Abstract
Photovoltaic thermal (PVT) collectors are devices that simultaneously produce electricity and heat. Research on conventional air-type PVT collector focuses on installing baffles to enhance the collector's thermal performance. However, the baffles have pressure drop inside the collector which degrades the thermal performance. Thus, it is necessary to design baffles to smoothen the flow inside the air-type PVT collector. Alternatively, installing perforated baffles in air-type PVT collectors can reduce the collector weight, but parameters such as the diameter of the perforated holes and the height of the perforated plates should be considered. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to analyze thermal characteristics of each variable of perforated baffles installed inside air-type PVT collector. For this purpose, the uniformity of air flow in the collector was compared through NX program, and the resultant heat gain and thermal efficiency of the air-type PVT collector were compared and analyzed. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to analyze thermal characteristics of each variable (Baffle angle, length, height, pitch, perforated ratio) of perforated baffles installed inside air-type PVT collector. For this purpose, the uniformity of air flow in the collector was compared through CFD program, and the resultant heat gain and thermal efficiency of the air-type PVT collector were compared and analyzed. As a result, the maximum outlet temperature was increased by 1.45 times and the heat gain was increased by 193.8 Wth, depending on the perforated baffle plate, compared to the collector without the baffle. The heat transfer performance showed that the maximum internal velocity was 1.61 times higher and the Reynolds number was 1.06 times higher depending on the parameters of the baffle plate.
