The 2nd Joint International Conference on “Sustainable Energy and Environment (SEE 2006)”

B-039 (O) 21-23 November 2006, Bangkok, Thailand

Development of Simulation Model for Predicting the Performance of a Hybrid Photovoltaic/Thermal

(PV/T) Air Heating System for Regenerating Silica Gel in the Air Conditioning Room

Yod Sukamongkol1,*, Supachart Chungpaibulpatana1, Bundit Limmeechokchai1 and Patamaporn Sripadungtham2

1
Sirindhorn International Institute of Technonlgy, Thammasat University, P.O.Box 22, Thammasat Rangsit Post Office, Klongluang,
Patumthani, 12121, Thailand
2
Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kasetsart University, 50 Paholyothin Rd., Chatuchuck, Bangkok,
10900, Thailand

Abstract: Four simulation sub-models of four main parts; namely, photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) collector, silica gel dehumidification
unit, living space and air conditioning system, have been developed for a detailed transient simulation model for a hybrid PV/T solar
air heating system for regenerating silica gel in air conditioning room. The models are explained along with algorithms for making
quantitative predictions regarding the performance of the system. The mathematical equations of those individual parts are developed
based on the first and second law of thermodynamics and the analysis of the balance of mass and energy conversion. Dynamic
variations of various system performance parameters resulting from the simulation are illustrated. The results showed that the useful
energy from PV/T collector and condensing unit of air conditioning system can heat the circulating air up to 50 oC with 20% relative
humidity. Moreover, the PV cooling can increase the electrical efficiency of PV cells and also increasing the total efficiency of the
PV/T modules while the silica gel dehumidification unit can save the electrical energy used in the air-conditioner up to 20%.

Keywords: Photovoltaic/Thermal, Hybrid System, Silica Gel Dehumidification

1. INTRODUCTION

The photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) collectors and low solar concentration technologies, which is the air heating system, are
combined into a photovoltaic/thermal system. The solar energy from the sun is partly converted to electricity by photovoltaic cells in
thermal contact with a solar heat absorber so that the excess heat generated in the photovoltaic cells can be served as input for the
thermal system. During operation, a heat carrier fluid removes heat from the absorber and solar cells. Those cells, cooled by the heat
carrier, operate at a low and stable temperature that gives increased solar cell electrical power output.
According to a small house, the air conditioner consumes over 70% of the total electrical energy used which is applied to remove
the sensible and latent heat to maintain the comfort zone in the living space. Thus, the silica gel desiccant dehumidification unit is
added to the conventional air conditioning system to reduce the latent heat resulted in the decreasing of energy consumption of air
conditioner. However, after silica gel is saturated, it cannot absorb more moisture; thus, it is needed to regenerate by heating it in an
unsaturated air stream which could be from the PV/T collector and those from the condenser of air conditioning system. The
desiccant is then cooled so that it can adsorb moisture again. So, this system represents a great potential for the future for thermal
comfort in a hot humid climate as Thailand.
Figure 1 shows a hybrid PV/T air heating system for regenerating silica gel in air-condition system can be separated into
the four main parts which are PV/T air heating collector, silica gel desiccant, air-conditioning system and living space (room).

1
4

3 2

Fig. 1 Schematic diagram of a hybrid photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) air heating system for regenerating silica gel desiccant in air-
condition system; (1) PV/T Collector, (2) Silica gel dehumidification unit, (3) Living space, and (4) Air-conditioning system

2. THE SIMULATION MODEL

The computer model comprising the mathematical equations of four main parts of the system, as shown in Fig. 1, is written using
C-language computer programming. It can simulate the transient performance of the hybrid PV/T air heating system at a time
interval of one minute. Its inputs require total solar irradiance, ambient temperature, relative humidity ratio and wind speed while its

Corresponding author: yod_skm@yahoo.com

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 The 2nd Joint International Conference on “Sustainable Energy and Environment (SEE 2006)”
B-039 (O) 21-23 November 2006, Bangkok, Thailand

outputs contain the current and voltage generated by the PV cells and the temperatures and moisture content of processed air of each
main part. The output data are analyzed and used to estimate the electrical power output, the amount of heat that can be drawn from
the system, and the efficiencies of various parts as well as that of the whole system. Last, the energy saving, comparing with the
system without desiccant unit and PV/T air heating collector, is also estimated.

