Hybrid photovoltaic–thermal system for simultaneous generation of power and hot water utilising mobiltherm as heat transfer fluid

Abstract

ABSTRACT The efficiency of photovoltaic (PV) cells, also called solar cells, is a function of temperature. It decreases at the rate of 0.5% K−1 above standard test conditions (STC) of 25°C. PV or solar cells have the capability of attaining a temperature of 50–60°C with insolation above STC. The objective of this research is to utilise the energy from the overheating of the panel to a more usable form being the heating of water. This research deals with developing a hybrid photovoltaic–thermal (PV–T) system for generating enhanced power due to the reduction in surface temperature along with hot water at 60°C. The existing systems suffer from various limitations of non-uniform cooling of panels and generation of hot water at a constant temperature. The limitations are addressed in this research. Mobiltherm served as the heat transfer medium in this research. The average electrical and thermal efficiencies of the hybrid PV–T system were observed to be 13.5% and 47.24%, respectively.