Evaluation of Efficiency Enhancement in Photovoltaic Panels via Integrated Thermoelectric Cooling and Power Generation

Muhammad Faheem, Muhammad Abu Bakr (), Muntazir Ali, Muhammad Awais Majeed, Zunaib Maqsood Haider and Muhammad Omer Khan ()
Additional contact information
Muhammad Faheem: Department of Electrical Engineering, National University of Technology, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Muhammad Abu Bakr: Department of Electrical Engineering, National University of Technology, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Muntazir Ali: Department of Electrical Engineering, National University of Technology, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Muhammad Awais Majeed: Department of Electrical Engineering, National University of Technology, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
Zunaib Maqsood Haider: Department of Electrical Engineering, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100, Pakistan
Muhammad Omer Khan: Department of Electrical Engineering & Technology, Riphah International University, Faisalabad 38000, Pakistan

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 11, 1-21

Abstract: Among renewable resources, solar energy is abundant and cost effective. However, the efficiency and performance of photovoltaic panels (PVs) are adversely affected by the rise in the surface temperature of solar cells. This paper analyzes the idea of utilizing thermoelectric modules (TEMs) to enhance the efficiency and performance of PV panels. The proposed hybrid solar thermoelectric generation (HSTEG) system employs TEMs as thermoelectric coolers (TECs) to enhance panel efficiency and as thermoelectric generators (TEGs) to convert excess heat into additional electricity. This study includes an extensive evaluation of the proposed idea using MATLAB Simulink and experimental validation in indoor as well as outdoor environments. The use of TECs for the active cooling of the PV system leads to an increase in its efficiency by 9.54%. Similarly, the passive cooling by TECs along with the additional power generated by the TEGs from the excessive heat led to an increase in the efficiency of the PV system of 15.50%. The results demonstrate the HSTEG system’s potential to significantly improve PV panel efficiency and energy generation, offering a promising avenue for advancing solar energy technology.

Keywords: renewable energy; solar energy; efficiency enhancement; active cooling; thermoelectric modules (TEMS); thermoelectric coolers (TECS); thermoelectric generators (TEGS) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/11/2590/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/11/2590/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:17:y:2024:i:11:p:2590-:d:1403166

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().