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

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

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.

Citation

Hu, M., Guo, C., Zhao, B., Ao, X., Suhendri, Cao, J., Wang, Q., Riffat, S., Su, Y., & Pei, G. (2021). A parametric study on the performance characteristics of an evacuated flat-plate photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) collector. Renewable Energy, 167, 884-898. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2020.12.008

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Dec 2, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Dec 4, 2020
• Publication Date: 2021-04
• Deposit Date: Dec 5, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 5, 2021
• Journal: Renewable Energy
• Print ISSN: 0960-1481
• Electronic ISSN: 1879-0682
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 167
• Pages: 884-898
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2020.12.008
• Keywords: Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/5115446
• Publisher URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0960148120319340