Modelling and simulation of a photovoltaic module using finite element method: transient analysis

Abstract

Modelling and simulation play a very important role in developing photovoltaic (PV) devices and designing PV systems. The aim of this study is to develop a transient 2-D finite element (FE) thermal model to simulate the thermal performance of PV modules. The developed model is validated using experimental data obtained from a PV module and results of previous studies. To evaluate the performance of the proposed model, various tests were conducted under different environmental and operating conditions. The obtained results indicate that the model presented in this work can achieve good precision compared to the experimental data and provides a good energy performance assessment regarding the studied configuration. The temperature distribution curves showed that the solar cell layer possessed the highest temperature. Also, the findings demonstrate that when the tedlar back sheet thickness increased, the thermal resistance increased, and when the tedlar thickness decreased, the module temperature rose linearly. Thin tedlar back sheet layer is helpful to reduce the module temperature and enhance output power. The proposed model in this work is generic and can be applied to any type of PV technology or configuration. Highlights A transient 2-D finite element (FE) based thermal model that accurately estimates the thermal performance of the PV module. A detailed theoretical model based on the finite element method predict the behaviour of the PV module. Temperature distribution of the solar cell layer and the highest module temperature was investigated to analyse thermal performance of the module.