Evaluation of thermal interface materials in mediating PV cell temperature mismatch in PV–TEG power generation

Kidegho, Gideon; Njoka, Francis; Muriithi, Christopher Maina; Kinyua, Robert

doi:10.1016/j.egyr.2021.03.015

Cited by 33 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…The workings of a PV cell with p and n junctions are shown in Figure 1 [9]. Among all renewable energy technologies, the contribution of PV power generation has increased to 2.58% of the global power generation in the year 2018 [16]. PV systems are categorized into three generations: (a) first generation PV systems include mono-and polycrystalline silicon cells, which are fully commercialized and based on silicon technology; (b) second generation PV systems include cadmium telluride and indium copper selenide, amorphous silicon, indium, and gallium diselenide; and (c) third generation PV systems comprise of organic PV cells, which are in the developing stage [17].…”

Section: Background 21 Photovoltaicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Review on Performance Enhancement of Photovoltaic/Thermal–Thermoelectric Generator Systems with Nanofluid Cooling

et al. 2021

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Photovoltaics (PVs) are an effective technology to harvest the solar energy and satisfy the increasing global electricity demand. The effectiveness and life span of PVs could be enhanced by enabling effective thermal management. The conversion efficiency and surface temperature of PVs have an inverse relationship, and hence the cooling of PVs as an emerging body of work needs to have attention paid to it. The integration of a thermoelectric generator (TEG) to PVs is one of the widely applied thermal management techniques to improve the performance of PVs as well as combined systems. The TEG utilizes the waste heat of PVs and generate the additional electric power output. The nanofluid enables superior thermal properties compared to that of conventional cooling fluids, and therefore the performance of photovoltaic/thermal–thermoelectric generator (PV/T-TEG) systems with nanofluid cooling is further enhanced compared to that of conventional cooling. The TEG enables a symmetrical temperature difference with a hot side due to the heat from PVs, and a cold side due to the nanofluid cooling. Therefore, the symmetrical thermal management system, by integrating the PV/T, TEG, and nanofluid cooling, has been widely adopted in recent times. The present review comprehensively summarizes various experimental, numerical, and theoretical research works conducted on PV/T-TEG systems with nanofluid cooling. The research studies on PV/T-TEG systems with nanofluid cooling were reviewed, focusing on the time span of 2015–2021. This review elaborates the various approaches and advancement in techniques adopted to enhance the performance of PV/T-TEG systems with nanofluid cooling. The application of TEG with nanofluid cooling in the thermal management of PVs is an emerging research area; therefore, this comprehensive review can be considered as a reference for future development and innovations.

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Section: Background 21 Photovoltaicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Kidegho et al [16] eliminated thermal coupling challenges using thermal interface materials, which improved the overall power output of the PV/T-TEG system. Zhang et al [84] proposed a PV/T-TEG system comprising of a thermal collector with a hot water…”

Section: Research Studies On Photovoltaic Thermoelectric Generator Sy...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Review on Performance Enhancement of Photovoltaic/Thermal–Thermoelectric Generator Systems with Nanofluid Cooling

et al. 2021

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“…Researchers argue that PV power generation will reach up to 30-50% of total global energy production by 2050. The parameters that affect the efficiency of PV technology, which is ever increasingly contributing to the total energy production, is an important matter that needs to be focused on and improved [5,6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of module operating temperature on module efficiency in photovoltaic modules and recovery of photovoltaic module heat by thermoelectric effect

