Experimental Performance Investigation of a Solar Photovoltaic Thermal (PVT) Collector

Photovoltaic Thermal (PVT) collector is a hybrid technology that produces both thermal and electrical energy simultaneously combining a photovoltaic (PV) cell and solar thermal collector. In this work, the performance of a PVT collector was investigated experimentally. A PVT collector was constructed by incorporating a heat exchanger in a PV cell. Electrical energy from the PVT collector was monitored by flowing cooling water in the heat exchanger. A small portion of solar radiation was transformed into electricity, but the unsettled portion was lost as heat that affected the PV cell's efficiency. Solar radiation intensity, inlet and outlet temperature of cooling water, surface temperature, voltage, and current of PV cell, was measured. The performance of the PVT collector was compared with a PV cell of the same configuration. Experimental results revealed that the output power of the PVT system is greater than that of the PV system and the average output power is approximately 15% higher compared to the PV system. Results also indicated that the surface temperature of the PVT system is 4-5°C lower than that of the PV system.