Study of a new concept of photovoltaic-thermal hybrid collector

This work presents the first step of the development of a new concept of photovoltaic/ thermal collector that will be combined with preheating air and/or water production. It consists in a simplified mathematical modeling of a PV/T air collector. The studied prototype is a component of metal sheet type which has an air gap at the backside and which can be integrated in roofs or in facades. The first step presented here consists in a parametric study (experimentally and numerically) in order to determine the effect of some factors as the air circulation (natural or forced) on the system thermal performances. Steady-state and a bidimensional geometry are considered. Then, an experimental confrontation led on a test bench permits to validate the results of the simulation and allows envisaging further development.