A numerical and experimental study of micro-channel heat pipe solar photovoltaics thermal system

Modjinou, Mawufemo; Ji, Jie; Li, Jing; Yuan, Weiqi; Zhou, Fan

Abstract

A novel micro-channel heat pipe array incorporated with crystalline silicon (c-Si) solar photovoltaic/thermal system (MHP-PV/T) was designed and constructed by the authors. The proposed design configuration combined c-Si solar cells and wide micro-channel heat pipes (MHP) that were filled with prescribed amount of acetone as refrigerant under a vacuum condition in the same insulated frame to simultaneously provide electrical and thermal energy. Heat and mass transfer characteristics of the MHP-PV/T were preliminary investigated using both numerical and experimental methods. The transient behavior and parametric heat transfer limitations of the heat pipe were also examined using MATLAB. A linear relation between the thermal instantaneous efficiency ηth and the reduced temperature parameter (Tout-Tin)GT-1 was established. The maximum instantaneous efficiency was found to be 54.0% with an electrical power output of 70 W. The results indicated that the daily thermal and electrical efficiencies were 50.7% and 7.6%, respectively. The transient behavior of the MHP shows a faster thermal response to heat input within the temperature range of 48.8–49.2 °C and slower response when the thermal diffusivity was reduced to 0.05 cm2/s. The results also reveal good agreements between model simulation and experimental measurement with sufficient confidence.

Citation

Modjinou, M., Ji, J., Li, J., Yuan, W., & Zhou, F. (2017). A numerical and experimental study of micro-channel heat pipe solar photovoltaics thermal system. Applied energy, 206, 708-722. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2017.08.221

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 27, 2017
• Online Publication Date: Sep 8, 2017
• Publication Date: Nov 15, 2017
• Deposit Date: Mar 24, 2022
• Journal: Applied Energy
• Print ISSN: 0306-2619
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 206
• Pages: 708-722
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2017.08.221
• Keywords: Micro-channel heat pipe; c-Si; Solar; Photovoltaic; Thermal
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/3602594