2.1 PV/T Collector Model

The basic physical configuration along with associated energy conversion of each component of PV/T air heating collector is
shown in Fig. 2 [3-8]. First the ambient air enters the channel 1 formed by the glass cover and the PV/T absorber plate. Next, it
enters the second channel formed by the PV/T absorber plate and the back plate. This flow arrangement results in the grater heat
removal form the PV/T absorber and the back plate. This flow also reduces the heat loss from the collector and leads to the higher air
temperature at the outlet. Moreover, those solar cells, cooled by the heat carrier, operate at a low and stable temperature that gives
increased solar cell efficiency output. Thus, the energy balance equations for various components of the PV/T collector can be
expressed as follows:

For the glass cover (g), Qstore , g = Qin , g − Qrad , g →a − Qconv , g →a − Qconv,g → f 1 + Qrad , p→ g ,
dTg
or mg C g = α g GAg − Ag Fgsσ (ε gTg4 − ε sTs4 ) − Ag hcga (Tg − Ta ) (1)
dt
− Ag hcgf 1 (Tg − T f 1 ) + Ag hrpg (Tp − Tg )
For the air channel 1 (f1), Qstore, f 1 = Qcov,g → f 1 + Qcov,p→ f 1 − Qu1 ,
or dT f 1 (2)
m f 1C f 1 = Ag hcgf 1 (Tg − T f 1 ) + Ag hcpf 1 (Tp − T f 1 ) − mC
& f 1 (T f 1 − Ta )
dt
For the PV/T absorber (p), Qstore , p = Qin , p − Qrad , p → g − Qconv,p → f 1 − Qconv,p → f 2 − Qrad , p →b − Qelec
dT
or m p C p p = α Sτ g GAp − Ap hrpg (Tp − Tg ) − Ap hcpf 1 (Tp − T f 1 ) (3)
dt
− Ap hcpf 1 (Tp − T f 2 ) − Ap hrpb (Tp − Tb ) − η Sα Sτ g GAp
For the air channel 2 (f2), Qstore , f 2 = Qcov,p → f 2 + Qcov,b→ f 2 − Qu 2
or dT (4)
m f 2C f 2 f 2 = Ap hcpf 2 (Tp − T f 2 ) + Ab hcbf 2 (Tp − T f 1 ) − mC
& f 2 (T f 2 out − T f 2in )
dt
For the back Plate (b), Qstore ,b = Qrad , p→b − Qconv,b→ f 2 − Qcond ,b→a
or dTb (5)
mb cb = Ap hrpb (Tp − Tb ) − Ab hcbf 2 (Tb − T f 2 ) − AbU ba (Tb − Ta )
dt

The average daily PV/T collector efficiency can be determined by the integration of thermal and electrical energy obtained over
the daytime period in comparison with total solar energy over the same period, which can be expressed as:

 (
η PV / T = ηth + η elec =  ∫ Qth dt + ∫ Qelec dt ) A ∫ Gdt  .
c
(6)

Qin,g Qrad,g-a Qconv,g-a

Glass Cover (g)
CH 1 (f1) Qconv,g-f1
Qin,p
Air (in) Qrad,p-g Qconv,g-f1
PV/T Absorber
Plate (p)
Qelec Qrad,p-b Qconv,g-f2
CH 2 (f2)
Air (out) Qth
Qconv,b-f2
Back Plate (b)
Insulator
Qcond,b-a
Fig. 2 Cross section of PV/T collector with energy transfer for each component

2.2 Desiccant Dehumidification Model

The desiccant can be either solid or liquid. This study focuses on solid desiccant dehumidifiers, in which the process air to be
dried is passed through a desiccant bed. Water vapor is adsorbed into the desiccant, driven by the vapor pressure differential between
the process air and the desiccant surface. When the desiccant is nearly saturated, hot air is passed through the bed to release the
moisture. The desiccant bed typically takes the form of a box so that it may be conveniently swapped between the process and
regeneration airstreams. The mathematic equation of the desiccant dehumidification unit can be expressed as:

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 The 2nd Joint International Conference on “Sustainable Energy and Environment (SEE 2006)”
B-039 (O) 21-23 November 2006, Bangkok, Thailand

For the sorption process,  PW ,a PW ,d 

hm Ad (7)
Rd =  − 
R
 TW ,a TW ,d 
For regeneration process, h A P P  (8)
Rr = m d  W ,d − W ,a 
R  TW ,d TW ,a 


Moreover, the conservation of energy for those processes can be explained as:
Qd = Qs + Qa (9)
 dT   dh 
or  Rd (C p ,W Twb + hs )  =  md (Cd + XCw )  +  m& a (C p ,a + (Cw + v )ω1 )(Ta 2 − Ta1 )  (10)
 dt   dT 
2.3 Living Space Model
The room represents a typical living room in Thai houses where the air-conditioner is commonly used. The cooling load of the
room is the summary of ventilation load, infiltration load and space cooling load as shown in Fig 4.2. The space cooling load
includes heat gain across the building envelope and heat gain from internal sources in the room such as occupants and electrical
appliances[2]. The solar radiation and the temperature difference between the outside and the inside of the room lead to the heat gain
across the building envelope due to walls, roof and windows.

