A parametric study on the performance characteristics of an evacuated flat-plate photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) collector

Mingke Hu, Chao Guo, Bin Zhao, Xianze Ao, Suhendri,, Jingyu Cao, Qiliang Wang, Saffa Riffat, Yuehong Su and Gang Pei

Renewable Energy, 2021, vol. 167, issue C, 884-898

Abstract: An evacuated flat-plate photovoltaic/thermal (E-PV/T) collector was proposed. The inner space of the E-PV/T collector is vacuumed to suppress non-radiative heat losses, thus increasing thermal efficiency of the collector. Therefore, the E-PV/T collector has the potential to simultaneously deliver electricity and heat at high temperatures. A mathematic model was developed to evaluate the performance of the E-PV/T collector. The effect of some key parameters (e.g., initial water temperature in the water tank, vacuum degree, long-wave panel emissivity, and temperature coefficient of solar cells) on the performance of the E-PV/T system was investigated and the results were compared with a normal flat-plate PV/T (N-PV/T) system. Results suggest that the vacuum helps to enhance the total efficiency by nearly 10% points in high-temperature conditions (>80 °C). The vacuum degree of the upper space exerts a greater effect on system efficiencies compared to that of the lower space. Lower long-wave panel emissivity and greater temperature coefficient of the solar cell promote the performance of the collector. By lowering the long-wave panel emissivity from 0.95 to 0.05, the total efficiency soars from 26.82% to 61.20%. This study may help to guide parametric optimization and operation strategy of flat-plate PV/T collectors for high-temperature applications.

Keywords: Solar energy; Evacuated flat-plate solar collector; Photovoltaic/thermal; PV/T; Parametric analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:renene:v:167:y:2021:i:c:p:884-898

DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2020.12.008

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