Enhancement of photovoltaic module performance by thermal management using shape-stabilized PCM composites
<p dir="ltr">Thermal management of <u>photovoltaic</u> (PV) panels is crucial due to the deterioration of their electrical efficiency at elevated operating temperatures. Therefore, <u>thermal protection </u>of <u>PV</u> against overheating is highl...
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2024
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| Summary: | <p dir="ltr">Thermal management of <u>photovoltaic</u> (PV) panels is crucial due to the deterioration of their electrical efficiency at elevated operating temperatures. Therefore, <u>thermal protection </u>of <u>PV</u> against overheating is highly required. This study investigated the applicability of the shape-stabilized <u>phase change material </u>(PCM) composites for temperature regulation of <u>PV modules</u> (PVM). <u>Paraffin waxes</u> (PW) with specific melting temperatures infiltrate graphite foam (GF) to prepare the GF_PW composite. The PCM composites are coated with expanded graphite-modified <u>epoxy resin</u> to prevent PW leakage after melting and to maintain product stability, integrity, and <u>mechanical strength</u>. The performance improvement of PVMs integrated with two types of GF_PW composites with different<u> phase change temperatures</u> of 35 and 44 °C (labeled RT35 and RT44, respectively) was studied. The adequate latent heat and <u>thermal conductivity </u>of the epoxy-coated GF_PW composites ranged from 126.5 to 138.1 J/g and from 2.03 to 2.15 W/m°C, respectively. The GF_RT44 and GF_RT35 composites, used as passive heat absorbing elements, reduced the PVM surface temperature by 27 and 32 °C, respectively, enhancing the PVM efficiency by 10.9 and 18.5 % of the reference configuration consisting of the PVM alone. To our knowledge, the PVM efficiency enhancement obtained in this study is the highest among PVMs integrated with PCM composites reported in the literature.</p><h2>Other Information</h2><p dir="ltr">Published in: Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells<br>License: <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank">http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a><br>See article on publisher's website: <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.solmat.2024.112948" target="_blank">https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.solmat.2024.112948</a></p> |
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