Comparative study of various solar power generation systems integrated with nanofluid-flat heat pipe

Abstract

In recent years, photovoltaic modules and solar thermoelectric generator units have been widely used as energy conversion setups in solar power generation systems. However, the output performance may vary depending on the combination forms. Furthermore, thermal management of such systems is critical to ensuring conversion efficiency and long-term stability. The flat heat pipe is a highly efficient passive cooling device with an excellent heat transfer coefficient across extended ranges and no parasitic energy consumption. A comparative analysis is performed in this work to investigate the various configurations (photovoltaic system, solar thermoelectric generator system, bifacial-photovoltaic-solar thermoelectric generator system, tandem-photovoltaic-solar thermoelectric generator system) that use flat heat pipe as a heat sink. The effects of various solar irradiance, ambient temperature, and condenser side temperature on total energy and exergy efficiency are investigated. The results demonstrate that the bifacial-photovoltaic-solar thermoelectric generator system outperforms the other systems in terms of electrical power output yet, the solar thermoelectric generator system has the largest improvement potential due to its low conversion efficiency. When the solar irradiance is 10000 W/m2, the ambient temperature is 298.15 K, and the condenser side temperature is 298.15 K, the power output for the bifacial-photovoltaic-solar thermoelectric generator system can reach up to 1.82 W, whereas the values for the photovoltaic system, solar thermoelectric generator system, and tandem-photovoltaic-solar thermoelectric generator system are 1.54 W, 0.31 W, and 1.45 W, respectively. Furthermore, the influence of utilizing a 5% volume concentration of Ag-nanofluid and pure water as the flat heat pipe working fluid is addressed. The obtained findings show the effectiveness of using nanofluid to improve energy and exergy performance.