Researchers in India have developed a cooling technology that uses calcium chloride for harvesting atmospheric water. The system is said to improve the PV module by a maximum of 18%.
Scientists from the PSG College of Technology of India have developed a passive cooling technology for solar module that uses a hygroscopic salt to harvest atmospheric water from the air.
“The goal is to apply the water production technique of atmospheric air to cool the front of the panel,” Researcher R. Jegathishkumar told PV -Magazine. “Most cooling systems are designed to offer cooling at the rear with the help of active cooling techniques. This work was to bring a passive cooling system for a very moist area where the water absorption speed of hygroscopic salt is high.”
Scientists used a hygroscopic salt, calcium chloride (cacl), usually applied as a food additive, gone-icer and in medical areas. They enclosed CACL₂ solution mixed with sawdust in different concentrations – or without sawdust – in a fabric bag that absorbs moisture from the air to a very damp location in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. The salt package was placed in holes at the base of the module to distribute the regenerated water.
The experiment used a 15 W solar panel equipped with the cooling technology next to a reference panel without cooling. Scientists measured the temperature module every 15 minutes using an infrared thermometer for 4.5 hours a day for four consecutive days. Results showed the panel with pure calcium chloride and no sand had a maximum power of 18.93% higher than the panel without cooling.
“With the help of current water production from atmospheric air, the panel temperature is lowered by 3 ° C and the efficiency of the panel is increased by approximately 17.38%,” said Jegathishkumar.
The experiment also showed that salt edimination reduces solar radiation and PV module performance, so that the panel surface is regularly cleaned for the viability of the system.
“The pure salt sample reached a temperature drop of 1.7%, because the more amount of water from the air absorbed,” Jegathishkumar said. “However, it does not have the same amount of disorrying because of the demand for high desorption.”
The researchers described the new cooling technique in “Experimental research into passive cooling of photovoltaic panel by harvesting atmospheric water using hygroscopic salt“Which was recently published in Energy for sustainable development.
Looking ahead, the research team is planning to optimize additive concentrations and to identify suitable non -documenting additives.
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