Performance study of a concentrated photovoltaic thermal hybrid solar system

Concentrated photovoltaic thermal CPVT hybrid systems present an attractive technology for solar energy exploitation. In this study, a CPVT hybrid solar system for both generation of electrical and thermal energy was investigated. A model was proposed to simulate the electrical and thermal performances of the CPVT system for typical weather conditions in Tunisia. The simulation model is based on the energy balance equations for each component within the system and take into account the characteristic parameters of an existing parabolic trough collector field installed in the Research and Technology Center of Energy (CRTEn, Northern coast of Tunisia) and a measured high precision meteorological data. Furthermore, a hybrid CPVT prototype was designed, manufactured and experimentally tested. The simulation results showed that the electrical and thermal efficiencies of the proposed hybrid system are around 7% and 44.38% respectively. Furthermore, the CPVT provided an acceptable stored thermal heat rate by supplying about 2 m
³
of hot water with a temperature of 43.9°C. Result outcomes from experimental tests proved that the output power of the solar cell in the hybrid receiver is affected by the concentrated solar radiations.