Abstract
This paper presents a numerical model regarding the passive cooling of PV panels through perforated and non-perforated heat sinks. A typical PV panel was studied in a fixed position, tilted at 45 degrees from the horizontal with the wind direction towards its backside. A challenging approach was used in order to calibrate the base case of the numerical model according to the NOCT conditions. Further validation of the accuracy of the numerical simulation consisted of a comparison between the results obtained for the base case, or heat sink, with horizontal non-perforated fins and the experiments presented in the literature. Six types of heat sink attached to the backside of the PV panel were numerically studied. The analyzed configurations focused on heat sinks with both perforated and non-perforated fins that were distributed horizontally and vertically. The CFD simulation was also conducted by modeling the air volume around the PV panel in real wind conditions. The main output parameters were the average temperature and the convective heat transfer coefficient on the front and back of the PV panel. The most important effect of cooling was achieved in low wind conditions and high levels of solar radiation. For vair = 1 m/s, G = 1000 W/m2 and ambient temperature tair = 35 °C, the percentage of maximum power production achieved 83.33% for the base case, while in the best cooling scenario it reached 88.74%, assuring a rise in the power production of 6.49%.
Highlights
The current global energy context is characterized by the energy consumption of humanity, which has reached impressive values in recent years
The goal of this work was to develop a numerical model regarding the passive cooling of the PV panels, through perforated and non-perforated heat sinks, and determine the enhancement of operating temperatures compared to the base case
The results of the simulations consisted depending of the photovoltaic panel temperature spectra of the operating temperatures of the panels and velocity path lines on the convective heat transfer coefficient variation, depending on the type of the heat sink
Summary
The current global energy context is characterized by the energy consumption of humanity, which has reached impressive values in recent years. In the current year (2021) the well-known Overshoot Day was “celebrated” on 29 July. This meant that humanity had already used up all of the restorable resources of 2021. From 30 July we started consuming more resources than the planet could regenerate in a year [1]. By the end of the year 2021, the energy consumption is projected to reach about 1.73×. It is a global emergency and every small step in reducing this tendency to over consume energy will become decisive in this fight
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