Improved Performance Assessment of Photovoltaic Systems Using Paraffin-Based Phase Change Materials and Innovative Container Designs

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Chinese explanation / 中文解读

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Original abstract

Integrating Phase Change Material (PCM) in Photovoltaic Thermal (PVT) systems is an effective solution to improve the cooling efficiency of solar panels. This study modeled and analyzed three configurations of paraffin-based PCM containers using the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) approach, with radiation intensities of 300, 600, 900, and 1200 W/m². The temperature distribution analysis showed that Model 1, with its design lacking additional partitions, produced a more homogeneous heat distribution and maintained lower PV-cell temperatures than Models 2 and 3. Model 1 recorded a maximum temperature of 27.4°C at its highest intensity, while Model 2 and Model 3 reached 28.5°C and 27.5°C, respectively. Efficiency evaluations show that the Model 1 also produces the highest thermal efficiency, reaching 11.7% at 1200 W/m², compared with the Model 2 at 10.5% and the Model 3 at 11.2%. The Model 1's superior performance is attributed to the PCM's ability to absorb latent heat effectively, slow the rise in PV cell temperature, and maintain stable energy conversion efficiency. Based on these results, Model 1 is recommended as the optimal configuration for PVT-PCM systems to improve thermal efficiency, maintain PV-cell performance, and extend the operational life of solar collector systems.

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