Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM

Ashutosh Dev; Bikram Singh Bhattarai

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11

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Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM

Ashutosh Dev^*, Bikram Singh Bhattarai

Published in American Journal of Modern Energy (Volume 9, Issue 4)

Received: 26 August 2023 Accepted: 13 September 2023 Published: 28 December 2023

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Abstract

This paper presents a comprehensive study on the performance of a solar photovoltaic-thermal (PVT) system with a single water pipe as the working fluid. The investigation focuses on mathematical modeling using the OpenFOAMv9 software package and visualization through Paraview. The primary objective is to evaluate the thermal and electrical efficiency of the PVT collector while analyzing its transient response. In this research, steady-state and transient analyses of the solar PVT system are conducted under various water mass flow rates and solar radiation levels, employing the chtMultiRegionFoam solver. The study includes the variation of water outlet temperature concerning mass flow rates for solar radiations at 700 W/m² and 1000 W/m². Simulation results closely align with analytically calculated thermal efficiencies by Chow T., demonstrating the validity of the approach. Thermal efficiency remains consistent between the two radiation levels. The analysis reveals that the electrical efficiency is superior at 700 W/m² due to reduced heating and lower silicon cell temperatures. Moreover, both thermal and electrical efficiencies exhibit an increasing trend with higher water mass flow rates. The study also presents the transient response of the PVT system when reducing the mass flow rate from 0.002 kg/s to 0.001 kg/s. The successful simulation of this PVT system classifies the employed CFD package as capable and effective. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of PVT system performance and offers insights into enhancing its efficiency under various operational conditions. The findings hold significance for the design and optimization of solar PVT systems to harness both thermal and electrical energy effectively. Additionally, the research highlights the utilization of the OpenFOAM platform for simulating this specific case.

Published in	American Journal of Modern Energy (Volume 9, Issue 4)
DOI	10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11
Page(s)	77-83
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Solar Photovoltaic-Thermal System, Thermal Collector, OpenFOAM, Mathematical Modeling, Transient Response

References

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[4]	C. S. Rajoria, S. Agrawal, and G. N. Tiwari, “Exergetic and enviroeconomic analysis of novel hybrid PVT array,” Solar Energy, vol. 88, pp. 110–119, Feb. 2013, doi: 10.1016/J.SOLENER.2012.11.018.
[5]	T. T. Chow, “Performance analysis of photovoltaic-thermal collector by explicit dynamic model,” Solar Energy, vol. 75, no. 2, pp. 143–152, Aug. 2003, doi: 10.1016/J.SOLENER.2003.07.001.
[6]	H. G. Teo, P. S. Lee, and M. N. A. Hawlader, “An active cooling system for photovoltaic modules,” Appl Energy, vol. 90, no. 1, pp. 309–315, Feb. 2012, doi: 10.1016/J.APENERGY.2011.01.017.
[7]	O. Rejeb, H. Dhaou, and A. Jemni, “Parameters effect analysis of a photovoltaic thermal collector: Case study for climatic conditions of Monastir, Tunisia,” Energy Convers Manag, vol. 89, pp. 409–419, Jan. 2015, doi: 10.1016/J.ENCONMAN.2014.10.018.
[8]	A. A. B. Baloch, H. M. S. Bahaidarah, P. Gandhidasan, and F. A. Al-Sulaiman, “Experimental and numerical performance analysis of a converging channel heat exchanger for PV cooling,” Energy Convers Manag, vol. 103, pp. 14–27, Oct. 2015, doi: 10.1016/J.ENCONMAN.2015.06.018.
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[11]	R. C. Spijkerboer et al., “Out of steam? A social science and humanities research agenda for geothermal energy,” Energy Res Soc Sci, vol. 92, Oct. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.erss.2022.102801.
[12]	OpenFOAM, “OpenFOAM v7 User Guide,” 2022.
[13]	OpenFoam, “Paraview User’s Guide,” 2020.
[14]	A. Khelifa, K. Touafek, H. Ben Moussa, I. Tabet, H. B. C. El Hocine, and H. Haloui, “Analysis of a Hybrid Solar Collector Photovoltaic Thermal (PVT),” Energy Procedia, vol. 74, pp. 835–843, Aug. 2015, doi: 10.1016/J.EGYPRO.2015.07.819.
[15]	The open source CFD toolbox, “chtMultiRegionFoam: OpenFOAM: User Guide,” 2021.
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APA Style

Dev, A., Singh Bhattarai, B. (2023). Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM. American Journal of Modern Energy, 9(4), 77-83. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11

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ACS Style

Dev, A.; Singh Bhattarai, B. Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM. Am. J. Mod. Energy 2023, 9(4), 77-83. doi: 10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11

