Nanofluids application in hybrid Photovoltaic Thermal System for Performance Enhancement: A review

Abstract

Harnessing solar energy using photovoltaic cells seems a good alternative to fossil fuels as the power from sun intercepted by earth is about 1.8 × 1011 MW. However the heat trapped in photovoltaic cells during operation decreases the efficiency of the system. Recent advancements in nanotechnology have enabled scientists to enhance the efficiency of solar power generation by employing nanofluids and PCM based coolant in PV/T systems. This study comprehensively analyses the effective parameters of nanofluids and PCM that enhance the thermal, electrical and overall efficiency of the PV/T system. In this work nanofluid as a coolant and optical filter, nanofilm as optical filter, their merits and demerits were emphasised. This covers both experimental as well as numerical work performed by researchers in the field of hybrid PV/T systems with different nanofluids, various level of particle concentration, different geographical location and their end result in an elaborative sense. This review can become a good guide for the further researches to be made in the field of hybrid PV/T systems and can provide new directions to work in this field by working on the various designs in which nanofluid is used as coolant and optical filter.

Keywords

• hybrid pv/t systems
• nanofluids
• pcm
• solar energy
• efficiency