Thermal and electrical analysis of the performance of a skeleton-shaped tubes via hybrid PVT cooling system

Abstract

The study investigates methods to mitigate the decrease in performance of solar panels caused by increased cell temperatures. Using commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis, two cooling methods for photovoltaic/thermal (PVT) modules are compared. Configuration 1 employs longitudinally connected tubes beneath the solar panels, while configuration 2 utilizes skeleton-shaped aluminum tubes inserted into the cells from below. Both configurations undergo cooling with air (case 1) and water (case 2) at a mass flow rate of 0.0025 kg/s. Results indicate that configuration 2, employing skeleton-shaped tube cooling, surpasses configuration 1 in both thermal and electrical efficiency. In case 1, configuration 2 achieves a notable improvement of approximately 24.3 % in thermal efficiency and a marginal increase of 0.16 % in electrical efficiency compared to configuration 1. In case 2, with water cooling, configuration 2 demonstrates a 7.27 % enhancement in thermal efficiency and a more substantial increase of 3.98 % in electrical efficiency over configuration 1. The hybrid PVT system utilizing skeleton-shaped tube cooling with water at a mass flow rate of 0.0025 kg/s proves highly effective in maintaining peak thermal and electrical efficiency.This work addresses the critical issue of solar panel performance decline due to increased cell temperatures, proposing innovative cooling methods and quantifying their effectiveness. The study’s novelty lies in the utilization of skeleton-shaped aluminum tubes for cooling, which outperforms traditional cooling configurations. These findings underscore the importance of advanced cooling techniques in optimizing PVT module performance, offering valuable insights for future research and practical applications in the renewable energy sector.