70 Cooling of the Solar Cells for a Compound Parabolic Concentrating Photovoltaic Systems

A parametric analysis of heat transfer in compound parabolic concentrating solar energy photovoltaic systems has been conducted using a comprehensive unified model for heat transfer in an air filled systems. Simulations are undertaken for different incident solar radiation intensities. Computational fluid dynamics is applied to calculate the air flow and temperature distribution in the concentrating solar energy photovoltaic system. The flow characteristics between the concentrators and glass cover within a three trough photovoltaic concentrators are presented with natural and forced convection conditions, respectively. The effects of the inlet conditions of the air on solar cell surface temperatures are predicted. The average temperatures of solar cell and glass cover are determined for different solar radiation intensities 1200, 1000, 800, 600 and 400 W∕m². The results show that the solar cell surface temperature increases as the solar radiation grows. Free and forced convection at the rear of the solar cells concentrators provides a significant cooling effect in the concentrating systems. It is valuable for the design and operation of such types of concentrating photovoltaic system.