Design of concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) system for a small campus in Mansoura-Egypt [articol]

Abstract

The concentrated photovoltaic (CPV/T) module is a solar collector that consists of both solar thermal collector and photovoltaic (PV) module. So, it produces electric and heat energy simultaneously. This paper presented a design for CPV/T model for supplying a small campus in Mansoura- Egypt. The campus needs both electric energy and hot water for its operation, so using CPV/T module is the best choice. The proposed model is based on modelling the conventional PV. Then determine the irradiation concentration ratio which depending on the type of optical material. Finally, a water-cooled concentrated PV is modeled and designed. Moreover, the equations for determining the electric and thermal generated from the CPV are presented. The simulation results prove that, the electrical output power and the efficiency of the CPV are increased due to using the water cooling which reduces the temperature of the CPV system under 50oC. In addition, high water flow rate can directly extract thermal heat through the CPV/T module. This obviously enhances the thermal efficiency of CPV/T system.