surface of the sun absorber. This transparent isolation element is comprised from a series of transparent plates that are placed one on top of the other [with little gaps between them] where these plates can slide one on top of the other as their dimensions change due to changes in their temperatures. The heat that is collected by this array of sun absorbers is later on transformed into clean electric energy.

Background of the invention

Several general methods were developed over the time in order to produce non-polluting electric energy from renewable sources, nevertheless none of these methods is, in an overall view, cheap enough in order for it to replace the simplest process of just burning fossil fuels [such as coal, oil and natural gas] in order to obtain heat energy, that can be transformed to electric energy. The goal of the invention that is described in this document is to solve this problem that is to say, to provide a method and appropriate means that can, all in all, provide a very cheap yet non-polluting production of electricity from the sun`s rays.

Description of the invention

A. The main components of the modular unit of the sun absorber As it can be seen in the following figure, Fig. 1, that shows a typical side cross section of a modular unit of the sun absorber, the modular unit of the sun absorber is comprised from several components: 1. A series of transparent plates [1], where the gap between any two adjacent transparent plates is quite small, between several tenths of a millimeter to several centimeters alone. 2. The above mentioned gap is created between any two adjacent transparent plates by using designated spacers [2]. 3. Beneath the series of the transparent plates there is a designated metal extruded unit [3] that is comprised from a top plate, a bottom plate and designated vertical connecting elements that connect these two plates to form a single extruded unit. The top surface of the top plate is painted black, to absorb efficiently the sun`s rays. Designated spacers create a certain gap between the top plate of the extruded unit and between the lowest transparent plate. From now on in this document the designated metal extruded unit will be called, shortly, "extruded unit". 4. Inside the extruded unit flows, from one end of it to the other end, a designated heat-transferring-liquid [4] [in initials - HTL]. 5. Beneath the extruded unit there is a layer of isolation material [5] in order to increase the system`s efficiency by preventing heat from escaping the system.

Fig. 1

Fig. 1 This figure shows the main components of a modular unit of the sun absorber: The series of the transparent plates [1], the designated spacers [2], the extruded unit [3] in which the HTL [4] flows and the bottom layer of isolation material [5] can be seen.

Fig. 1a

Fig. 1a This figure shows a front cross section of the extruded unit [marked as [3] in Fig. 1] it can be seen that the extruded unit is comprised mainly from an upper plate and from a bottom plate and these two plates are connected by designated vertical connecting elements.

B.

The general principle of operation of a modular unit of the sun absorber

The modular unit of the sun absorber is always positioned in a perpendicular fashion relatively to the sun`s rays. As it can be seen in the following figure, Fig. 2, the sun`s rays penetrate through the series of the transparent plates until they finally hit the top surface of the top plate of the extruded unit, that is painted black, as mentioned above. Upon heating the black color most of the energy of the sun`s rays is absorbed by the black color and transformed into heat energy. Now, the series of the transparent plates, which are always above the black surface of the sun absorber, now serves as a super efficient thermal-isolation element since the overall heat transfer coefficient of this kind of an element [i.e. an element that is comprised from several separated layers of rigid material] is extremely low indeed so that only a small portion of the heat that was generated can escape from the system upwards to the outer atmosphere. So that, all in all, it can be said that the series of the transparent plates can be considered as a transparent isolation element since that the transparent plates allow the sun`s ray to pass through them, while simultaneously being a super efficient thermal-isolation element. The heat that does not escape out of the system upwards [because of the transparent isolation element, as mentioned above] penetrates through the top plate of the extruded unit and heats up the designated HTL that flows inside the extruded unit. Now, a certain number of modular units of the sun absorber are connected, one after the other, in a line [by using designated connectors and pipelines that will be described later on in this document] and the HTL flows from one modular unit to the next modular unit, and so forth, until it reaches the last modular unit of the line so that all in all the HTL is heated from its minimum working temperature at one end of the line to its maximum working temperature at the other end of the line. An array of this kind of modular units of sun absorbers is comprised from a certain number of the above mentioned line. The heat that is gathered by the HTL is then extracted from it and transformed into electric energy, by using all the methods that are very well known to those who are skilled in this kind of art.

Fig. 2

Fig. 2 This figure shows the general principle of operation of this invention: As the sun`s rays penetrate the series of the transparent plates and hit the upper surface of the extruded unit [that is painted black] most of the energy of the sun`s rays is transformed to heat energy. This heat penetrates into the HTL that flows [from left to right, in this figure] inside the extruded unit, and as a result the HTL is heated from a temperature of T0 [at the left edge of this figure] to a temperature of T0+DeltaT [at the right edge of this figure]. The series of the transparent plates serves as a transparent isolation element. Beneath the extruded unit there is a layer of isolating material.

Now, each single modular unit of the sun absorber can be rotated about the two relevant axes [i.e. the azimuth axis1 and the elevation2 axis] so that each single modular unit can always be positioned exactly in the right position to face the sun, i.e. to be perpendicular to the sun`s rays, so that maximum absorption of the sun`s rays can be achieved. It is to be mentioned that all the array`s modular units can be rotated about the two relevant axes simultaneously so that all the modular units of the array can be positioned to be exactly perpendicular to the sun`s rays simultaneously, to achieve maximum absorption of the sun`s rays by the array as a whole. At the end of the day all the modular units can be rotated back to their initial positions to be ready for the next day. The rotation of a modular unit of the sun absorber about the two relevant axes can be seen in the following figures:

1 2

Azimuth axis i.e. the trajectory that the sun goes through from east to west each day. Elevation axis i.e. the rising of the sun from sunrise until noon and the descending of the sun from noon until sunset.

The following three figures [Fig. 3a, Fig. 3b, Fig. 3c] show how a single modular unit of the sun absorber can be rotated about the azimuth axis to face the sun`s rays at all times - morning, noon and evening.

Fig. 3a

Fig. 3b

Fig. 3c

The following three figures [Fig. 4a, Fig. 4b, Fig. 4c] show how a single modular unit of the sun absorber can be rotated about the elevation axis to face the sun`s rays at all times morning, mid morning, noon, afternoon and at the evening

Fig. 4a

Fig. 4b

Fig. 4c

C. Additional elements of a modular unit of the sun absorber 1. Designated connectors There should be a designated connector before each modular unit of the sun absorber that will connect the main inlet pipeline of the HTL to the extruded unit of the modular unit of the sun absorber and that will disperse the HTL from the edge of the main inlet pipeline to the entire width of the extruded unit of the modular unit of the sun absorber, And also, in a parallel way, there should be a similar designated connector after each modular unit of the sun absorber that will connect the extruded unit of the modular unit of the sun absorber to the main outlet pipeline of the HTL and that will collect the HTL from the entire width of the extruded unit of the modular unit of the sun absorber to the main outlet pipeline. One possible configuration of this kind of a designated connector can be seen in the following figures:

Fig. 5

Fig. 5 This figure shows a top view of an extruded unit [3], with two designated connectors connected to it one before the extruded unit [1] and one after the extruded unit [2]. It can be seen that the designated connectors overlap the edges of the extruded unit. The main inlet pipeline [4] is connected to the designated connector that is before the extruded unit, and the main outlet pipeline [5] is connected to the designated connector that is after the extruded unit. The arrows inside all the above mentioned elements show the general direction of the flow of HTL inside these elements. It can be seen that the flow of the HTL inside the extruded unit is divided into several lanes by the vertical connecting elements [shown here in the form of dashed lines [6], and specified more clearly in Fig. 1a]. As it can be seen - The lanes that are closer to the edges of the extruded unit [i.e. lanes [a], [b],[e] and [f]] can be wider than the lanes that are closer to the center of the extruded unit [lanes [c] and [d]], and that is in order to help creating a more even flow regime inside the extruded unit and that is by reducing the friction force that is applied by the walls of the lanes on the HTL that flows inside the lanes that are closer to the edges of the extruded unit and are distant from the edge of the main inlet pipeline [hence, the HTL has less natural tendency to flow in these distant lanes].

Fig. 6

Fig. 6 This figure shows cross-section A-A of Fig. 5. It can be seen that the extruded unit [3] is overlapped from the outside by the outer surfaces of the designated connector [14]. It can also be seen that there are designated penetrating elements [12] [that are an integral part of the designated connector, as it will be shown more clearly in the following figures] that penetrate into in between the vertical connecting elements [[6] and [6a]] and into in between the top and bottom surfaces of the extruded unit. These designated penetrating elements are comprised from vertical sections [i.e. sections that are parallel to the vertical connecting elements of the extruded unit] and from horizontal sections [i.e. sections that are parallel to the upper and lower surfaces of the extruded unit]. The HTL flows through the designated penetrating elements [12] into the extruded unit [or from the extruded unit into the designated connector, when the designated connector is placed after the extruded unit]. The lanes [a], [b], [c], [d], [e] and [f] that were shown in Fig. 5 can be seen here as well. Designated O-ring type gaskets can be placed in the gaps that are between the outer surfaces [14] of the designated connector and between the extruded unit [3], and also in the gaps that are between the extruded unit and between the penetrating elements [12] so that in this way the designated connector can hold and fasten its grasp on the extruded unit, without causing the thin surfaces of the extruded unit to bent because of the gaskets` pressure, since that the pressures of the gaskets from both sides of each surface of the extruded unit will neutralize each other. It is to be mentioned that the dimensions of the openings of the designated penetrating elements, through which the HTL flows into or out from the extruded unit, can be used in order to control the rate of the flow of the HTL through these openings that is to say that by changing the thickness of the walls of the designated penetrating elements these openings can be enlarged or reduced, So, for example, the openings of the penetrating elements that are near the edges of the extruded unit can be enlarged relatively to those that are near the center of the extruded unit in order to encourage the flow of the HTL near the edges of the extruded unit, And so forth.