KAYABAŞI1

Kaya

2023

Journal of Thermal Engineering

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One of the parameters affecting the efficiency of photovoltaic (PV) modules and PV systems is the temperature. The factors that increase the temperature in PV modules cause loss of efficiency. In this study, experiments have been conducted with the aim of re ducing the module temperature. For this purpose, four polycrystalline and four monocrystalline PV modules, all with the same features, were used. A pair of polycrystalline and monocrystalline modules were used as reference modules. The aim of this study is to reduce the operating temperature of the modules, while also decreasing the transient temperature fluctuations in the system, in order to prevent the loss of efficiency. For this reason, current, voltage and power values of PV modules have been examined and the relationship between these values and module temperature has been explained. As a result, temperature values were measured at 30-80°C in reference modules, 30-50°C in heat pipe modules, 30-37°C in modules using heat pipes and phase-changing material, and 30-66°C in modules using phase-changing material with flexible surfaces. If the PV module operating temperature is increased by 35°C, the module efficiency decreases by 10%. Heat pipe and PCM balance the temperature in PV/T/PCM monocrystalline and polycrystalline modules. In PV/T/PCM modules, efficiency loss caused by temperature increase is 1%. In addition, electrical energy is produced from the heat accumulated on the surface of the PV module by means of Thermoelectric Generator (TEG). When the temperature difference between the surfaces is 15°C, the naturally cooled TE provides 0.45V energy output, while the forced-cooled TEG provides 0.97V energy output. As the temperature gap between the surfaces increases, the voltage and current values of the TEG also increase. Briefly, TEG’s power values increase up to 5W depending on the temperature gap between surfaces.

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“…The main advantage of these compact liquid-based refrigeration systems is that they can maintain a proper temperature of the battery, avoiding hot spots under extreme conditions, such as rapid charging and discharging at high atmospheric temperatures [20]. In most of these cooling applications, the reduction in the maximum temperature of the system is a relevant parameter, but also the homogeneity of temperature of the system plays a critical role, e.g., to improve the mismatch of PV cells [21]. The most widely studied configurations for the channels comprise parallel conduits, serpentines, and combinations of both [22][23][24].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design of Novel Cooling Systems Based on Metal Plates with Channels of Shapes Inspired by Nature

et al. 2022

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The effect of the channel shape of aluminum plates on cooling capacity was evaluated by studying different configurations. Common shapes of the channel, such as square and fork shapes, were compared with novel configurations inspired by shapes found in nature, specifically the shape of the outline of flowers, inspired these new configurations, consisting of channels with crateriform, salverform, and cruciform shapes. The aim of the study is to evaluate the effect of the channel shape on the cooling capacity of the metal plate. To that end, all the configurations were analyzed from a geometrical point of view, determining the minimum distance of each point across the plate to the channel. A finite difference method was implemented to study both transient and steady state heat dissipation across the plates for each configuration. Even though the effect of the channel shape on the average temperature of the plate is slight, the maximum temperature, the size and location of hot spots, and the temperature homogeneity of the plate are strongly affected by the shape of the channel through which the cooling fluid is circulated. A reduction in the maximum temperature of the plate during transient cooling of around 2 °C for the crateriform and salverform channels and approximately 4.5 °C for the cruciform channel can be attained, compared to the standard configurations. The steady state heat dissipation analysis concluded that the crateriform and salverform configurations reduced the maximum variation in temperature of the common configurations by roughly 15%, whereas a reduction of approximately 28% could be reached by the cruciform configuration. Regarding the homogeneity of temperature across the plate, a reduction up to 34.5% of the index of uniform temperature can be attained using the novel configurations during the steady state refrigeration of the plate. The cruciform channel is the optimal configuration for both transient and steady state cooling processes, reducing the size and temperature of hot spots and improving the temperature homogeneity of the plate, a result already anticipated by the geometrical analysis. In fact, the main conclusions attained from the cooling study are in good agreement with the results of the geometrical analysis. Therefore, the geometrical analysis was found to be a simple and reliable method to design the shape of channels of a cooling system.

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Evaluation of thermal interface materials in mediating PV cell temperature mismatch in PV–TEG power generation

Cited by 33 publications

References 37 publications

Review on Performance Enhancement of Photovoltaic/Thermal–Thermoelectric Generator Systems with Nanofluid Cooling

Review on Performance Enhancement of Photovoltaic/Thermal–Thermoelectric Generator Systems with Nanofluid Cooling

Effect of module operating temperature on module efficiency in photovoltaic modules and recovery of photovoltaic module heat by thermoelectric effect

Design of Novel Cooling Systems Based on Metal Plates with Channels of Shapes Inspired by Nature

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