Improving efficiency of a solar PV panel by forced cooling with a modulated coolant flow-rate

Abstract

Photovoltaic (PV) panel is the stem of solar system, generally has a low energy conversion efficiency available in the market. PV panel temperature control serves as the main key to keeping the PV panel operate efficiently. This project presents the great influence of the aautomatic cooling system in reducing PV panel temperature. A cooling system has been developed based on cooling coil convection induced by 12V DC water pump as part of the cooling mechanism. Copper cooling heat exchanger was attached at the back side of PV panel and extracts the heat energy distributed and cool down the PV panel. The working operation of DC water pump controlled by the Arduino micro controller coupled with temperature sensors, which is depending on the value of PV panel temperature. Experiments were performed with and without cooling mechanism attached to the backside PV panel. The whole PV system was subsequently evaluated in outdoor weather conditions. As a result, it is concluded that there is an optimum temperature of the module required as cooling mechanism in producing efficient electrical output from a PV panel. The study clearly shows how cooling mechanism improves the performance of PV panel at the hot climatic weather. In short, the reduction of PV panel temperature is very important to keep its performance operated efficiently.