Analysis of energy and exergy efficiencies for hybrid PV/T systems

In this paper, we undertake a study to investigate the performance of hybrid photovoltaic thermal air collector systems through energy and exergy efficiencies and improvement potential factors and compare them for practical purposes. This will help identify the irreversibilities (exergy destructions) for performance improvement purposes. A case study is presented to highlight the importance of the efficiency modelings and compare them using some actual data. It is also aimed to find if there is room for improvement. It is found that the energy efficiency varies between 33 and 45% where as the variation in the exergy efficiency is from 11 to 16%, respectively. There is obviously a large scope for improvement in the existing system as about 11--16% of the exergy from the solar radiation is used. Copyright The Author 2010. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com, Oxford University Press.