Thermal and electrical energy yield analysis of a directly water cooled photovoltaic module.
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Date
2016
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Thermal Science
Abstract
Electrical energy of photovoltaic modules drops by 0.5% for each degree increase in temperature. Direct water cooling of photovoltaic modules was found to give improved electrical and thermal yield. A prototype was put in place to analyse the field data for a period of a year. The results showed an initial high performance ratio and electrical power output. The monthly energy saving efficiency of the directly water cooled module was found to be approximately 61%. The solar utilisation of the naturally cooled photovoltaic module was found to be 8.79% and for the directly water cooled module its solar utilisation was 47.93%. Implementation of such systems on households may reduce the load from the utility company, bring about huge savings on electricity bills and help in reducing carbon emissions.
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Mtunzi, B., Meyer, E.L. and Michael, S., 2016. Thermal and electrical energy yield analysis of a directly water cooled photovoltaic module. Thermal Science, 20(1), pp.155-163.