Abstract
In the field of solar power generation, concentrator systems, such as concentrator photovoltaics (CPV) or concentrated solar power (CSP), are subject of intensive research activity, due to high efficiencies in electrical power generation compared to conventional photovoltaics (PV) and low-cost energy storage on the thermal side. Even though the idea of combining the thermal and electrical part in one absorber is obvious, very few hybrid systems (i.e., concentrator photovoltaics-thermal systems (CPV-T)) are either described in literature or commercially available. This paper features the conversion of a commercial thermal parabolic trough collector to a CPV-T hybrid system using multi-junction PV cells. The design process is described in detail starting with the selection of suitable PV cells, elaborating optical and mechanical system requirements, heat sink design and final assembly. Feasibility is proven by practical tests involving maximum power point tracking as well as empirical determination of heat generation and measurement results are presented.
Highlights
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), “Solar PV showed record 40% growth in power generation in 2017 and is well on track to meet its Sustainable Development Scenario (SDS)target, which requires average annual growth of 17% from 2017 to 2030” [1]
The previous considerations were put into practice in order to validate the idea of the concentrator photovoltaics (CPV)-T retrofit hybrid system
To create a proof of concept of the designed hybrid absorber a 1 m long section of the thermal parabolic trough collector was used for the conversion
Summary
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), “Solar PV showed record 40% growth in power generation in 2017 and is well on track to meet its Sustainable Development Scenario (SDS)target, which requires average annual growth of 17% from 2017 to 2030” [1]. The constant growth and market potential in the photovoltaic (PV) sector are undeniable, but according to some studies, such as [2], the global potential of concentrated solar power (CSP) is even considerably larger than the present world electricity consumption. CSP refers to any technology using the sun’s direct normal irradiance (DNI) and focusing it on an absorber to generate heat for later conversion to electricity via a steam turbine, Stirling engine, or similar. While there may have been numerous early historic attempts to focus sunlight and use generated heat to evaporate water or start fires, the first well documented concentrated solar power plants (most of them parabolic trough) were designed in the late 1960s to early 1980s [3].
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