Fig. 7

Fig. 7 This figure shows cross-section B-B of Fig. 6. The edge of the main inlet pipeline [4] can be seen to the left. A section of the extruded unit can be seen to the right, divided into lanes [a], [b], [c], [d], [e], and [f] by the vertical connecting elements [6] and [6a]. The vertical sections of the designated penetrating elements [12] can be seen as well overlapping the edges of the vertical connecting elements [6] of the extruded unit. It can be seen that any two vertical sections [12] of the penetrating elements that overlaps a vertical connecting element [6] of the extruded unit are actually connected together at their edge. The vertical sections of the designated penetrating elements [12] can also be seen connecting to the outer surfaces [14] of the designated connector in order to overlap the vertical connecting elements [6a] that are at the edges of the extruded unit. O-ring type gaskets [10] can be placed in the gaps that are between the vertical connecting elements [[6] and [6a]] of the extruded unit and between the surfaces of the designated connector that overlap them [i.e. the outer surfaces of the designated connector and the penetrating elements of the designated connector. The HTL flows through the gaps that are between the vertical sections [12] of the penetrating elements.

Fig. 8

Fig. 8 This figure shows cross-section C-C of Fig. 7. The edge of the designated connector can be seen to the left, and the edge of the extruded unit can be seen to the right. It can be seen that the horizontal sections of the penetrating elements [12] of the designated connector together with the outer surfaces [14] of the designated connector overlap the upper surface [7] of the extruded unit and the lower surface [8] of the extruded unit. It can also be seen that the penetrating elements [12] connect to the outer surfaces [14] of the designated connector to form an integral unit. As it was shown in Fig 7, O-ring type gaskets [10] can be placed in the gaps that exist between the above mentioned elements. The HTL flows through the gap that is between the two horizontal sections [12] of the penetrating elements.

2. Peripheral spacers

In addition to the ordinary spacers [marked as [2] in Fig. 1] peripheral spacers can be placed all along all the edges of each transparent plate. These peripheral spacers can be used in order to create a certain gap between the edges of each two adjacent plates, just like the ordinary spacers. These peripheral spacers can also be used in order to prevent hot air, that is maintained under each transparent plate, from escaping to the surrounding - as it will be shown later on. It is to be mentioned that the peripheral spacers can have the same thickness as the ordinary spacers, or they can have enlarged dimensions, as it will be shown later on.

Fig. 9

Fig. 9 This figure shows a top view a transparent plate that has peripheral spacers [2] at all of its edges. The ordinary spacers [1] can be seen also, placed all over the surface area of the transparent plate with fixed intervals between them.

Fig. 10

Fig. 10 This figure shows cross section A-A of Fig. 9, which is a front cross section of a transparent plate that has peripheral spacers at its edges. The peripheral spacers [2] can be seen at the edges of the transparent plate [3]. The ordinary spacers [1] can also be seen.

3. Restraining elements for the edges of the transparent plates: The edges of each transparent plate should be sealed and isolated from the surrounding so that the hot air that is under each transparent plate will not be able to escape to the surrounding. Furthermore, as the transparent plates heat up they tend to gain an arched shape [because of the temperature gradient that exist across the transparent plate`s thickness, where the bottom surface of each transparent plate is hotter than the upper surface of the plate] so that the edges of each transparent plate tend to rise up - Hence it is necessary to limit the vertical freedom of movement of the edges of each transparent plates. Nevertheless, as the transparent plates heat up they tend also to expand in their length and width, so that their edges move relatively to the extruded unit and, of course, this kind of movement, that is parallel to the surface of the extruded unit, should be allowed to take place, in order not to create stresses inside the transparent plates. The following figures will describe some possible configurations and embodiments that can solve the above mentioned problems that is to say, configurations and embodiments that can: a. Limit the vertical freedom of movement of the edges of the transparent plates. b. Allow each edge of each transparent plate to move horizontally. c. Isolate and seal the hot air that is beneath each transparent plate from the surrounding.

Fig. 11

Fig. 11 This figure shows a side cross section of the edges of the transparent plates [1], their peripheral spacers [2], the extruded unit [3] and a designated restraining element [5], which is rigidly connected to the extruded unit. As it can be seen the restraining element restrains the edges of the transparent plate from moving vertically, while still allowing them to slide one on top of the other when moving horizontally. Between the very edges of the transparent plates and the restraining element there is a designated flexible yet sealing element [4] [in initials - FYSE] that can change its shape as the edges of the transparent plates change their locations [as it was mentioned above in this section]. This kind of FYSE can be made from, for example, closed-cell rubber sponge. Part A of this figure shows the edges of the transparent plates when all the transparent plates have the same temperature [at night, for example]. Part B of this figure shows the edges of the transparent plates when a temperature gradient exist between the transparent plates [i.e. the bottom plate is the hottest and the upper is the coldest when the sun absorber is exposed to the sun]. And it can be seen that as the edge of each transparent plate change its location the FYSE adapts an adequate form so that contact areas between the FYSE and the edge of each transparent plate and between the FYSE and the extruded unit always exist and by that the FYSE serves as a flexible air flow barrier and prevents hot air from escaping to the surrounding, in this way the FYSE isolates and seals the edges of the transparent plates from the surrounding. The distance between the top surface of the extruded unit and the surface of the restraining element that touches the top transparent plate is just a little larger than the sum of the thicknesses of all the transparent plates and their peripheral spacers together and that is in order that the transparent plates will be able to slide one on top of the other easily and freely.

Fig. 12

Fig. 12 This figure shows a different version of the different components that were reviewed in Fig. 11. This figure shows a series of four edges of four transparent plates [1], [2], [3] and [4], where each transparent plate has ordinary spacers [5] and a peripheral spacer that is comprised from a horizontal section [1a], [2a], [3a] and [4a] and a down going vertical section [1b], [2b], [3b] and [4b] where the vertical section of the peripheral spacers starts from the transparent plate and ends at the top surface of the extruded unit. As it can be seen, in this figure there is a plurality of FYSE - one FYSE per each transparent plate [instead of just one FYSE for all the transparent plates] where the FYSE of each transparent plate is placed between the vertical section of the peripheral spacer of this transparent plate and between the peripheral spacer of the next transparent plate [or between the restraining element [6]]. [The FYSE in this figure are the vertically elongated cloudy shapes] In this figure part A shows the edges of the transparent plates when all the transparent plates have the same temperature [at night, for example]. And part B of this figure shows the edges of the transparent plates when a temperature gradient exist between the transparent plates [i.e. the bottom plate is the hottest and the upper is the coldest when the sun absorber is exposed to the sun]. And it can be seen, again, that as the edge of each transparent plate changes its location the FYSE elements change their shape, but nevertheless, contact areas between the FYSE and the edge of the transparent plate and between the FYSE and the extruded unit always exist so that the hot air can`t escape to the surrounding. In addition to all of that, this figure shows also one possible way to rigidly connect the restraining element [6] to the extruded unit and that is simply by using bolts and nuts: It can be seen in parts A and B that the restraining element can have Holes at its lower horizontal section that touches the extruded unit [these holes are marked by the two dashed lines] and there are also corresponding holes in the extruded unit so that the extruded unit and the restraining element can be joined together by bolts and nuts. Part C of this figure shows a section of the extruded unit from a top view, and the above mentioned holes in it can be seen. As it can be seen in this figure - in order that the extruded unit will not shrink or distort under the pressure of the bolts and nuts its edge can be made full [i.e. that there will be no space between the top and bottom surfaces of the extruded unit at its edges] In order to further more strengthen the extruded unit it can be manufactured with two designated diagonal strengthening elements in it near its edges, as it is shown. It can also be seen in this figure that a designated O-ring type gasket [7] can be placed near the edge of the restraining element, between the restraining element and the top transparent plate - this gasket can be used in order to prevent water from penetrating into the system. This gasket can be placed inside a designated fault that is in the restraining element, as it is shown.

Fig. 13

Fig. 13 This figure shows a different version of the different components that were reviewed in Fig. 12. This figure again shows a series of four edges of four transparent plates with their ordinary and peripheral spacers only that now each peripheral spacer have two down going vertical sections [instead of just one] and the FYSE of each transparent plate is placed in the gap that is between these two vertical sections, as it is shown. And again, in this figure part A shows the edges of the transparent plates when all the transparent plates have the same temperature [at night, for example]. And part B of this figure shows the edges of the transparent plates when a temperature gradient exist between the transparent plates [i.e. the bottom plate is the hottest and the upper is the coldest when the sun absorber is exposed to the sun]. And now, in this configuration, the FYSE do not change their shapes as the edges of the transparent plates change their locations, but still contact areas between the FYSE and the edges of the transparent plates and between the FYSE and the extruded unit always exist, so that the FYSE serves again as air flow barriers.

