An innovative cooling technique for floating photovoltaic module: Adoption of partially submerged angle fins

Abstract

Once the temperature of a photovoltaic panel elevates, two major impacts occur: a significant loss in output power and thermal deterioration, which severely shortens the panel's lifespan. Non-uniform distribution of working temperatures and hence heat spots promote power loss and long-term thermal deterioration. As an electronic power generator, a solar photovoltaic panel requires prompt heat removal from its surfaces to tackle such issues. This is accomplished in the current study by utilizing a novel design heat sink composed of partially submerged angle perforating fins (PSAPF) targeted at increasing heat dissipation from a floating photovoltaic system (FPV). The proposed PSAPF was experimentally investigated for excess heat removal from FPV via both air and water mediums under Mediterranean outdoor environments at Port Said, Egypt. It was demonstrated that in the presence of a surface water current of 0.3 m/s, wind of 5 m/s with direction of 60°, employing PSAPF was considerably more efficient, with 22.77% more productivity and a 33.31% operating temperature reduction when compared to a conventional FPV system. A regression equation has been formed to predict the performance of the designed system through several factors affecting its performance over a wide range of variances.

Keywords

• Thermal regulation
• Photovoltaics
• Power enhancement
• Perforated fin-heat sink
• In-situ experiments
• LCOE