Analysis and Fabrication of an Active Cooling System for Reducing Photovoltaic Module Temperature

Authors

  • A. Q. Jakhrani Department of Energy and Environment Engineering, Quaid-e-Awam University of Engineering, Science and Technology, Nawabshah, Pakistan
  • A. R. Jatoi Department of Energy and Environment Engineering, Quaid-e-Awam University of Engineering, Science and Technology, Nawabshah, Pakistan
  • S. H. Jakhrani Department of Civil Engineering, COMSATS Institute of Information Technology, Sahiwal, Punjab, Pakistan
Volume: 7 | Issue: 5 | Pages: 1980-1986 | October 2017 | https://doi.org/10.48084/etasr.1185

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to fabricate and analyze an active cooling system for reducing photovoltaic (PV) module temperature and increasing its efficiency. An active cooling system was devised to cool the PV module. Two modules of same specifications were used for this study. One module was cooled, and other was left un-cooled for performance comparison. Solar radiations, wind speed, ambient temperature and temperatures at different points of the fabricated system were measured. The modules were mounted on a frame facing true south at the inclination of the latitude of the location. The measurements were taken during daytime with one hour intervals for two weeks. The temperatures at various points on cooled and un-cooled photovoltaic modules were noted using two different flow rates with 1 lit/min and 2 lit/min. It was discovered that the efficiency of PV module was enhanced from 6% to 7% during study period. The flow rate of 1lit/min was found more feasible for heat extraction as compared to the flow rate of 2lit/min. The wind speed was found to be more helpful for heat extraction from the modules as compared to other climatic parameters.

Keywords:

active cooling system, photovoltaic module, module temperature

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

S. Rao, B. B. Parulekar, Energy Technology - Non Conventional, Renewable and Conventional, Third Revised and Updated Edition, Khanna Publishers, 2007

A. Q. Jakhrani, A. K. Othman, A. R. H. Rigit, S. R. Samo, S. A. Kamboh, “A novel analytical model for optimal sizing of standalone photovoltaic systems”, Energy, Vol. 46, No. 1, pp. 675-682, 2012 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2012.05.020

S. A. Kalogirou, Solar energy engineering, Processes and systems Academic Press, 2013

B. Mondoc, F. Pop, “Factors Influencing the Performance of a Photovoltaic Power Plant”, 3rd International Conference on Modern Power System, Romania, 2010

E. Gordo, N. Khalaf, T. Strangeowl, R. Dolino, N. Bennett, Factors Affecting Solar Power Production Efficiency, Supercomputing Challenge, Miyamura High School, 2015

International Electrotechnical Commission. Photovoltaic system performance monitoring-guidelines for measurement, data exchange and analysis, International Standard IEC 61724, 1998

C. U. Ike, The effect of temperature on the performance of a photovoltaic solar system in Eastern Nigeria”, Research Inventy: International Journal Of Engineering And Science, Vol. 3, No. 12, pp. 10-14, 2013

E. Cuce, T. Bali, S. A. Sekucoglu, “Effects of passive cooling on performance of silicon photovoltaic cells”, International Journal of Low-Carbon Technologies, Vol. 6, No. 4, pp. 299-308, 2011 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ijlct/ctr018

R. Mazon-Hernasndez, J. R. García-Cascales, F. Vera-García, A. S. Kaiser, B. Zamora, “Improving the electrical parameters of a photovoltaic panel by means of an induced or forced air stream”, International Journal of Photoenergy, Article ID 830968, 2013 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1155/2013/830968

A. Hassan, Phase Change Materials for Thermal Regulation of Building Integrated Photovoltaics,PhD Thesis, Dublin Institute of Technology, 2010

L. Micheli, E. F. Fernandez, F. Almonacid, T. K. Mallick, G. P. Smestad, “Performance, limits and economic perspectives for passive cooling of High Concentrator Photovoltaics”, Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells, Vol. 153, pp. 164-178, 2016 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solmat.2016.04.016

C. G. Popovici, S. V. Hudisteanu, T. D. Mateescu, N. C. Chereches, “Efficiency Improvement of Photovoltaic Panels by Using Air Cooled Heat Sinks”, Energy Procedia, Vol. 85, pp. 425-432, 2016 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2015.12.223

M. S. Chandrasekar, S. Suresh, T. Senthilkumar, M. G. Karthikeyan “Passive cooling of standalone flat PV module with cotton wick structures”, Energy Conversion and Management, Vol. 71, pp. 43-50, 2013 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2013.03.012

H. G. Teo, P. S. Lee, M. Hawlader. “An active cooling system for photovoltaic modules” Applied Energy, Vol. 90, No. 1, pp. 309-315, 2012 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2011.01.017

R. Hosseini, H. Naghmeh, H. Khorasanizadeh, “An experimental study of combining a photovoltaic system with a heating system”, World Renewable Energy Congress, Linkoping, Sweden, 2011 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3384/ecp110572993

B. Du, E. Hu, M. Kolhe, “Performance analysis of water cooled concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) system”, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol. 16, No. 9, pp. 6732-6736, 2012 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2012.09.007

H. Bahaidarah, A. Subhan, P. Gandhidasan, S. Rehman, “Performance evaluation of a PV (Photovoltaic) module by back surface water cooling for hot climatic conditions” Energy, Vol. 59, pp. 445-453, 2013 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2013.07.050

K. A. Moharram, M. S. Abd-Elhady, H. A. Kandil, H. El-Sherif, “Enhancing the performance of photovoltaic panels by water cooling”, Ain Shams Engineering Journal, Vol. 4, No. 4, pp. 869-877, 2013 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asej.2013.03.005

Downloads

How to Cite

[1]
Jakhrani, A.Q., Jatoi, A.R. and Jakhrani, S.H. 2017. Analysis and Fabrication of an Active Cooling System for Reducing Photovoltaic Module Temperature. Engineering, Technology & Applied Science Research. 7, 5 (Oct. 2017), 1980–1986. DOI:https://doi.org/10.48084/etasr.1185.

Metrics

Abstract Views: 1300
PDF Downloads: 681

Metrics Information

Most read articles by the same author(s)