Thermal Regulation Methods Aimed to Elevate Photovoltaic Panel Performance: A Review

Abstract

Commercially used solar modules convert about 14 to 24% of sunlight into electrical energy. The remaining energy is kept in the panels which is converted into heat energy and increases the panel temperature. However, the increase in temperature caused by this input reduces the power output of the solar panel, i.e. in crystalline silicon cells it is about 0.40%/°C. And the resulting thermal stress also reduces the panel life. Therefore, it would be a smart solution to dissipate the heat generated on the photovoltaic system by cooling the panels with various methods in order to reduce the solar panel temperature and increase the module performance. This paper presents a summary study to review the significant researches on improving performance of photovoltaic systems. Among these researches, there are studies aiming to reduce the high operating temperature seen on the solar cell surface and to balance the inhomogeneous heat distribution such as cooling of a PV panel with natural and forced liquid and air, heat pipe, phase change material and thermoelectric module. Besides these studies, researches aiming to make optimum use of sunlight by reducing reflection, pollution and photo-angular effects, which are parameters that have weakening effects on the electrical performance of solar cells, are reviewed as well.

Keywords

• Efficiency
• Photovoltaic (PV) cell
• PV module cooling
• Solar energy

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