A Comparative Experimental Study on the Thermal and Electrical Performance of Closed and Semi-Closed Photovoltaic Thermal Air Collectors

42 Pages Posted: 19 Dec 2023

See all articles by Yaowen Chen

Yaowen Chen

Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology - State Key Laboratory of Green Building in Western China

Qiong Duan

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Yanfeng Liu

Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology

Dengjia Wang

Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology

Zhaoben Zhuang

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Lei Qu

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Daifeng Dang

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Abstract

AbstractsTwo types of solar photovoltaic thermal air collector (PAC) modules are proposed in this paper. The two modules can be combined and spliced into different sizes to satisfy the energy needs of the users and fit the size of the site roof, providing both electrical and thermal energy to the building. The employed collectors were designed with two typical configurations of air flow passages: one on both sides of the photovoltaic cell (closed structure) and the other below the photovoltaic cell (semi-closed structure). An experimental platform for collector performance testing was constructed to investigate the thermal and electrical performance of the PAC modules in the heating mode and non-heating mode. The results show that the thermoelectric comprehensive efficiency of the closed and semi-closed structures increased by 11.6%·m-1·s and 19.4%·m-1·s, respectively, with the increase in the inlet air flow rate. Additionally, with the increase in the inlet air temperature, the thermoelectric comprehensive efficiency of the closed and semi-closed structures decreased by 0.83%·°C-1 and 1.9%·°C-1, respectively. Under the experimental conditions, the thermoelectric comprehensive efficiency of the semi-closed PAC reached a maximum of 97.4%. The modular PAC has potential applications for farmers and herders in cold, remote regions.

Keywords: solar energy, photovoltaic air collectors, thermal and electrical performance, efficiency, experimental study

Suggested Citation

Chen, Yaowen and Duan, Qiong and Liu, Yanfeng and Wang, Dengjia and Zhuang, Zhaoben and Qu, Lei and Dang, Daifeng, A Comparative Experimental Study on the Thermal and Electrical Performance of Closed and Semi-Closed Photovoltaic Thermal Air Collectors. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4668711 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4668711

Yaowen Chen (Contact Author)

Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology - State Key Laboratory of Green Building in Western China ( email )

China

Qiong Duan

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Yanfeng Liu

Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology ( email )

China

Dengjia Wang

Xi’an University of Architecture and Technology ( email )

China

Zhaoben Zhuang

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Lei Qu

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Daifeng Dang

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

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