Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies

The efficiency of photovoltaic (PV) panels is significantly affected by environmental factors such as solar irradiance, wind speed, humidity, dust accumulation, shading, and surface temperature, with thermal buildup being the primary cause of efficiency degradation. In this review, we examined vario...

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Main Authors: Kaovinath, Appalasamy, Rizalman, Mamat, Sudhakar, K.
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AIMS Press 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/44146/
http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/44146/1/Smart%20thermal%20management%20of%20photovoltaic%20systems.pdf
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author Kaovinath, Appalasamy
Rizalman, Mamat
Sudhakar, K.
author_facet Kaovinath, Appalasamy
Rizalman, Mamat
Sudhakar, K.
author_sort Kaovinath, Appalasamy
building UMP Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description The efficiency of photovoltaic (PV) panels is significantly affected by environmental factors such as solar irradiance, wind speed, humidity, dust accumulation, shading, and surface temperature, with thermal buildup being the primary cause of efficiency degradation. In this review, we examined various cooling techniques to mitigate heat accumulation and enhance PV panel performance. A comprehensive analysis of active, passive, and hybrid cooling strategies is presented, including heat pipe-based cooling, heat sinks, holographic films, nanofluids, phase change materials (PCM), thermoelectric, biomaterial-based, and hybrid cooling systems. The effectiveness of these techniques in reducing surface temperature and improving electrical efficiency was assessed. Notably, heat pipe cooling and hybrid PCM-thermoelectric systems demonstrated the most promising improvements, with some methods achieving temperature reductions exceeding 40 °C and efficiency enhancements over 15%. Future research directions include developing advanced nanofluid formulations, optimizing the design of heat pipes and heat sinks, integrating multi-functional coatings, and enhancing the real-world durability of cooling materials for inventing innovative, sustainable, and eco-friendly cooling systems. By providing a structured evaluation of emerging PV cooling techniques, this study a valuable resource for researchers and engineers striving to improve solar energy efficiency, reduce thermal losses, and advance the sustainability of photovoltaic technologies.
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spelling ump-441462025-04-07T01:52:57Z http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/44146/ Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies Kaovinath, Appalasamy Rizalman, Mamat Sudhakar, K. TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery The efficiency of photovoltaic (PV) panels is significantly affected by environmental factors such as solar irradiance, wind speed, humidity, dust accumulation, shading, and surface temperature, with thermal buildup being the primary cause of efficiency degradation. In this review, we examined various cooling techniques to mitigate heat accumulation and enhance PV panel performance. A comprehensive analysis of active, passive, and hybrid cooling strategies is presented, including heat pipe-based cooling, heat sinks, holographic films, nanofluids, phase change materials (PCM), thermoelectric, biomaterial-based, and hybrid cooling systems. The effectiveness of these techniques in reducing surface temperature and improving electrical efficiency was assessed. Notably, heat pipe cooling and hybrid PCM-thermoelectric systems demonstrated the most promising improvements, with some methods achieving temperature reductions exceeding 40 °C and efficiency enhancements over 15%. Future research directions include developing advanced nanofluid formulations, optimizing the design of heat pipes and heat sinks, integrating multi-functional coatings, and enhancing the real-world durability of cooling materials for inventing innovative, sustainable, and eco-friendly cooling systems. By providing a structured evaluation of emerging PV cooling techniques, this study a valuable resource for researchers and engineers striving to improve solar energy efficiency, reduce thermal losses, and advance the sustainability of photovoltaic technologies. AIMS Press 2025-03-26 Article PeerReviewed pdf en cc_by_4 http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/44146/1/Smart%20thermal%20management%20of%20photovoltaic%20systems.pdf Kaovinath, Appalasamy and Rizalman, Mamat and Sudhakar, K. (2025) Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies. AIMS Energy, 13 (2). pp. 309-353. ISSN 2333-8334. (Published) https://doi.org/10.3934/energy.2025013 https://doi.org/10.3934/energy.2025013
spellingShingle TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
Kaovinath, Appalasamy
Rizalman, Mamat
Sudhakar, K.
Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies
title Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies
title_full Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies
title_fullStr Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies
title_full_unstemmed Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies
title_short Smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: Innovative strategies
title_sort smart thermal management of photovoltaic systems: innovative strategies
topic TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
url http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/44146/
http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/44146/
http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/44146/
http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/44146/1/Smart%20thermal%20management%20of%20photovoltaic%20systems.pdf