Fig. 14

Fig. 14 This figure shows a different version of the different components that were reviewed in Fig. 13. In this configuration, again, each edge of transparent plate has its own FYSE, only that now the FYSE is placed between the horizontal section of the peripheral spacer [[1a], [2a], [3a] and [4a]] and the single vertical section of the peripheral spacer [[1b], [2b], [3b] and [4b]], which now has the length of the thickness of the horizontal part of the peripheral spacer. In this configuration the FYSE behave like the FYSE that were mentioned in Fig. 13. In addition to that, there can be another FYSE [marked as an encircled A], which is a general additional FYSE for all the transparent plates together, that is placed between the edges of the transparent plates and between the designated restraining element - this FYSE behaves like the general FYSE that was described in Fig. 11. And again, in this figure part A shows the edges of the transparent plates when all the transparent plates have the same temperature [at night, for example]. And part B of this figure shows the edges of the transparent plates when a temperature gradient exist between the transparent plates [i.e. the lowest transparent plate is the hottest and the upper is the coldest when the sun absorber is exposed to the sun].

Fig. 15

Fig. 15 This figure shows how a designated restraining element [7] can be mounted on top of a designated connector, while restraining a series of transparent plates [11] that are sealed and isolated from the surrounding by any one of the above mentioned configurations. It can be seen that the upper outer surface of the designated connector [6] together with the upper horizontal inner surface of the penetrating element [5] of the designated connector overlap the top surface of the extruded unit [1] [where O-ring type gaskets are placed in the gaps that are between these elements, as shown], And it can also be seen that the lower outer surface of the designated connector [3] together with the lower horizontal inner surface of the penetrating element [4] of the designated connector overlap the lower surface of the extruded unit [2] [where O-ring type gaskets are placed in the gaps that are between these elements, as shown], The designated restraining element is placed on top of the upper outer surface of the designated connector, at its edge, as shown. The designated restraining element is connected to the designated connector by bolts and nuts, where the bolts go through designated holes [10] that are in the lower horizontal section of the designated restraining element. There are also corresponding holes in the designated connector, exactly beneath the holes that are in the designated restraining element so the bolts can go through from side to side, from the top surface of the lower horizontal part of the designated restraining element to the lower surface of the lower outer surface of the designated connector. When the bolts go in the gap that is between the two horizontal sections of the penetrating elements of the designated connector [[4] and [5]] the bolts can go through a designated sleeve [12] [or a designated cylinder] that is an integral part of the designated connector, a sleeve that will isolate the bolt from the HTL, in order to avoid HTL leakages [this sleeve does not block the flow of the HTL in the designated connector] this sleeve is not shown in this figure for clarity reason, yet its path and location is shown by the two dashed lines [12]. A designated O-ring type gasket [8] can be placed between the designated restraining element and the upper outer surface of the designated connector in order to further more increase the isolation of the volume that is encapsulated between the transparent plates, the extruded unit and the designated restraining elements from the surrounding. This gasket can be placed inside designated faults in the designated restraining element and in the designated connector as it is shown. In a similar way, this kind of gasket can be placed between the designated restraining element and between the extruded unit when the designated restraining element is placed directly on top of the extruded unit.

Fig. 16

Fig. 16 This figure shows a different version of some of the components that were reviewed in Fig. 13 and Fig. 14. In this configuration the FYSE is not made from rubber-sponge but instead it is made from ordinary rubber profile [4] that has a defined shape. The rubber profile is placed again in the gap that is between the two vertical sections [marked as [3] and [3a]] of the peripheral spacer of the transparent plate [1]. The two vertical sections overlap almost the entire shape of the rubber profile, leaving only the edge of the rubber profile to stick out and touch the transparent plate [2] or the extruded unit [2] that is beneath it. In this configuration, again, contact areas between the FYSE and the edge of the transparent plate [1] and between the FYSE and the plate [2] that is beneath it always exist, even when the edge of the transparent plate changes its location, so the FYSE serves as an isolating and sealing element. It is to be mentioned that the profile of the FYSE in this configuration can have different shapes. It is to be mentioned that the vertical elements can be manufactured together with the transparent plate, as an integral part of it.

It is preferred that whenever an O-ring type gasket element or a FYSE element are needed to be used [at any one of the above mentioned different configurations and embodiments] that a single element that is long enough to be placed along all the four edges of the transparent plate will be used instead of using four separated elements, a different element for each edge of the transparent plate. It is further more preferred that the long element that is used will have no ends i.e. that it will be in the shape of a big rectangular or a big square, that can be placed along the four edges of the transparent plate at once. It is to be mentioned that any kind of the above mentioned peripheral spacers can be manufactured together with its transparent plate, as an integral part of the transparent plate or that it can be manufactured separately from its transparent plate and connected to it later on. It is to be mentioned that in case that the dimensions of the transparent plates are smaller than the dimensions of the extruded unit - so that more than one series of transparent plates is needed to cover the surface of the extruded unit then additional restraining elements can be used in order to restrain the edges of the additional series of transparent plates, Where these additional restraining elements can be connected to the extruded unit by bolts and nuts like it was described in Fig. 12 and in Fig. 15.

4. Mixing elements inside the flow of the HTL As it is well known, if the flow of the HTL inside the extruded unit will be laminar then there is a probable chance for the creation of a heat gradient inside the flow, that is to say that the flow that is closer to the upper surface of the extruded unit will be hotter than the flow that is closer to the lower surface of the extruded unit. In order to avoid this particular phenomenon the flow inside the extruded unit can be transformed to be turbulent - and that can be achieved by inserting designated flowdisturbing elements into the flow of the HTL that will purposely destroy the organized laminar flow and turn it into a turbulent flow. As it can be seen in the following figure:

Fig. 17

Fig. 17 This figure shows two possible examples of flow disturbing elements. Part A shows, to the left, a side view of an elongated rod that has disturbing elements placed on it throughout its entire length with equal intervals between each other and to the right of this rod there are four possible examples of different shapes of flow disturbing elements [that are placed on the rod]. Part B shows, to the left, a side view of a curved rod and to the right of this side view there is the front cross section of this curved rod. These kinds of rods can be placed into the lanes of flow of HTL that exist in the extruded unit [marked as [a], [b], [c], [d], [e] and [f] in figure 5] and by that to create a turbulent flow inside the extruded unit.

5. Air flow barriers between the plates As it is well known, hot air tends to rise above colder air hence, whenever the sun absorber units will be inclined relatively to the horizon the hot air that is trapped between any two adjacent transparent plates [or between the extruded unit and the lower transparent plate] will tend to accumulate at the higher end of the sun absorber unit while the cold air will tend to accumulate at the lower end of the sun absorber unit, And as parts of the hot air will cool down and as parts of the cold air will warm up a constant circulated flow of air will be created between the higher and lower ends of the sun absorber unit, resulting, of course, in a higher overall heat transfer coefficient, which means greater heat losses and less efficiency of the system. In order to avoid this phenomenon designated air-flow barriers can be inserted between any two adjacent transparent plates [and also between the lower transparent plate and the top surface of extruded unit] in order to simply block the above mentioned air flow between the higher and lower ends of the sun absorber unit. In a similar way to the FYSE element that was reviewed earlier - the air flow barriers should be made from a designated material that is flexible enough so that its shape will automatically adapt to the ongoing little changes in the gaps between the transparent plates, And also, the air flow barriers should be made from a material that can prevent any passage of air through it. The air flow barriers can be made, for example, from rubber-sponge or from plane rubber. It is preferred that the air flow barriers of the different transparent plates will be placed one above the other in order to avoid shading the sun absorbing surface of the sun absorber as much as possible.

Fig. 18

Fig 18 Part A of this figure shows a front view of the extruded unit and a part of the series of the transparent plates. It can be seen that air flow barriers can be placed between adjacent transparent plates, and also between the top surface of the extruded unit and the lower transparent plate in order to simply block the air flow between the upper and lower ends of the sun absorber. Part B of this figure shows a top view of the extruded unit and the transparent plates, and it can be seen that the air flow barriers can be placed all along the length of the modular unit of the sun absorber. The air flow barriers should be placed parallel to the longitudinal axis of the sun absorber, which is always parallel to the horizon in order to best eliminate air flows that occur between the transparent plates [or between the extruded unit and the lower transparent plate] Part C of this figure shows possible shapes of the air flow barriers. The cross section of the air flow barriers can be in the shape of a complete circle [1], half of a circle [2], a quarter of circle [3], a full rectangular - and so forth. The air flow barriers can be made, for example, from rubber-sponge or plane rubber or flexible plastic, or any other kind of material that is flexible enough so that its shape will automatically fit itself to the gaps that exist between the transparent plates [or between the extruded unit and the lower transparent plate]. The air flow barriers can be rigidly connected to the transparent plates, or they can be placed inside a designated fault in the transparent plates or they can even be an integral part of the transparent plates [that is to say that if the air flow barriers are made from flexible transparent plastic then they can be manufactured together with the transparent plates by casting or by extrusion]. The intervals between the air flow barriers can vary from several centimeters to several meters.

Fig. 19

Fig. 19 This figure shows a side cross section of a possible configuration of an air flow barrier. In a similar way to Fig. 16, the air flow barrier [4] is held restrained between two down going vertical elements [[3] and [3a]]. This two vertical elements start at the transparent plate [1] and end just above the transparent plate [2] that is beneath the first transparent plate [or just above the top surface of the extruded unit [2]]. The edge of the air flow barrier [4] always touches the lower transparent plate [or the top surface of the extruded unit], and by that it prevents any passage of air through it. A little gap always exists between the edges of the vertical elements and the lower transparent plate [or the top surface of the extruded unit] - so that the plates could slide freely one on top of the other. The two down going vertical elements can be manufactured together with the transparent plate, as an integral part of it.

