Effects of passive cooling on performance of silicon photovoltaic cells

Abstract

In this study, an experimental research concerning the effects of passive cooling on performance parameters of silicon solar cells was presented. An aluminum heat sink was used in order to dissipate waste heat from a photovoltaic (PV) cell. Dimensions of the heat sink were determined considering the results of a steady-state heat transfer analysis. The experiments were carried out for different ambient temperatures and various illumination intensities up to 1 sun under solar simulator. Experimental results indicate that energy, exergy and power conversion efficiency of the PV cell considerably increase with the proposed cooling technique. An increase of ∼20% in power output of the PV cell is achieved at 800 W/m² radiation condition. Maximum level of cooling is observed for the intensity level of 600 W/m². Performance of PV cells both with and without fins increases with decreasing ambient temperature.