Abstract
High energy demand is leading to the replacement of fossil energy with renewable sources such as solar energy. Solar cells are devices used to generate solar energy. However, when exposed to sunlight with high intensity, a solar cell can suffer a decrease in performance due to overheating. This issue can be addressing by adding a cooling system. This study used a passive cooling system by adding a heat sink with fins to the body panel of the solar cell. The advantage of the passive cooling system is that it does not require additional energy. The number of fins and types of material were varied to obtain the best passive cooling system. The number of fins used was 5, 10, and 15, and the materials used were aluminum and copper. The wind speed vector and the temperature distribution were investigated through simulation. The results showed an increase in the number of fins provided better cooling capacity and increased the photovoltaic performance. The best cooling capability and performance were obtained using 15 fins with a copper base and fin heat sink materials. The decrease in temperature and the increase in efficiency were 10.2 °C and 2.74%, respectively. Therefore, the use of passive cooling system based on heat sinks with fins could provide a potential solution to increase performance and prevent overheating of photovoltaic (PV) panel systems.
Highlights
Energy demand continues to increase in line with the rise in human activity
The efficiency of silicon solar cells is around 14–20% [4,5]
Second-generation solar cells are made of several semi-conductors such as Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) and Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS)
Summary
Energy demand continues to increase in line with the rise in human activity. Most energy is dependent on fossil energy in the form of coal, oil, and natural gas, which will eventually be depleted if continuously used [1]. Some of the passive cooling methods commonly used include adding heat sinks, adding a phase change material (PCM), and cooling solar cells with a floating system on water [10]. Previous studies have not determined the effect of adding perforated fins and the use of alloy materials on heat sinks in passive cooling systems. The current research was conducted to obtain parameters for the addition of perforated fins and the use of several types of heat sink materials to achieve optimal performance for passive cooling systems. The increase in the number of perforated fins and the use of several types of materials in the heat sink are expected to increase the cooling system capability and to increase the performance of photovoltaic cells as a result of the improved heat transfer rate
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