Abstract :
A novel heat-pipe photovoltaic/thermal system was designed and constructed by the authors. This system can simultaneously supply
electrical and thermal energy. In addition, when compared with the traditional water-type photovoltaic/thermal system, this system can
be used in cold regions without freezing. A dynamic model was developed to predict the performances of the heat-pipe photovoltaic/
thermal system. Experiments were also conducted to validate results obtained for the simulation. A comparison between simulation values
and experimental results demonstrated that the model was able to yield satisfactory predictions. Results indicated that the daily thermal
and electrical efficiencies of the heat-pipe photovoltaic/thermal system were 41.9% and 9.4%, respectively, while the average heat and
electrical gains were 276.9 and 62.3 W/m2, respectively. In addition, second-law efficiency, based on the second law of thermodynamics, is
provided to analyze the total efficiency of the heat-pipe photovoltaic/thermal system, and the average total second-law efficiency of the
system is 6.8%.
2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