It is to be mentioned that the FYSE of the air flow barriers and the FYSE of the peripheral spacers can be manufactured together, as a single unit, in order that there will not be any gaps between the FYSE of the air flow barriers and the FYSE of the peripheral spacers, as it can be seen in the following figure, figure 19A.

Fig. 19A
Fig. 19A This figure shows a top view of a single unit of FYSE that its outer parts [2] serve as the FYSE of the peripheral spacers and its inner parts [1] serve as the FYSE of the air flow barriers.

6. Designated wind-net elements As it is well known, the overall heat transfer coefficient between two gases, that are separated by a rigid plate, is higher when forced convection [such as natural winds] is involved, and lower when only free convection is involved. So, in order to reduce the bad influence that natural winds [that blow over the top surface of the top transparent plate] have on the overall heat transfer coefficient, a designated wind-net element can be used. The wind-net element is comprised from multiple flat and straight planes that are organized in a certain pattern that repeats itself, where each flat and straight plane is placed only in a perpendicular fashion to the plane of the sun absorber unit, in order to shade as less as possible over the sun absorber unit. The wind-net element is rigidly connected to the structure of the unit of the sun absorber so that as the unit of the sun absorber rotates the wind-net element rotates together with it, so that the wind-net element always remains perpendicular to the unit of the sun absorber. Using this kind of element reduces a lot the power and the velocity of the wind that actually reaches the top surface of the top transparent plate and by that this element reduces the overall heat transfer coefficient. The wind-net element can be made transparent - so that if a situation will occur, in which the wind-net element will not be exactly perpendicular to the sun absorber, then the windnet element will not shade too much over the sun absorber. The following figures will present the wind-net element:

Fig. 20

Fig. 20 This figure shows a top view of the wind-net element. It can be seen that this element is comprised from a net of longitudinal surfaces [2] and lateral surfaces [1]. The thickness of the surfaces can vary from several tenths of a millimeter to several centimeters. The wind-net element is placed above the series of the transparent plates.

Fig. 21

Fig. 21 This figure shows cross-section A-A of fig. 20, which is a side cross section of the wind-net element and of the extruded unit. The height of the surfaces that comprise this element can be seen by arrow [3]. This height can vary from several centimeters to about a meter. Cross sections of the lateral surfaces [1] can be seen as well. It can be seen that the wind-net element is placed over the extruded unit and the series of the transparent plates, where the height of these two elements is marked by arrow [5]. A small gap of several millimeters can be left between the surfaces of the wind-net elements and the top surface of the top transparent plate, in order to allow the water of the washing system [that will be presented later on in this document] to pass beneath the wind-net element, as the water wash the top transparent plate.

Fig. 22

Fig. 22 This figure shows cross-section B-B of fig. 20, which is a front cross section of the wind-net element and of the extruded unit. The height of the surfaces that comprise this element can be seen by arrow [3]. Cross sections of the longitudinal surfaces [2] can be seen as well. It can be seen that the wind-net element is placed over the extruded unit and the series of the transparent plates, where the height of these two elements is marked by arrow [5].

Fig. 23

Fig. 23 This figure shows the general principle of operation of the wind-net element. This figure shows a section of the wind-net element [3] placed over a section of the extruded unit and the series of the transparent plates [5]. The long and curvy arrows above the wind-net element represent winds that blow over the extruded unit and the wind-net element, And it can be seen that as winds enter into the gaps that are between the surfaces of the wind-net element they are stopped by these surfaces so that they almost totally do not reach to the bottom of the wind net element [i.e. to the top surface of the top transparent plate] - so that, by this configuration, forced convection almost does not exist, and the overall heat transfer coefficient of the system is reduced significantly.

7. Automatic washing system Since the units of the sun absorber are exposed to winds and dust it is necessary to clean the top surface of the top transparent plate on a regular basis hence an automatic washing system is required. One possible configuration for an automatic washing system can be, for example, a washing system that is comprised from the following two parts: A first part that is comprised mainly from a series of sprayers that are connected to a designated water delivering pipeline, where the function of the sprayers is to spray cleaning water on the top surface of the top transparent plate, And a second part that is comprised mainly from a designated water collecting trough, where the function of this trough is to collect and drainage the used cleaning water. The two mentioned parts are placed on two opposite edges of the top transparent plate, so that the cleaning water can cover all the surface area of the top transparent plate when going from side to side, i.e. from the side of the sprayers to the side of the trough where, of course, the sprayers are located on the higher edge of the sun absorber and the trough is located on the lower edge of the sun absorber, so that the cleaning water could flow naturally downwards. The rate and power in which the cleaning water is sprayed through the sprayers can be controlled by using designated electronically-controlled valves, by controlling the water pressure inside the designated water delivering pipeline, by using irrigation-dripper-like3 devices [as it will be mentioned later on in this document] and so forth where all of the functions of the whole washing system can be operated and controlled by a designated software. The velocity of the flow of the cleaning water on top of the top transparent plate can be controlled by changing the angle of inclination of the unit of the sun absorber in respect to the horizon. It is to be mentioned that the cleaning water can contain also designated cleaning agents such as detergents, chemical-solvents and so forth. It is to be mentioned that the used and collected cleaning water can be recycled and reused after going a filtration process that removes any dissolvent, dirt and dust particles from it. It is to be mentioned that it is preferred to use water without any salt in it so that the water drops that will be left attached to the top surface of the top transparent plate after the washing process will not leave any stains of salt residue that might block the sun`s rays. It is to be mentioned that this washing system can be used, also, to drainage rain. The components of the discussed washing system will be shown in the following figures:
3

An irrigation-dripper-like device is a designated device that allows only a predetermined rate of water to flow through it, no matter what is the water pressure that prevails in the pipeline.

Fig. 24

Fig. 24 This figure shows the first and upper part of the discussed washing system. In this washing system the water are delivered into the system by an inlet pipeline [1]. The arrow [8] shows the direction of the flow of the water in this pipeline. The inlet pipeline connects to a designated water delivering pipeline [3] that is placed tight to the edge of the restraining element and runs throughout the entire length of each modular unit of the sun absorber. In this designated water delivering pipeline many designated sprayers [10] are placed, with equal intervals between them, these designated sprayers spray the water out from the designated water delivering pipeline towards the top surface of the top transparent plate. The arrow [6] shows the general direction of the spray of water, and the shape of the spray of water will be shown in greater details in Fig. 27. It is to be mentioned that an irrigation-dripper-like element can be placed before each sprayer, or at the entrance to the designated water delivering pipeline, so that each sprayer will spray water in a controlled way.

Fig. 25
Fig. 25 This figure shows the second and lower part of the discussed washing system. The washing water that were sprayed on the top transparent plate reaches the lowered section of the unit of the sun absorber and this water is now collected by the designated trough [4] that is placed tight to the opposite restraining element and runs throughout the entire length of the unit of the sun absorber. Arrow [7] shows the direction of the flow of water on top of the top transparent plate and the water`s entrance into the trough. The collected water flows inside the trough until it reaches the designated outlet pipeline [2] by which the water is taken out of the system. Arrow [9] shows the direction of the flow of water inside the outlet pipeline. From this point the collected water can be disposed to the ground or piped to a collecting vessel to be reused, after going a filtration process.

Fig. 26

Fig. 26 This figure shows a top view of the discussed washing system. The top transparent plate [marked as T.T.P] can be seen together with its 4 restraining elements [5a], [5b], [5c] and [5d] that are placed at its four edges. The inlet pipeline [1] can be seen going over the restraining element [5a] and connecting to the delivering pipeline [3] that is placed tight to the restraining element [5a]. The arrows inside these pipelines show the direction of the flow of the water inside these pipelines. The designated sprayers [10] that are placed along the entire length of the delivering pipeline can be seen as well. The water collecting trough [4] is placed tight to the opposite restraining element [5b], and the outlet pipeline can be seen as well. The arrows inside the trough and the outlet pipeline show the direction of the flow of the water inside them.

Fig. 27
Fig. 27 This figure shows the fashion and the shape in which the washing water is sprayed on top of the top transparent plate [marked as T.T.P]. A section of the designated delivering pipeline [3] together with a section of the top transparent plate are shown in this figure. Several designated sprayers [10] can be seen as well. It can be seen that the washing water are not sprayed in a straight line but rather in the shape of a triangle, as it is shown by the arrows [11]. In this fashion each sprayer actually sprays a lane of water that has a width [marked by the arrow 12] so that in this way all the sprayers can cover together all the surface area of the top transparent plate, except areas [13]. The intervals between the spacers can vary from several millimeters to several tens of centimeters. In order to clean areas [13] as well, the unit of the sun absorber can be tilted back to horizontal position, while the washing water are still on its top transparent plate, so that this water will reach these areas as well.

