Optimisation Principles for Photovoltaic/Thermal Hybrid Solar Systems, a Meta Study

Abstract

Photovoltaic/Thermal hybrid (PVT) systems have shown promise as a viable commercial and private source of renewable energy. The purpose of this meta study is to combine contemporary research findings in the area of Photovoltaic (PV) and Photovoltaic/Thermal Hybrid solar systems and attempt to offer general optimisation principles for future PVT devices. Design parameters with which we attempt to optimise through will include PV material choice, CPC inclusion and system temperature optimisation for operational lifetime gain and power yield. It was found that we can combine CPC, closed glass design, spiral web flow and m>0.003kg/s to optimise the c-SI based systems and obtain an overall PVT efficiency gain of 5.5±1.6%, and that mass flow rates exceeding 0.003 kg/s can increase longevity by 80% on average and increase electrical efficiency by 1.2% when compared to conservative lower mass flow rates. Hydrogenated amorphous silicon systems were also deemed to create less high-quality energy and overshooting required thermal needs when using personal/private power statistics as selection criteria.