A \"solar cooker\" consists of a curved reflecting mirror that focuses sunlight

Question

A "solar cooker" consists of a curved reflecting mirror that focuses sunlight onto the object to be heated (see the figure below). The solar power per unit area reaching the Earth at the location of a 0.50-m-diameter solar cooker is 600 W/m2.  Assuming 50% of the incident energy is converted to thermal energy, how long would it take to boil away 2.0 L of water initially at 34

A "solar cooker" consists of a curved reflecting mirror that focuses sunlight onto the object to be heated (see the figure below). The solar power per unit area reaching the Earth at the location of a 0.50-m-diameter solar cooker is 600 W/m2. Assuming 50% of the incident energy is converted to thermal energy, how long would it take to boil away 2.0 L of water initially at 34degreeC? (Neglect the specific heat of the container.)

Explanation / Answer

The power incident on the cooker=600*pi*0.25^2=117.81W

Power converted to thermal energy=0.5P=58.90W

Heat required to boil 2L water at 34C=mc(T2-T1)+mL=2*4186*(100-34) +2*2260*10^3=5.073*10^6J

Time=Energy/power=86114s=1435min

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