An Experimental Study on the Performance of a Hybrid Photovoltaic/Thermal Solar System

Abstract

Considered as the widespread renewable energy, solar energy is used to produce the electricity and heat for carbon peaking and carbon neutralization. However, the photo-electric conversion efficiency will decrease with the increase of cells temperature. To solve this problem, a water-type hybrid photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) solar system has been designed and tested in Hong Kong. The outdoor experiment proceeded all days in 6 months with three different operating modes. The data of selected 33 days were used to analyze the performance of the system. The results showed that the thermal efficiencies were 33.6%, 52%, and 48.3% at zero reduced temperature, corresponding to three modes. Besides, the overall efficiencies were 43.2%, 60.9%, and 55.2% accordingly, which are higher than those of the conventional flat-plate solar collector. The average water temperature in the storage tank could reach 39.9°C, and the system could produce 0.07 kWh electric power after one-day operation, when the collector with 96 kg/m2 M/Ac installed vertically combining with external wall for each family. It is realizable to utilize the developed building integrated water-type photovoltaic/thermal (BIPVT) solar system for residential-intensive high-rise buildings in Hong Kong, satisfying the needs of hot water, and eventually reducing energy consumption of the buildings.