Experimental performance evaluation of a photovoltaic thermal (PV/T) air collector and its optimization

Abstract

The aim of the present study is the simultaneous optimization of thermal and electrical efficiencies of a solar photovoltaic thermal (PV/T) air collector. The analytical expressions for thermal parameters and thermal efficiency are derived by developing energy balance equation for each component of PV/T air collector. In order to calculate the electrical parameters and electrical efficiency of PV/T air collector the five-parameter current-voltage (I-V) model and a set of translation equations are used. An experimental setup for a typical PV/T air collector is built to measure its thermal and electrical parameters. The experimental validation of the used thermal and electrical models has been carried out by the measured data. It is observed that there is a good agreement between simulated and experimental results. Finally, the simultaneous optimization of the PV/T air collector has been carried out to maximize thermal and electrical efficiencies, simultaneously. Furthermore, the optimized ranges of inlet air velocity, duct depth and the objective functions in optimal Pareto front have been obtained. © 2012 Journal of Mechanical Engineering.