Development and Experimental Evaluation of a New Photovoltaic-thermal Air Collector to Optimise the Performance of PV Solar Modules

One of the main challenges to the performance of photovoltaic (PV) modules is the reduction in efficiency resulting from their high working temperature. Air-based photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) devices offer a solution. This work presents the development of a photovoltaic/thermal air heat collector to optimize the performance of PV modules: Experimental case with monocrystalline and polycrystalline silicon photovoltaic solar modules. This was accomplished by designing, constructing, and positioning a thermal collector under the solar modules that had a surface area of 0.378 m<sup>2</sup> and a height of 0.11 m. A real-time experimental study conducted on a sunny day in the courtyard of ISABEE of university of Ebolowa, Cameroon, showed that the proposed collector maintained the temperature below the monocrystalline solar panel at 49°C and that of the polycrystalline panel at 51°C, respectively, in order to an average power of 56.24 W (a power gain of 9 W compared to conventional PV) for the monocrystalline panel and 62.4 W (a power gain of 18 W) for the polycrystalline panel. DC fans where set up at the collector’s outlet were used to control the air flow rate to optimize cooling. In terms of thermal performance, a power output of 242 W (52% efficiency) was achieved for the monocrystalline module, while the polycrystalline module reached 295.94 W (56.46% efficiency). The tests, conducted under average sunlight of 936.36 W/m<sup>2</sup> (between nine in the morning and three in the afternoon), demonstrated the system's efficiency. This study not only validates the optimization of electrical and thermal performance using the proposed technique, but also reveals the different behavior of the two types of cells. This collector can be considered highly suitable for optimizing the efficiency of PV modules in domestic solar installations, particularly in regions with an equatorial climate (such as the southern region of Cameroon) and high ambient temperatures.