Abstract
The electrical power output of photovoltaic (PV) cell depends on its operating temperature during its absorption of solar radiation and conversion of solar energy to electrical energy. The increase in PV panel temperature due to overheating negates its electrical yield and efficiency. In addition, overheating causes hot spots, failure of adhesive seals and delamination. An effective way to combat this problem is to reduce the operating temperature of PV panel by cooling. In the present work, a novel thermal management technique for improved cooling of flat PV panel is proposed with the use of serrated fins rather than straight fins. For this reason, the thermal and electrical performance of the flat PV panel with cooling system consisting of duct, brushless DC cooling fan, a plate fin and serrated fins of varying angles (30o, 45o and 60o) made up of aluminium were investigated experimentally. Experiments were conducted at constant wind velocity (1 m/s) with the developed technique in the location of Tiruchirappalli (78.6 E to 10.8 N), Tamil Nadu, India with flat 10 W PV panel. By using serrated fins of varying angles of 30o, 45o, 60o and plate fin (90°), the temperature of the PV panel decreased by a maximum of 4oC, 7oC, 6oC and 3oC respectively. Similarly the PV power increased in the range of 15.38%, 61.53%, 41.53% and 7.69% for 30o, 45o, 60o and plate fin (90°) respectively. It is concluded that 45o angled serrated fin is more efficient in providing the cooling effect than the other angles of serrated fins considered.
Highlights
Thermal management is a technique by which the operating temperature of any system is controlled
Thermal management of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels or modules is often suggested to maintain the operating temperature of PV. This is because the actual operating temperature of the PV is expected to be more under real time outdoor environmental conditions than the normal operating cell temperature (NOCT) which is usually provided by the PV manufacturer under controlled environment
It is clear that the temperature of the PV panel without cooling (TWC) remained high when compared to the other cases of operation
Summary
Thermal management is a technique by which the operating temperature of any system is controlled. Thermal management of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels or modules is often suggested to maintain the operating temperature of PV. Tonui and Tripanagnostopoulos [4] studied photovoltaic thermal PVT air collector with a air duct attached behind the PV module with a flat thin metal sheet (TMS) placed in the middle of the air channel and fins attached to the opposite wall of the duct They found that attaching fins removed substantial heat from the PV surface. Pump Pump Fan/blower Pump Pump Fan aluminum plate that comes in thermal contact with the rear side of a PV module and exposed to the ambient air They reported a 10°C drop in PV operating temperature due to the introduction of fin which corresponded to a 5% increase in electricity production. The performance of PV panel with aluminum serrated fins of varying angles of 30 ̊, 45 ̊ and 60 ̊ were investigated and compared with those of plate fin (parallel positioned to the duct & 90° to panel surface) and without fin arrangements
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