Performance Evaluation of Photovoltaic System Using Different Cooling Methods

A typical photovoltaic (PV) panel cell has ideal conversion efficiency in the range of 14-25%. The remaining energy is converted into heat and this heat increases the operating conditions (temperature) of PV system which therefore affects the electrical output power of PV modules in the system. Since the output of the PV modules decreases as a result of temperature rise, this effect results in decreased efficiency. Furthermore, if heat is not removed, structural damage to the PV modules will occur, shortening their useful life. To this end, this study presents the distinctive performance evaluation of photovoltaic cells under three cooling conditions to investigate the effect of cooling on the efficiency and output power of the photovoltaic cells. To achieve the set goal, three distinctive cooling techniques were employed for analysis namely forced air cooling, water cooling and natural air-cooling methods. In conclusion, results from analysis show a significant improvement in efficiency and output power of the PV module with the cooling system, thus indicating an improvement in the potential of PV system output as a renewable energy source.