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AMA Style

Dev A, Singh Bhattarai B. Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM. Am J Mod Energy. 2023;9(4):77-83. doi: 10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11,
  author = {Ashutosh Dev and Bikram Singh Bhattarai},
  title = {Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM},
  journal = {American Journal of Modern Energy},
  volume = {9},
  number = {4},
  pages = {77-83},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajme.20230904.11},
  abstract = {This paper presents a comprehensive study on the performance of a solar photovoltaic-thermal (PVT) system with a single water pipe as the working fluid. The investigation focuses on mathematical modeling using the OpenFOAMv9 software package and visualization through Paraview. The primary objective is to evaluate the thermal and electrical efficiency of the PVT collector while analyzing its transient response. In this research, steady-state and transient analyses of the solar PVT system are conducted under various water mass flow rates and solar radiation levels, employing the chtMultiRegionFoam solver. The study includes the variation of water outlet temperature concerning mass flow rates for solar radiations at 700 W/m² and 1000 W/m². Simulation results closely align with analytically calculated thermal efficiencies by Chow T., demonstrating the validity of the approach. Thermal efficiency remains consistent between the two radiation levels. The analysis reveals that the electrical efficiency is superior at 700 W/m² due to reduced heating and lower silicon cell temperatures. Moreover, both thermal and electrical efficiencies exhibit an increasing trend with higher water mass flow rates. The study also presents the transient response of the PVT system when reducing the mass flow rate from 0.002 kg/s to 0.001 kg/s. The successful simulation of this PVT system classifies the employed CFD package as capable and effective. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of PVT system performance and offers insights into enhancing its efficiency under various operational conditions. The findings hold significance for the design and optimization of solar PVT systems to harness both thermal and electrical energy effectively. Additionally, the research highlights the utilization of the OpenFOAM platform for simulating this specific case.
},
 year = {2023}
}

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TY - JOUR
T1 - Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM
AU - Ashutosh Dev
AU - Bikram Singh Bhattarai
Y1 - 2023/12/28
PY - 2023
N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11
DO - 10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11
T2 - American Journal of Modern Energy
JF - American Journal of Modern Energy
JO - American Journal of Modern Energy
SP - 77
EP - 83
PB - Science Publishing Group
SN - 2575-3797
UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11
AB - This paper presents a comprehensive study on the performance of a solar photovoltaic-thermal (PVT) system with a single water pipe as the working fluid. The investigation focuses on mathematical modeling using the OpenFOAMv9 software package and visualization through Paraview. The primary objective is to evaluate the thermal and electrical efficiency of the PVT collector while analyzing its transient response. In this research, steady-state and transient analyses of the solar PVT system are conducted under various water mass flow rates and solar radiation levels, employing the chtMultiRegionFoam solver. The study includes the variation of water outlet temperature concerning mass flow rates for solar radiations at 700 W/m² and 1000 W/m². Simulation results closely align with analytically calculated thermal efficiencies by Chow T., demonstrating the validity of the approach. Thermal efficiency remains consistent between the two radiation levels. The analysis reveals that the electrical efficiency is superior at 700 W/m² due to reduced heating and lower silicon cell temperatures. Moreover, both thermal and electrical efficiencies exhibit an increasing trend with higher water mass flow rates. The study also presents the transient response of the PVT system when reducing the mass flow rate from 0.002 kg/s to 0.001 kg/s. The successful simulation of this PVT system classifies the employed CFD package as capable and effective. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of PVT system performance and offers insights into enhancing its efficiency under various operational conditions. The findings hold significance for the design and optimization of solar PVT systems to harness both thermal and electrical energy effectively. Additionally, the research highlights the utilization of the OpenFOAM platform for simulating this specific case.

VL - 9
IS - 4
ER -

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Author Information

Ashutosh Dev

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kathmandu University, Dhulikhel, Nepal

Contact Email
Bikram Singh Bhattarai

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kathmandu University, Dhulikhel, Nepal

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APA Style

Dev, A., Singh Bhattarai, B. (2023). Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM. American Journal of Modern Energy, 9(4), 77-83. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11

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ACS Style

Dev, A.; Singh Bhattarai, B. Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM. Am. J. Mod. Energy 2023, 9(4), 77-83. doi: 10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11

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AMA Style

Dev A, Singh Bhattarai B. Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM. Am J Mod Energy. 2023;9(4):77-83. doi: 10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11,
  author = {Ashutosh Dev and Bikram Singh Bhattarai},
  title = {Numerical Modelling and Analysis of Photovoltaic-Thermal Liquid Collector Using OpenFOAM},
  journal = {American Journal of Modern Energy},
  volume = {9},
  number = {4},
  pages = {77-83},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajme.20230904.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajme.20230904.11},
  abstract = {This paper presents a comprehensive study on the performance of a solar photovoltaic-thermal (PVT) system with a single water pipe as the working fluid. The investigation focuses on mathematical modeling using the OpenFOAMv9 software package and visualization through Paraview. The primary objective is to evaluate the thermal and electrical efficiency of the PVT collector while analyzing its transient response. In this research, steady-state and transient analyses of the solar PVT system are conducted under various water mass flow rates and solar radiation levels, employing the chtMultiRegionFoam solver. The study includes the variation of water outlet temperature concerning mass flow rates for solar radiations at 700 W/m² and 1000 W/m². Simulation results closely align with analytically calculated thermal efficiencies by Chow T., demonstrating the validity of the approach. Thermal efficiency remains consistent between the two radiation levels. The analysis reveals that the electrical efficiency is superior at 700 W/m² due to reduced heating and lower silicon cell temperatures. Moreover, both thermal and electrical efficiencies exhibit an increasing trend with higher water mass flow rates. The study also presents the transient response of the PVT system when reducing the mass flow rate from 0.002 kg/s to 0.001 kg/s. The successful simulation of this PVT system classifies the employed CFD package as capable and effective. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of PVT system performance and offers insights into enhancing its efficiency under various operational conditions. The findings hold significance for the design and optimization of solar PVT systems to harness both thermal and electrical energy effectively. Additionally, the research highlights the utilization of the OpenFOAM platform for simulating this specific case.
},
 year = {2023}
}

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VL - 9
IS - 4
ER -

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