Abstract
In this paper, a low-concentration photovoltaic/thermal (LCPV/T) coupled with air-source heat pump (AHP) system is proposed which fully utilizes the heat generated by LCPV/T and improves the performance of the AHP. The system is built and investigated in the Transient System Simulation Program (TRNSYS) and an experimental room model is established to verify the feasibility of the system. The performance of the system is researched from the perspective of energy and exergy, and the system performance with LCPV/T and without LCPV/T is compared. Finally, the influence of the variation of key parameters of the system is studied. The results indicated that on the coldest day, the electrical efficiency of LCPV/T reached 10% which was equal to the electrical exergy efficiency. The maximum thermal efficiency was 31.88% while thermal exergy efficiency was 2.7%. The maximum coefficient of performance (COP) of AHP was 3.3, and the thermal exergy efficiency was 47%. The indoor temperature was maintained at about 20 °C in the heating season. When LCPV/T was adopted, the COP and thermal exergy efficiency of the AHP was generally higher than those without LCPV/T. In conclusion, the utilization of LCPV/T has a positive impact on the performance of the AHP.
Highlights
With the fast development of technology, the energy demand of society is increasing greatly
The contributions of this work include: (1) the novel low-concentration photovoltaic/thermal (LCPV/T)-airsource heat pump (AHP) system is proposed for realizing comprehensive utilization of solar energy and improving the performance of an air-source heat pump during the heating season
The cooling effect for a PV cell can be improved by raising the air flow rate which was more conducive to the operation of LCPV/T, instead, low air temperature had an adverse impact on the performance of the AHP
Summary
With the fast development of technology, the energy demand of society is increasing greatly. In order to improve the performance of air source heat pumps in a cold region, many researchers have designed the framework of the heat pump. Solar energy technology and an air source heat pump coupling system are widely researched. The above measures and arrangements have effectively improved the performance of the air source heat pump in cold regions. A low-concentration photovoltaic/thermal (LCPV/T) coupled with an air source heat pump system (AHP) is investigated. The contributions of this work include: (1) the novel LCPV/T-AHP system is proposed for realizing comprehensive utilization of solar energy and improving the performance of an air-source heat pump during the heating season. This study provides a new idea for the coupling and application of PV/T technology and an air-source heat pump in building heating
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