Combari Pagou Hartwig1, Djiguemde Bagre Sara2, Dianda Boureima3, Traore Damus Abdoul Aziz4, Tamboura Alou5, and Iname Allasane6
1 University Joseph KI-ZERBO, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
2 National Center for Scientific and Technological Research, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
3 National Center for Scientific and Technological Research, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
4 University Joseph KI-ZERBO, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
5 National Center for Scientific and Technological Research, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
6 University Joseph KI-ZERBO, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Original language: English
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Abstract
Photovoltaic solar modules are in high demand in Sahel countries. Unfortunately, the intense heat reduces the performance of these modules. Cooling them is therefore recommended. One technique for cooling a photovoltaic solar module involves coupling it with a solar thermal collector to recover some of the heat produced and transfer it to a heat transfer fluid. This work is a comparative experimental study of the thermal performance of a solar thermal collector and a hybrid photovoltaic-thermal (PV-T) solar collector. A water-based solar thermal collector and a hybrid photovoltaic-thermal (PV-T) collector were designed. This experimental study consisted of monitoring the evolution of the water temperature at the inlet and outlet of each collector, the temperature at the surface of the PV-T module, the temperature of the air confined within the solar thermal collector, and the site’s solar irradiance. The results showed a maximum hot water temperature of 87°C for the solar thermal collector and 74°C for the PV-T solar collector under a maximum solar irradiance of approximately 985 W/m2. The thermal efficiency of the PV-T collector is about 0.36 times greater than that of the solar thermal collector. These results clearly demonstrate that sufficient heat can be recovered with a PV-T collector.
Author Keywords: solar thermal collector, PV-T collector, water, temperature, efficiency.