The discussed washing system can also have an additional third part which is a designated soft rotating brush that comes in touch with the top transparent plate and can cover all the surface area of the top transparent plate, in order to physically remove any dust or dirt particles that are strongly attached to the top transparent plate. The different elements of this third part will be described in the following three figures:

Fig. 27A

Fig. 27A This figure shows a side view of one edge of the third part of the washing system which is the soft rotating brush. In this figure the top transparent plate [1] and the restraining element [3] can be seen. The O-ring type gasket [7] that is placed between the top transparent plate and the restraining element can be seen as well [marked as [7] in Fig. 14] - the other transparent plates of the series of the transparent plates and the peripheral spacers are not shown in this figure. It can be seen that the restraining element [3] in this figure has an additional section that is placed above the original restraining element this additional section consist of a vertical sub-section [A] [that is placed above the vertical section of the original restraining element] and a horizontal subsection [B] [that is placed above and parallel to the horizontal section of the original restraining element] so that a certain fixed gap [2] is created between the two mentioned horizontal sections. This certain gap serves as a guiding rail for the moving base [4] of the shaft [5] of the soft rotating brush. This moving base can be moved along its guiding rail by an electric actuator, Or that the moving base can have an electric motor that can rotate a designated gear wheel that its mechanical teeth are combined with the mechanical teeth of a designated strip of mechanical teeth that is placed along the length of the guiding rail so that by rotating this gear wheel the moving base can be moved along the length of the guiding rail. The guiding rail can have small vertical sections in it that will keep the moving base in its right course. The moving base can have little wheels or little ball bearings that will make its movement along the length of the guiding rail easier and smoother. The shaft [5] of the soft rotating brush that sits in the moving base [4] can have appropriate ball bearings, so that it can be easily rotated about its longitudinal axis by an additional electric motor that also sits at the moving base. Soft plastic hairs or leaves [marked as [6] in the following figure] can be connected to the rotating shaft so that these hairs or leaves will come in touch with the top transparent plate and will remove any dirt or dust from it. The above mentioned elements [i.e. the additional elements of the restraining element, the moving base and so forth] should be placed on the two opposite edges of the modular unit of the sun absorber that are not always parallel to the horizon [i.e. edges [5c] and [5d] of figure 26] so that the shaft of the soft brush will go from side to side of the modular unit of the sun absorber.

Fig. 27B
Fig. 27B This figure shows a front view of one edge of the third part of the washing system which is the soft rotating brush. The top transparent plate [1] can be seen at the bottom of the figure. The fixed gap [2] between the two horizontal sections of the restraining element [3] can be seen as well. This fixed gap [2] serves, as mentioned above, as a guiding rail for the moving base [4] of the soft rotating brush it can be seen in this view that the moving base can move along the length of the fixed gap. The shaft [5] of the soft rotating brush can be seen approximately at the middle of the moving base. The plastic hairs or leaves [6] that are connected to this shaft can be seen as well. It can be seen that as the shaft rotates [as the arrow shows] these hairs or leaves reach the top transparent plate and remove any dirt or dust from it. A designated plastic water shield can be placed above [or overlapping parts of] the soft rotating brush so that the water of the washing system will not be thrown out by the rotating soft brush this plastic shield should be connected, of course, to the moving base so that it will move together with the brush.

Fig. 27C
Fig. 27C This figure shows a top view of the third part of the washing system which is the soft rotating brush. This figure shows a section of the top transparent plate [1] together with its two opposite edges that are not always parallel to the horizon [edges [5c] and [5d] in figure 26]. The restraining elements [3] of the above mentioned edges can be seen as well. It can be seen that in these restraining elements there is the guiding rail [2] in which the moving base [4] can move. The shaft [5] of the soft rotating brush can be seen as well, going from side to side of the top transparent plate and it can be seen that by moving up and down in the directions of the arrows the shaft of the soft rotating brush can cover all the surface area of the top transparent plate. It can be seen that the shaft [5] sits inside the two moving bases [4]. The plastic hairs or leaves of the brush and the plastic shield of the brush are not seen in this figure. It is to be mentioned that this part of the washing system, as well as the two other parts of the washing system, can be controlled by a designated software.

Further remarks about the discussed washing system: In order to simplify the manufacturing and assembling procedures the designated water delivering pipeline [marked as [3] in Fig. 24] can be made as an integral part of the restraining element [marked as [5a] in Fig. 26], in such a way that the main inlet pipeline [marked as [1] in Fig. 24] and the designated sprayers [marked as [10] in Fig. 24] could be connected directly to this single unit that includes the restraining element and the designated water delivering pipeline. And also, in a similar way, in order to simplify the manufacturing and assembling procedures the designated water collecting trough [marked as [4] in Fig. 25] can be made as an integral part of the opposite restraining element [marked as [5b] in Fig. 26], in such a way that the main outlet pipeline [marked as [2] in Fig. 25] could be connected directly to this single unit that includes the restraining element and the designated water collecting trough.

8. An air volume adjusting mechanism Whenever any transparent plate changes its dimensions [because that its temperature changes] the volume of air that is encapsulated between it and the transparent plate [or the top surface of the extruded unit] that is beneath it will change as well so, in order that the transparent plate will not be distorted by this phenomenon an air-volume adjusting mechanism can be present in this invention. One very simple configuration of this kind of mechanism can be in the form of a very tiny hole that connects the volume of air that is encapsulated beneath any transparent plate with the surrounding of this transparent plate. This kind of hole can exist at any transparent plate, or at any transparent plate`s peripheral spacer or at any transparent plate`s FYSE - and also at one of the designated restraining elements, So that by these holes all the volumes of air that are encapsulated under all the transparent plates will be connected to each other and to the surrounding atmosphere - so that in this way the changes in the volumes of air that is encapsulated under the transparent plates will be able to take place without distorting the transparent plates. The hole in the top transparent plate must be between the edge of the transparent plate and the O-ring type gasket [marked as [7] in Fig. 12] that is between the transparent plate and the designated restraining element in order that neither washing water nor dust will penetrate the system. It is preferred that the hole of each transparent plate will be made near the edge that is lowered when the modular unit of the sun absorber is inclined relatively to the horizon so that the heat escape from under the transparent plate will be as minimal as possible [since that this end is always the coldest edge]. If designated air-flow-barriers exist under any transparent plate then a hole can be made at each air-flow-barrier in order to connect all the separated volumes. As it is shown in Fig. 28, to the hole that is at the designated restraining element a designated flexible tube can be connected [marked as [1] in Fig. 28] in order to prevent water, dirt or dust from entering the system from this hole. At the edge of this tube a filter [marked as [2] in Fig. 28] can be placed in order to further more prevent the entrance of dirt/water/dust into the tube. The filter can be placed in a distance from the edge of the tube so that it will not get wet, and so forth.

Fig. 28

D. Further specifications, descriptions and detailing of the different components of the modular unit of the sun absorber 1. The transparent plates: The transparent plates can be made from any kind of rigid and transparent material, such as, for example, transparent glass or plastic where the most preferable materials are glass, flexible glass, PMMA [poly-methyl-meth-acrylate] or POLYCARBONATE. Each transparent plate can be coated by an anti-reflective coating [a coating that increases the transparency of the plate] from one side of it or from both sides of it. The number of the transparent plates in the series of the transparent plates can vary from 2 to about 15. The thickness of each transparent plate can vary from several tenths of a millimeter to several centimeters. It is to be mentioned that in order to reduce the cost of the transparent plates each transparent plate can have a changeable thickness that is to say that a single transparent plate can have areas that are thicker than other areas [where more than two thicknesses are possible in a single transparent plate] so that the thicker areas will serve as the stabilizers of the transparent plate and the thinner areas will just serve as plain separating surfaces, as it can be seen in the following figure, figure 29:

Fig. 29
Fig. 29 This figure shows a transparent plate that has two thickness the thicker areas [1] serve as the stabilizers of the transparent plate, and the thinner areas [2] serve as plain separating surfaces.

2. The spacers between the plates: The thickness of the spacers can vary from several tenths of a millimeter to several centimeters. The intervals between the spacers can vary from several centimeters to several meters. The purpose of the spacers is, of course, to prevent any two adjacent plates from touching each other by maintaining a certain minimum gap between them so, in order to reach this goal the intervals between the spacers and the spacers` thickness should be adequate for this purpose. Each spacer can be rigidly connected to either the plate that is above it or below it [but never to the two plates that are above and below it in order for the plates to be able to slide one on top of the other] by using a designated glue or a designated solvent. The spacers can also be casted together with the transparent plate, that is to say that the spacers can be an integral part of the transparent plate. It is preferred that the spacers will be transparent, in order not to block the sun`s rays. The spacers can have any shape of cross section, such as, for example, a round cross section, a square cross section and so forth. It is preferred that the spacers of the different transparent plates will be placed one above the other so that the weight of the different transparent plates will be transferred directly to the rigid extruded unit, without bending the transparent plates. And for this purpose it is preferred that the spacers will have a sufficient surface area so that, when the transparent plates change their dimensions, at least a part of the surface area of each spacer will be above a part of the surface area of the spacer that is beneath it. And more over, it is also preferred that the locations of the spacers [especially the spacers of the lowest transparent plate] will be above the vertical connecting elements of the extruded unit so that the thin top surface of the extruded unit will not bend or distort by the weight of the transparent plates. The width, length and height of the spacers can vary from several millimeters to several centimeters. The spacers can have many different and diverse cross sections, for example: The spacers can have a cross section that is fixed throughout their thickness or a cross section that is narrowing along their thickness. The spacers can also have a narrowing cross section that has the shape of a sharp tip, or a narrowing cross section that has the shape of half of a circle, and so forth - As it can be seen in the following figure, figure 29A:

Fig. 29A
Fig. 29A. This figure shows that the spacers can have many different and various shapes of cross sections.

