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Performance assessment of a novel bifacial photovoltaic system with air film cooling device

Author

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  • Xu, Shi-Jie
  • Wu, Shuang-Ying
  • Xiao, Lan
  • Chen, Zhi-Li

Abstract

Bifacial photovoltaic (BPV) systems have developed rapidly but still suffer from reduced power output at high temperatures. This study proposed a novel BPV system with air film cooling device (AFCD), i.e., air film cooling BPV (AFC-BPV) system. Firstly, a novel AFCD adapted to BPV panel was designed, and its working principle and structural parameters were introduced. Secondly, the flow characteristics of AFC-BPV system at various inlet velocities (vin) with or without ambient wind were revealed using an experimentally validated flow model. Finally, the thermal-electrical performance of AFC-BPV system under unsteady environmental conditions was investigated experimentally and compared with BPV system without cooling. The results show that under various vin, AFCD exhibits a uniform outlet velocity distribution with a non-uniformity of less than 3.55 %. Under windless conditions, a uniformly air film is attached to front side of BPV panel; under windy conditions, the flow characteristics on front side are highly sensitive to ambient wind disturbances and variations in vin. In high irradiance, the maximum instantaneous electric power of AFC-BPV system (PAFC-BPV) is dominated by temperature, making AFCD cooling the main source of power gain. In low irradiance, PAFC-BPV is primarily influenced by irradiance, and the cooling benefit of AFCD is reduced. During testing, AFC-BPV system shows a maximum temperature difference of 18.34 °C, an average temperature difference of 13.03 °C, and an average power increase of 18.20 W compared with BPV system without cooling. The net instantaneous electric power gain (ζ) increases with fan efficiency (ηfan), rising from 1.32 % to 6.08 % as ηfan increases from 30 % to 90 %.

Suggested Citation

  • Xu, Shi-Jie & Wu, Shuang-Ying & Xiao, Lan & Chen, Zhi-Li, 2025. "Performance assessment of a novel bifacial photovoltaic system with air film cooling device," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 337(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:energy:v:337:y:2025:i:c:s0360544225043166
    DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2025.138674
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