Performance of a silicon photovoltaic module under enhanced illumination and selective filtration of incoming radiation with simultaneous cooling

A promising option to reduce the cost of silicon photovoltaic systems is to concentrate the sunlight incident on the solar cells to increase the output power. However, this leads to higher module temperatures which affects performance adversely and may also cause long term damage. Proper cooling is therefore necessary to operate the system under concentrated radiation. The present work was undertaken to circumvent the problem in practical manner. A suitable liquid, connected to a heat exchanger, was placed in the housing of the photovoltaic module and unwanted wavelengths of solar radiation were filtered out to minimise overheating of the cells. The selection of the liquid was based on factors such as boiling point, transparency towards visible radiation, absorption of infrared and ultraviolet radiation, stability, flow characteristics, heat transfer properties, and electrical nonconductivity. Using a square parabolic type reflector, more than two fold increase in output power was realised on a clear sunny day employing a 0.13 m(2) silicon solar module. Without the cooling arrangement the panel temperature rose uncontrollably. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.