3. The extruded unit: In addition to the elements that were reviewed in Fig. 1a the extruded unit can have additional strengthening and stabilizing elements, as it is shown in the following figure:

Fig. 30

Fig. 30 This figure shows that additional segments can be added to the extruded unit in order to increase its strength and stability. Part A of this figure show a cross section of an extruded unit that has only an upper surface a lower surface and vertical connecting elements. Part B of this figure shows that in addition to the ordinary vertical connecting elements of the extruded unit, that connect the upper surface of the extruded unit to its lower surface, there can be also diagonal elements that connect the upper surface of the extruded unit to the lower surface. This addition of the diagonal elements will increase, of course, the strength and the stability of the extruded unit. The disadvantage that is in the addition of the diagonal segments is in that that now only one quarter of the HTL is being heated directly by the top surface of the extruded unit, and the other three quarters of the HTL will gain their heat only by conduction from the vertical and diagonal segments of the extruded unit. In order to solve this problem a secondary strengthening infrastructure, that includes both vertical and diagonal segments, can be placed beneath an ordinary extruded unit [that is shown in part A of this figure], in order to strengthen and stabilize the extruded unit while not interfering with the flow regime of the HTL. As it is shown in part C of this figure. If additional elements are added to the extruded unit then the shape of the designated connector should be changed accordingly in order for it to be able to hold and fasten its grasp on the extruded unit. The thickness of each one of the above mentioned elements can vary from several tenths of a millimeter to about one centimeter. The extruded unit can be made from any kind of metal preferably aluminum. It is to be mentioned at this point that the top surface of the extruded unit can be painted in any kind of black color, such as, for example, matte black, shiny black, selective coating black and so forth.

It is to be mentioned that a single extruded unit can be comprised, in a modular fashion, from several modular sub-units where a separated designated connector can be connected to each end of each modular sub-unit. For example, a modular unit that has the width of 5 meters can be comprised from 10 modular sub-units that have the width of 50 centimeters each. In this way the manufacturing procedures can be made simpler and easier.

4.

The HTL and the flow of the HTL:

The HTL can be any kind of liquid that does not boil when subjected to the maximum working temperatures of the sun absorber. Preferably the HTL can be oil with low viscosity. The HTL can also be plain water when the working temperatures are below the boiling temperature of water. When using water as HTL it is preferred that the water will not contain any salt or other dissolvent in it. It is to be mentioned that in order to reduce the HTL pressure inside the extruded units of the sun absorber and inside the pipelines that connect these units the HTL can be pumped from the end of the line of the units of the sun absorber as well as from the start of the this line. 5. The layer of isolation material: A layer of isolation material can be placed, as mentioned above, beneath the extruded unit. An isolation material can also be placed on the sides of the extruded unit and on top of the designated restraining elements that hold in place the edges of the transparent plates. Every isolation element can be rigidly connected to the extruded unit. It is preferred that the contact areas between the layer of isolation material and the extruded unit [and/or also the designated restraining elements] will be as small as possible in order to prevent, as much as possible, heat conduction between the extruded unit and the isolation material in order to further more improve the efficiency of the isolation. That means, for example, that the isolation material that is placed under the extruded unit can be in touch with the extruded unit only in a small surface area, that is to say that there can be designated knobs on the upper surface of this isolation material that will be in use in order to keep a certain fixed gap between the isolation material and the extruded unit. In order to prevent high temperature gradients from emerging in the layer of air that is between the bottom surface of the extruded unit and the upper surface of the isolation material that is placed beneath the extruded unit [whenever the sun absorber unit is inclined relatively to the horizon] designated vertical partitions can be used. As it all can be seen in the following figures:

Fig. 31
Fig. 31 This figure shows a side view and a top view of one possible configuration for a modular bottom isolation unit that can be placed under the extruded unit. In the upper section of this figure a side view of a possible modular isolation unit [1] is shown. It can be seen that this modular unit can have little knobs [2] on its top surface in order to reduce the contact area between it and the extruded unit. It can also be seen that this modular isolation unit can have some sort of a laminar structure inside it, in order for it to have an extremely low overall heat transfer coefficient. This modular isolation unit can have a cellular structure inside it or any other kind of structure or isolation material inside it. In the lower section of this figure a top view of this modular isolation unit [1] can be seen. The little knobs [2] can be seen as well.

Fig. 32

Fig. 32 This figure shows an inclined extruded unit [1] and modular isolation units [3], from the kind that was mentioned in Fig. 31, placed beneath it. Vertical partitions [2] can be placed between the modular isolation units in order to prevent the emerging of heat currents between the upper and lower edges of the isolation layer that is beneath the extruded unit. The vertical partitions can be connected to the bottom of the extruded unit.

As it is well known, materials tend to bend whenever being subjected to heat gradient so, in order to avoid the bending of the isolation material from influencing the straightness of the extruded unit, the isolation material can be made from segments that are separated from each other by a certain small gap so that in this way each individual isolation segment will bend as to itself alone, so that its bending will not influence the straightness of the extruded unit. The little gap between the separated segments can be covered by a flexible covering sheet to reduce the heat losses from the un-isolated gaps. As it all can be seen in the following figure:

Fig. 33
Fig. 33 The upper portion of this figure shows a side cross section of the series of the transparent plates [1], the extruded unit [2] and the layer of isolation material [3] that is placed beneath the extruded unit. It can be seen that the layer of isolation material is divided to several sections, where small designated gaps [4] exist between these sections. The lower portion of the figure shows a bottom view of the layer of isolation material [3] It can be seen that this layer is divided to several sections, where small designated gaps [4] exist between these sections. It is to be mentioned that in addition to the layer of isolation material being divided laterally, it can also be divided longitudinally.

6. The flow regime of the HTL inside the extruded unit. As it is well known, the deterioration process of transparent plates that are made from plastic [such as, for example, PMMA or POLYCARBONATE] is dependent on the temperatures to which the plastic is exposed to, That is to say that when the plastic is exposed to high temperature it will deteriorate faster, i.e. it will become less transparent faster over the years, And vice versa when the plastic is exposed to low temperature it will deteriorate slower over the years. Furthermore, the temperature gradient that will be developed across the thickness of each transparent plate will be in accordance with the temperature gradient that exist between the temperature of the bottom layer of air [that is to say, the layer of air that is between the top surface of the extruded unit and the bottom surface of the bottom transparent plate] and the temperature of the surrounding atmosphere, That is to say, simply, that when the above mentioned layer of air is relatively hot then a relatively large temperature gradient will be developed across the thickness of each transparent plate, And vice versa - when the temperature of the above mentioned layer of air will be less hot then the temperature gradient that will be developed across the thickness of each transparent plate will be smaller, And since that the tendency of each plane transparent plate to become arched is in complete accordance to the temperature gradient that exist across its thickness it can be said that the tendency of each transparent plate to become arched is in complete accordance with the temperature of the above mentioned layer of air, That is to say, simply, that when this layer of air will have higher temperature each transparent plate will have a stronger tendency to become arched and vice versa, when this layer of air will have lower temperature each transparent plate will develop a weaker tendency to become arched. And of course, this tendency of each transparent plate to become arched must be restrained by the designated restraining elements, as it was mentioned above. From the above mentioned two reasons it is clear that it is preferred and recommended to avoid a situation in which the above mentioned layer of air reaches to a relatively high temperature. One way to achieve this goal is simply to lower the maximum working temperature of the machine. Another way to achieve this goal is to create a non trivial flow regime inside the extruded unit,

That is to say that instead that the HTL will flow [in the trivial flow regime] in one direction only throughout the entire width of each modular unit of sun absorber, starting from the first unit in the line of the connected modular units of sun absorbers until the last unit in this line, In the non-trivial flow regime the HTL will first flow only at one half of the width of each modular unit of sun absorber - advancing from unit to unit, starting at the first unit in the line of the connected modular units of sun absorbers and ending at the last unit in this line, And upon reaching the last modular unit of sun absorber the HTL will be directed to flow back, at the opposite direction, at the other half of the width of each modular unit of sun absorber, By creating this kind of flow regime the average temperature of the HTL at any cross section of any modular unit of sun absorber can be assumed to be approximately the same throughout the entire length of the line of the connected modular units of sun absorbers, And since that the temperature of the above mentioned layer of air, at a particular cross section of a unit of a sun absorber, is most dependent on the average temperature of the HTL at this particular cross section it can be assumed that the averaged temperature of the above mentioned layer of air will also be approximately the same at any cross section throughout the entire length of the line of the connected modular units of sun absorbers, And, of course, this averaged temperature of the above mentioned layer of air will be much lower than the maximum working temperature of the HTL so that, all in all, by creating this kind of non-trivial flow regime the working temperature of the series of transparent plates can be lowered considerably without lowering the maximum working temperature of the HTL. In order to achieve the best results from this kind of flow regime the colder part of the HTL should flow at the higher half of each extruded unit, and the hotter part of the HTL should flow at the lower half of each extruded unit, And that is in order that the relatively hot air, that was heated by the top black surface of the lower half of the extruded unit [in which the hotter part of the HTL flows] will rise up and mix with the relatively colder air, air that was heated by the top black surface of the higher half of the extruded unit [in which the colder part of the HTL flows] in order to create a lower average temperature of this layer of air, as it was mentioned. As it all can be seen in the following figures:

Fig. 34
Fig. 34 This figure shows a top view of an extruded unit. The flow of the HTL inside this extruded unit is divided into two halves: The flow in the upper half [1] is to the right, as the arrow shows, and the flow in the lower half [2] is to the left, as the arrow shows. It can be seen that there is a designated connector before and after each half of the extruded unit: Designated connector [3] is before the upper half [1], and designated connector [4] is after it. Designated connector [6] is before the lower half [2], and designated connector [5] is after it. The arrows inside all the designated connectors show the direction of the flow of the HTL inside them. The colder HTL can flow at the upper half [1] of the extruded unit, and the hotter HTL can flow at the lower half [2]. It is to be mentioned that whenever there are more than one designated connectors at each side of the extruded unit then they all should be placed in such a way that the restraining element could be rigidly connected to all of them.

