Spectral-splitting hybrid PV-thermal (PV-T) solar collectors employing semi-transparent solar cells as optical filters

Abstract

Spectral splitting is a promising design methodology that can significantly improve the performance of hybrid photovoltaic-thermal (PV-T) collectors. However, conventional spectral-splitting PVT (SSPVT) collectors require additional optical components, which significantly increases the complexity and cost of the collector. This study proposes SSPVT collector designs that employ semi-transparent photovoltaic (PV) solar cells, which act as both the electricity generator as well as the spectral-splitting optical filter. In these designs, a part of the solar spectrum is absorbed by the semi-transparent solar cells for electricity generation, while the rest (especially the near-infrared region of the solar spectrum) is transmitted to an absorber where it generates a high-temperature thermal energy output. Three types of emerging semi-transparent solar cells, i.e., cadmium telluride (CdTe), perovskite solar cells (PVSCs) and polymer solar cells (PSCs), are selected for investigation in this context. A comprehensive two-dimensional model of such SSPVT collectors is developed and used to investigate their electrical and thermal performance. The results show that the proposed designs are effective at thermally decoupling the PV cells from the solar thermal absorber, thereby promoting a higher electrical efficiency and enabling the simultaneous generation of low-temperature thermal energy (<60 °C), along with high-temperature thermal energy (100–200 °C) under one sun. For example, a PVSC-based SSPVT collector is shown to be capable of simultaneously generating: electricity with an efficiency of 13.8%, high-temperature heat (150 °C) with a thermal efficiency of 21.1%, and low-temperature heat (50 °C) with a thermal efficiency of 22.5%. The relative performance between the CdTe-, PVSC- and PSC-based collectors depend on the relative value of the high-temperature thermal energy to that of electricity. It is concluded that semi-transparent solar cells are of great promise in this application, and can give rise to next-generation, high-performance solar collectors.