Performance evaluation of a modified PV/T solar collector: A case study in design and analysis of experiment

An experimental work on a modified photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) solar collector was carried out in Istanbul, Turkey. In the proposed model the air enters into the collector through a slot at the middle of the glass cover. As the air flows over and below the PV panel in opposite directions, it gets the excess heat produced by panel and cools it. The measurements repeated by changing the position of PV module inside the collector and thermal and electrical performances of the solar collector were calculated for each configuration. The highest thermal performance was obtained when the distance between PV module and cover was 3 cm. As for electrical efficiency, the highest value was obtained when there was 5 cm gap between cover and the panel. It is also found that increasing the mass flow rate enhances the thermal performance of the system. The electrical efficiencies of the PV/T solar collector and PV module are compared using analysis of variance (ANOVA). The optimal configuration for PV/T collector is also suggested by the same method. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.