Fig. 35
Fig. 35 This figure shows a front cross section of the extruded unit that was described in Fig. 34. It can be seen that the flow inside the extruded unit is divided into two halves. In the upper half [1] the colder HTL flows, departing from the viewer, as the arrow shows. And the hotter HTL flows in the lower half [2], incoming towards the viewer, as the arrow shows.

Fig. 36

Fig. 36 This figure shows a top view of a line of connected modular units of sun absorbers [1], [2], [3] and [4]. The flow inside each modular unit is divided to two, as it was described in Fig. 34. The designated connectors of each half of the entire line of the modular units are connected in a line to form a single line of flow that starts at the starting edge of the upper half of the first modular unit [1] and ends at the ending edge of the lower half of the first modular unit [1]. The main inlet pipeline, the main outlet pipeline and the redirecting pipeline can be seen in this figure as well. At reality the different modular units are placed separated from each other and they are connected by designated pipelines [that will be described later on in this document] - but in this figure the different modular units are shown connected to each other, and the pipelines that connect the modular units are not shown in this figure for clarity reason. Now it will be shown in details why the average temperature of the HTL at any particular cross section along this line of connected modular units of sun absorbers can be considered to be approximately the same: Let`s assume that the temperature of the HTL rises at a constant rate along this line, a rate of DeltaT per a length of a modular unit hence: The temperature at the upper half of the first modular unit [1] at cross section A-A is Ti [T initial]. The temperature at the upper half of the second modular unit [2] at cross section B-B is Ti + 1DeltaT. The temperature at the upper half of the third modular unit [3] at cross section C-C is Ti + 2DeltaT. The temperature at the upper half of the fourth modular unit [4] at cross section D-D is Ti + 3DeltaT. The temperature at the lower half of the fourth modular unit [4] at cross section D-D is Ti +4DeltaT. The temperature at the lower half of the third modular unit [3] at cross section C-C is Ti +5DeltaT. The temperature at the lower half of the second modular unit [2] at cross section B-B is Ti +6DeltaT. The temperature at the lower half of the first modular unit [1] at cross section A-A is Ti +7DeltaT. Hence the average temperature at each one of the four cross sections A-A, B-B, C-C and D-D is approximately the same: Ti + 3.5DeltaT, And this holds true for any cross section along the line of the connected modular units of sun absorbers.

It is to be mentioned that the rate of the rising of the temperature of the HTL can change moderately along the line of the connected modular units of the sun absorber, And that is because that when the HTL has higher temperature it tends to lose more heat to the surrounding so that it will heat up slower, And when the HTL has lower temperature it tends to lose less heat to the surrounding - so that it will heat up faster, And this phenomenon, of course, affects the average temperature of the HTL along the line of the connected modular units of the sun absorber. Hence, in order to reach a more accurate average temperature along the line of the connected modular units of the sun absorber the proportion between the "hot section" [i.e. the section in which a relatively hot HTL flows] and the "cold section" [i.e. the section in which a relatively cold HTL flows] at each extruded unit can be changed, That is to say that when the difference in the temperature of the HTL between the "cold section" and the "hot section" at a single extruded unit are relatively small [as it happens around the end of the line of the connected modular units of the sun absorber, at Fig. 36 it is near the redirecting pipeline] then the surface areas of these two sections can remain essentially equal, But when the difference in the temperature of the HTL between the "cold section" and the "hot section" at a single extruded unit are relatively large [as it happens at the first unit of the line of the connected modular units of the sun absorber, at Fig. 36 it is at [1]] then the surface area of the "hot section" can be enlarged on the expense of the surface area of the "cold section" in order to reach an equal rate of the rising of the temperature of the HTL in both sections, so that a more even average temperature could be achieved along the line of the connected modular units of the sun absorber. It is to be mentioned that in another, more preferred embodiment, the flow inside each extruded unit can be divided to more than just one couple of sections where each couple is comprised, of course, from a "hot section" and a "cold section". The advantage of this kind of embodiment is in that that now the mixing of the relatively hot air with the relatively colder air is much more efficient resulting, of course, with a much more stable average temperature of the above mentioned layer of air. It is to be mentioned that, again, it is preferred that in each couple the "cold" section will be the upper one and that the "hot" section will be the lower one. As it can be seen in the following figure:

Fig. 37

Fig. 37 This figure shows an extruded unit that the flow inside it is divided to two couples of "hot" and "cold" sections: In section 1 the flow of the HTL is to the right, as the arrow shows and the couple of this section is section 2, in which the flow of the HTL is to the left, as the arrow shows. And In section 3 the flow of the HTL is to the right, as the arrow shows and the couple of this section is section 4, in which the flow of the HTL is to the left, as the arrow shows. Section 1 and 3 are the "cold" sections, and section 2 and 4 are the "hot" sections. It can also be seen in this figure that a designated connector is attached to each end of each section which results in a total of 8 designated connectors per one extruded unit that is divided to four sections.

Fig. 38
Fig. 38 This figure shows a front cross section of the extruded unit that was described in Fig. 37. It can be seen that the flow inside the extruded unit is divided into four sections. In section 1 the colder HTL flows, departing from the viewer, as the arrow shows - And the couple of this sections is section 2 in which the hotter HTL flows incoming towards the viewer, as the arrow shows. In section 3 the colder HTL flows, departing from the viewer, as the arrow shows - And the couple of this sections is section 4 in which the hotter HTL flows incoming towards the viewer, as the arrow shows.

In order to reduce the heat transfer from the "hot sections" into the "cold sections" of the extruded unit, the extruded unit itself can be physically divided into several separated subunits that are totally separated from each other by designated isolation elements, as it can be seen in the following figure.

Fig. 39

Fig. 39 This figure shows the same configuration of sections and flows that was shown in Fig. 37. Only that now any two adjacent sections are totally separated from each other by a strip of designated isolation element that is placed between them [the black strip that is between any two adjacent sections] - in order to reduce the heat transfer from the "hot" sections into the "cold" sections.

Fig. 40

Fig. 40 This figure shows the same configuration of sections and flows that was shown in Fig. 38. Only that now any two adjacent sections are totally separated from each other by a strip of designated isolation element that is placed between them [the black strip that is between any two adjacent sections] - in order to reduce the heat transfer from the "hot" sections into the "cold" sections.

Fig. 41

Fig. 41 This figure shows the components that were described in Fig. 40 - with the addition of the bottom transparent plate [8], its ordinary spacers [6], its peripheral spacers [7] and an air flow barrier [5]. The layer of isolation material that is placed beneath the extruded unit [9] can be seen as well. It is to be mentioned that in this kind of embodiment an air flow barrier can be installed between any two adjacent couples of "hot" and "cold" sections [i.e. between the couple of sections 1&2 and between the couple of sections 3&4 - that is to say, between section 2 and section 3] It is recommended to locate the ordinary spacers to be above [and to touch] the cold sections alone [as much as possible] in order to reduce the heat transfer from the hot sections of the extruded unit to the transparent plates. It is recommended to place the air flow barriers just above the isolation material that separate the sections of the extruded unit [if this isolation material exist] - in order to avoid, as much as possible, blocking the sun`s rays from reaching the extruded unit. This is the place, also, for recommending to locate the longitudinal surfaces of the wind-net element [marked as [2] at Fig. 20] to be just above the isolation material that separates the sections of the extruded unit [if this isolation material exist] - in order to avoid, as much as possible, blocking the sun`s rays from reaching the extruded unit.

Fig. 42
Fig. 42 This figure shows another advantage that exist in dividing the extruded unit to more than just one couple of "hot" and "cold" sections. As it can be seen in this figure, when the sun is very low so that its rays are close to be parallel to the ground, each unit of sun absorber shades the one that is behind it. But when the extruded unit [1] is divided to two couples[[2] and [3]], or even more, of "hot" and "cold" sections then the sun absorber can become partially active already when the line of shade [5] reaches the lower boundary of the upper couple. If, for instance, there are four couples of "hot" and "cold" sections in each extruded unit then the sun absorber can become: One quarter active when the line of shade reaches the lower boundary of the first [upper] couple, Half active when the line of shade reaches the lower boundary of the second couple, Three quarters active when the line of shade reaches the lower boundary of the third couple, And fully active when the line of shade reaches the lower boundary of the fourth [lowest] couple. And so forth. It is to be mentioned that the above mentioned advantage can be applied even to a trivial flow regime [i.e. a standard flow regime in which the flow of the HTL inside the extruded unit is one-directional only] that is to say that the flow inside the extruded unit can be divided into several lanes [by using, for example, an extruded unit that is comprised form several modular sub-units, as it was mentioned in section D.3.] where the flow of the HTL can be selectively activated to flow in the upper lanes while not activated to flow in the lower lanes.

