Abstract—Photovoltaic/Thermal (PV/T) collector is a hybrid device that combines photovoltaic (PV) cells and solar thermal panel together so as to convert solar energy into electricity and thermal energy simultaneously in an effective way. PV/T technology is suitable for a highly urbanized country like Singapore because it harvests more solar energy per unit surface area than a combination of separate PV modules and solar thermal panels. Although we have conducted the research on performance of three different types of PV/T systems developed locally and obtained the experimental results through one-year site testing, it is essential to develop improved PV/T collector with higher conversion efficiency that can be verified by accurate PV/T testing system. This paper addresses the design of a new mc-Si based glazed PV/T collector and the setup of PV/T thermal testing system in accordance with EN 12975 for site testing of the new collector. The test results on a commercial solar water heater and the improved PV/T collector are presented to illustrate the operations of the testing system under tropical weather condition and performance of the improved PV/T collector.
Index Terms—Solar photovoltaic, solar thermal, photovoltaic/thermal (PVT), EN12975.
Jiang Fan, Goh Leag Hua, Leung Kin On, and Kelvin Loh are with the School of Electrical & Electronic Engineering, Singapore Polytechnic, Singapore (e-mail: jiangfan@sp.edu.sg, gohleaghua@sp.edu.sg, leungko@sp.edu.sg, kelvin_loh@sp.edu.sg).
Toh Peng Seng is with Grenzone Pte Ltd., Singapore (e-mail: tohpengseng@grenzone.com).
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Cite:Jiang Fan, Toh Peng Seng, Goh Leag Hua, Leung Kin On, and Kelvin Loh, "Design and Thermal Performance Test of a Solar Photovoltaic/Thermal (PV/T) Collector," Journal of Clean Energy Technologies vol. 4, no. 6, pp. 435-439, 2016.