Further progress in the research of fin‐based passive cooling technique for the free‐standing silicon photovoltaic panels

Abstract

Summary The paper deals with a passive air‐based cooling technique of photovoltaic (PV) panels in operating conditions. Cooling technique is done by specific type of using aluminium fins, and its main purpose is to increase the electrical efficiency of the PV panel. An increase in electrical efficiency can be achieved because of temperature degradation effect, where the PV panel yields less power at higher operating temperatures (the PV panel's efficiency can drop by up to 0.5%/°C). To confirm a cooling technique, a medium‐sized PV system was used in a 2‐month experiment. The experiment was done in realistic operating conditions, and all working parameters were thoroughly measured. After the analysis of the data, no significant raise in electrical efficiency was recorded throughout the experiment. A numerical approach was conducted, based on gained experimental data. Developed numerical model gave explanations of experimental results and provided an insight in heat flow through the PV cell. Later on, developed numerical model was used to propose new cooling variations of the fin‐based technique and to further examine the overall potential of air based passive cooling techniques. It was shown that cooling effect by up to 5°C is a realistic expectation for this technique in described operating conditions.

Numerical and Experimental Investigation of Air Cooling for Photovoltaic Panels Using Aluminum Heat Sinks

“…Research by Grubišić-Čabo [26,27] showed a similar trend of increasing efficiency with aluminum fins mounted on the backside of a PV panel (Si-poly, 50 Wp). Semiconductor properties in solar cells are similar to temperature-sensitive electronic devices.…”

“…Research by Luo et al [25] used an experimental method to demonstrate several heat sinks with flared fin configurations and obtained an overall reduction in thermal resistance of up to 10%. Research by Grubišić-Čabo et al [26,27] examined the aluminum fins mounted on the backside of a PV panel (Si-poly, 50 Wp). The results showed that, under low wind conditions, the electrical efficiency of solar cells increases by 0.3% and 0.2% under solar irradiation of 850 W/m 2 and 500 W/m 2 , respectively.…”

Internet of Things (IoT): Opportunities, issues and challenges towards a smart and sustainable future

“…The focus of the research is to investigate the techno-economic viability of different energy concepts in order to secure a suitable mix of energy technologies that would support an efficient energy transition. An improvement in the energy efficiency of different renewable energy technologies is also important, especially in the case of photovoltaics ( Grubišić-Čabo et al., 2019 ) and wind generation technologies ( Marinić-Kragić et al., 2020 ), to secure large scale projects. The efficiency of specific production processes ( Giama et al., 2020 ), is also vital and certainly needs to be carefully investigated and analysed, to reduce energy intensity and provide a circular economy concept in specific application areas, ( Xu et al., 2020 ).…”

Thermocells for Hybrid Photovoltaic/Thermal Systems

“…Several potential solutions that address the need for solar cell thermal management have been proposed [15][16][17][18][19]. These solutions involve the integration of PV cells with thermal management modules, the combination of which is known as photovoltaic thermal (PVT) systems.…”

“…These systems use air cooling or water cooling to cool the solar cells and increase their electrical output. For example, a water spray application over PV panel surfaces [17] and a fin-based passive cooling technique [18] were investigated as practical demonstrations for solar cell cooling. Furthermore, the advantages of integrated PVT systems over conventional solar energy plants that consist of both PV modules and solar collectors were also investigated in depth not only from a thermodynamic energy perspective [19] but also an economic perspective with regards to the installation and operation of these systems.…”