7. The mechanism of rotation of each modular unit of the sun absorber In a similar way to the way that the mirrors of a thermo-solar sun-tower plant are placed on a heliostat4 - the modular units of the sun absorber of this invention can be placed on a designated device that is comprised mainly from two parts: Part 1: a rotating pole [or a rotating base] [marked as [1] in Fig. 43] that can rotate about its longitudinal axis in order to track the sun from east to west [the azimuth axis] - where the movement of this pole is performed by a designated electric actuator that is controlled by a designated computer software or by a designated sun-light detector, or both. Part 2: a supporting infrastructure [marked as [2] in Fig. 43] that carries the weight of the modular unit of the sun absorber [marked as [4] in Fig. 43]. This supporting infrastructure can rotate about a hinge [marked as [3] in Fig. 43] that is at its base in order to track the ascending and descending of the sun in the sky [the elevation axis] where the movement of this infrastructure is performed by a designated electric actuator [marked as [8] in Fig. 43] that is controlled by a designated computer software or by a designated sun-light detector, or both. The supporting infrastructure can be placed directly under the extruded unit of the modular unit of the sun absorber where in this case the isolation material is placed beneath this supporting infrastructure, Or that the supporting infrastructure can be placed under the layer of isolation material where in this case the layer of isolation material should carry the weight of the modular unit of the sun absorber, Or that the supporting infrastructure can be placed in between the layer of the isolating material. By the rotation of the modular unit of the sun absorber about these two axes the modular unit of the sun absorber can always be positioned to be exactly perpendicular to the sun`s rays, as mentioned at the beginning. It is to be mentioned that any kind of heliostat [or any kind of heliostat`s accessory] that was developed in order to be used in a sun-tower application can be used in this invention.

A heliostat is a designated device that can track the sun along the azimuth axis and along the elevation axis.

Fig. 43

Fig. 43 This figure shows the above mentioned rotating pole [1], its ball-bearings [6], the supporting infrastructure [2] of the modular unit of the sun absorber [4], the hinge [3] that about it the supporting infrastructure can rotate and the electric actuator [8] of this infrastructure. In order to make the rotation of the supporting infrastructure around the hinge [3] easier this hinge should go exactly through the center of gravity line of the modular unit of the sun absorber.

Fig. 44

Fig. 44 This figure shows that the upper edge of the rotating pole [2] can be curved [3] in order to allow more freedom of movement to the modular unit of the sun absorber [4].

8.

The pipelines of the HTL - their connections, placing and isolation

If the flow regime of the HTL inside the extruded unit is trivial [i.e. that the HTL flows in only one direction inside the extruded unit] then the configuration of the pipelines of the HTL can be trivial as well, That is to say that a single pipeline can connect the outlet opening of the designated connector that is placed after the first extruded unit to the inlet opening of the designated connector that is placed before the next coming extruded unit and so forth. But, if the flow regime of the HTL inside the extruded unit is a non-trivial flow regime [as it was shown in Fig. 34 and in Fig. 36, and so forth] then the configuration of the pipelines of the HTL should be in accordance with this non-trivial flow regime, That is to say that a single designated pipeline of HTL is needed to connect the outlet opening of the designated connector of each section of an extruded unit to the inlet opening of the designated connector of the of the corresponding section of the next coming extruded unit, For example, in Fig. 37 it can be seen that the extruded unit is divided to four sections hence 4 pipelines are needed in order to connect any two adjacent modular units: The first pipeline will connect the outlet of the designated connector that is placed after section 1 of the first extruded unit to the inlet of the designated connector that is placed before section 1 of the next coming extruded unit, The second pipeline will connect the inlet of the designated connector that is placed before section 2 of the first extruded unit to the outlet of the designated connector that is placed after section 2 of the next coming extruded unit, The third pipeline will connect the outlet of the designated connector that is placed after section 3 of the first extruded unit to the inlet of the designated connector that is placed before section 3 of the next coming extruded unit, The fourth pipeline will connect the inlet of the designated connector that is placed before section 4 of the first extruded unit to the outlet of the designated connector that is placed after section 4 of the next coming extruded unit, And so forth. The following figures show one possible configuration for the placing of all the pipelines.

Fig. 45 This figure shows a side view of one possible configuration for the placing of the pipelines of the HTL: A side view of the modular unit of the sun absorber [C] is shown. This modular unit is placed on a vertical pole [B] that is connected to the ground [A], as mentioned above. It can be seen that a pipeline [E] runs on the ground, climbs vertically on the pole and then runs beneath the modular unit until its end [H] reaches the first end of the modular unit [J] where then this pipeline`s end connects to either an inlet or an outlet opening of one of the designated connector that are at this end of the modular unit [J] It can also be seen that a second pipeline [F] originates [G] from the second end of this modular unit [I], where this second pipeline is connected to the second designated connector of the section that the first mentioned pipeline is connected to from its opposite side. The second pipeline then runs beneath the modular unit, and then along the pole until it reaches the ground and from there this pipeline continues to the next coming modular unit of the sun absorber. It is to be mentioned that in order to reduce heat losses from the pipelines to the atmosphere, the pipelines can run also inside the layer of isolation material that is placed under the extruded unit - so that this layer will isolate the pipelines from the surrounding.

Fig. 46

Fig. 46 This figure shows a front view of the above mentioned one possible configuration for the placing of the pipelines of the HTL [Fig. 45]: The first Pipeline [E] is shown running on the ground [A], climbing on the pole [B] and running beneath the modular unit, until its end [H] reaches the first end of the modular unit [C] as it was mentioned above. The second pipeline [F] can be seen from behind the pole and running on the ground. It is to be mentioned that in this kind of configuration the vertical part of the pipelines should be loose enough to allow the pole to rotate about its longitudinal axis, as mentioned above, without stretching the pipelines. It is to be mentioned, also, that the horizontal part of the pipelines that run beneath the modular unit should be flexible enough so that it could be twisted about its longitudinal axis whenever the modular unit will be rotated about the hinge of the supporting infrastructure [marked as [3] in Fig. 43]. It is to be mentioned that the pipelines can run inside the layer of isolation material and even tight to the extruded unit and not only beneath the modular unit. It is to be mentioned that the pipelines of the washing system and the pipelines of the drainage of the washing water can run in a similar way from one modular unit to the other - in order to reach the relevant edges of the modular units. It is to be mentioned that the pipeline that is shown in this figure can be a single pipeline or that it can be a part from a bundle of pipelines as it is described in the following text.

Fig. 47
Fig. 47 This figure shows one possible configuration for the isolation of the pipelines of the HTL. It can be seen that several different pipelines [B] can be grouped together to form a bundle of pipelines that run from one modular unit to the other. This bundle of pipelines can be inserted into a first flexible isolating pipe [1]. This first flexible isolating pipe can be overlapped by a second flexible isolating pipe [2] where this second flexible isolating pipe can have three or more designated spacers [2a] in it in order to separate the two isolating pipes and to keep them as concentric as possible. And in this way the second isolating pipe can be overlapped by a third flexible isolating pipe [3], that also can have spacers [3a], And a fourth flexible isolating pipe [4] that also can have spacers [4a] can overlap the third pipe. And so forth. It is to be mentioned that the free space between the overlapping pipes can be filled by any kind of isolating material preferably porous isolating material in order to further more increase the efficiency of the isolation. All the isolating pipes and their spacers should be flexible enough to allow the rotation of the modular unit, as mentioned above. It is to be mentioned that a single bundle can include both inlet pipelines and outlet pipelines or it can include pipelines from only one type.

E. Final remarks: 1. It is to be mentioned, in respect to all that has been said above, that all of the descriptions and/or specifications of all of the different mechanical and/or physical devices and/or apparatuses that are mentioned in this document are only examples of possible configurations - And they do not, by no means, limit the scope of this invention, as numerous different configurations of these devices and/or apparatuses, that can also perform the principles of this invention, are easily possible. 2. Each one of all of the mechanical elements that were mentioned in this document should be designed to be durable to all the hazards and\or loads and\or burdens that it might be affected by, so that each mechanical element could stay in use for a long period of time. A list of these hazards\loads\burdens can include, for example: Exposure to sun light, to water, to heat, to the air and so forth. Loads of weight, of liquid pressure, and so forth. Changes in dimensions due to changes in temperature and so forth. 3. Different appropriate designated electronic indicators can be placed in the system in order to monitor the state of the system these electronic indicators can be, for example, temperature indicators, liquid-pressure indicators, sun-light intensity indicators, sun-light direction indicators and so forth. 4. All of the functions of the system [such as, for example, the rotation of the modular units of the sun absorber about the two axes, the activation of pumps and valves, the flow of the HTL, the flow of the washing water and so forth] can be controlled manually or by a designated computer software where the readings of the above mentioned electronic indicators can be used in order to control the system, either manually or automatically by the computer software. 5. It is to be mentioned that all the mechanical elements of this invention should be connected and secured to their places in such a fashion that the system as a whole could function in a reliable and durable fashion for a long period of time. The connecting and the securing of all the mechanical elements to their places can be done by any known method, such as, for example, gluing, using bolts and knots, welding and so forth. Using designated mechanical connectors in order to secure the different mechanical elements to their places is possible as well. The different components and elements of the system [i.e. the extruded unit, the wind-net, the designated connectors, the layer of isolating material and so forth] can be connected and secured solely to the supporting infrastructure [marked as [2] in Fig. 43], or they can be connected and secured to each other or both.

The different components and elements of all the system can have a mechanical shape that will help placing and connecting the different components and elements to their places. 6. It is to be mentioned that all the dimensions of all the different mechanical elements of this invention should be such that: a. The manufacturing and assembling procedures of the system will be cheap and simple as possible. b. The system as a whole could function in an efficient, durable and reliable fashion for a long period of time.