Thermal modeling and design optimisation of compact building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) facades for application at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS)

Abstract

Paper presented at the 7th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Turkey, 19-21 July, 2010.

Thermal models and correlations for the convection heat transfer coefficients are mainly for isothermal or constant beat flux surfaces and can result in discrepancies of up to 50% in the prediction of surface temperatures or heat fluxes on Photovoltaic (PV) panels. An experimental investigation was conducted to develop the thermal models and correlations for natural convection on a vertical PV module with non­-isothermal surfaces. The paper also reports on the PV­ configuration with the maximum electric efficiency and natural convection cooling. A proximity mobile probe with two K-type thermocouples was developed to measure simultaneously local surface and air temperatures on the PV surface at a fixed distance. Thermocouples, anemometers, voltmeter, ampere-meter and Lux-meter were interfaced to a computer and sampled at a rate of 6 samples per minute (one every 10 second). The electric energy conversion efficiency and the natural convection cooling were quantified for the dimensionless channel spacing of s/h=0.015, 0.0.3, 0.045, 0.06 and 0.075 on a PV with a single glazing. An optimum configuration for a PV with single-glazing and the channel spacing of s!h 0.06 was selected for its maximum efficiency and natural convection cooling and proposed to be retrofitted on the existing UTS buildings.