A/C
Conductive
Heat Gain
Q si
Q si

Q si Q la
Q si

Ventilation Q si &Q la

Q si &Q la

Fig. 3 Varieties of cooling loads

Ventilation air and infiltration air are the air amounts which are brought from the surrounding environment into the room, and are
eventually cooled and dehumidified to the condition in the room. Heat gains by natural infiltration and ventilation can be calculated
using the following equations:
Qsi = 0.33nV (To − Tr ) (10)
Qla = 0.8nV ( g o − g r ) (11)

The equipment, electric lighting and human occupants are the internal heat sources. According to ASHRAE [9], a human occupant
in the room is responsible for a sensible heat gain of 70 W and a latent heat gain of 35 W. The amount of heat gain in the space due
to lighting depends on the wattage of the lamps. When fluorescent lighting is used, the energy dissipated by the ballast must also be
included in the internal load. For electrical appliances, their heat gain is usually close to the power drawn in actual use.
For the heat gain through walls, the CIBSE Guide offers a method involving the use of sol-air temperatures, Teo, and related the
concepts of environmental temperature, as well as dry resultant and air temperature. The instantaneous flow of heat, Qw, through a
wall into a room conditioned at a constant temperature, Tr, is given by
Qw = AU (Teo − Tr ) (12)
The sol-air temperature is defined as the value of the outside air temperature which would, in the absence of all radiation
exchanges, give the same rate of heat flow into the outer surface of the wall as the actual combination of temperature differences and
radiation exchange really does. Thus, the sol-air temperature can be expressed as
α (Gδ + Gs ) (13)
Teo = To +
hso
The relative humidity ratio,φ, is a relationship of the amount of moisture the air holds (mv) and the maximum amount of moisture
the air can hold at the same temperature (mg) which can be expressed as
m
φ= v = v
( PV RvT ) = Pv = ωP (14)
mg ( PgV RvT ) Pg (0.622 + ω ) Pg

2.4 Air-Conditioning System Model

Cooling is obtained by a working cycle called the refrigeration cycle. The most widely used cycle is the vapor-compression
refrigeration cycle (VCC). Normally, VCC is used in many home appliances such as refrigerators and air-conditioners.
The cycle consists of four main devices which are the evaporator, condenser, compressor and expansion device. Moreover, the
VCC can be thermodynamically considered into four steady flow processes: isentropic compression in a compressor, constant
pressure heat rejection at the condenser, throttling in an expansion device, and constant pressure heat absorption at evaporator.
The superheated vapor refrigerant leaves the evaporator and enters the compressor while the compressor is used to increase the

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B-039 (O) 21-23 November 2006, Bangkok, Thailand

refrigerant vapor pressure from evaporator pressure to condenser pressure, then, the refrigerant discharges to the condenser where the
work of the compressor is:
• •
W com = mr (h2 − h1 ) (15)
Next, inside the condenser, the refrigerant rejects the heat to the surroundings. As a result, it changes from the superheated vapor to
a sub cooled liquid while the rate of heat rejection at the condenser is:
• •
Q con = mr ( h2 − h3 ) (16)
Therefore the refrigerant enters the evaporator as a low quality saturated mixture, and it evaporates completely to superheat vapor
at the outlet due to heat absorbing from the load where the rate of heat transfer is:
• •
Q evap = mr (h1 − h4 ) (17)
Therefore the coefficient of performance (COP) of VCC is defined as:
•
Q evap (18)
COP = •
W com

3. CONFIGULATION OF SIMULATION SYSTEM

The simulations have been carried out for a hybrid PV/T solar air heating collector consisting of a 2-m2 single-glass collector, two
air flow channels and three 42-Wp amorphous-silicon (a-Si) thin-film solar cell modules pasting over an aluminum absorber plate.
The living room’s dimensions are 3.5-m width, 4.8-m length and 2.5-m height and there is a window with a total area of 0.7 m2 on
the east and the west walls. Moreover, two occupants, four 36W fluorescent lamps, and a 50W television are simulated as its cooling
load. The 5 kg silica gel and 1-ton air conditioner are also assumed to maintain the comfort zone, which is 25oC and 50% relative
humidity, in the room. The system is assumed to be operated under the typical climate conditions of Bangkok Thailand. Hourly total
solar irradiances simulating from the Exell’s solar radiation model [1] are used in the simulation while the daily ambient temperature
variation is assumed to be sinusoidal and a constant wind speed of 1m/s is used for the sake of simplicity.

4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

1100 110

1000 100

G
.

900 90
Q South
Global Radiation (W/m2), Heat Gain (W)

800 80
.

Q East
Ambient Temperature ( oC )

700 70
Q West
600 60
Q North
500 50
Ta
400 40

300 30

200 20

100 10

0 0
6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00 3:00 6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00 3:00 6:00
Time of Day (hours)

Fig. 4 The hourly radiation, ambient temperature and heat gain through the walls for two consecutive days

Figure 4 presents the prevailing variations of the global solar radiation and ambient temperature during two conservative days.
The heat gain through each wall simulated by the living space model are also shown in this figure. At the beginning, all heat gains
are equal to zero due to no solar irradiance, G. When sun rises, walls are heated up. The heat gain through the South wall appears the
highest as most sun’s ray affect to that wall. The heat gain through East wall is increasing high up to 500 W in the morning and
decreasing down in the afternoon which is opposite to those of West wall. The lowest heat gain belongs to the North wall in which
the highest value is only about 200 W in the afternoon. These phenomenons occur due to the position of the sun for each minute.
Moreover, the living room model can predict the room temperature and relative humidity. At the beginning, those room
parameters are equal to the ambient values and the thermostat setting point of the A/C system is set to be equal to (25oC). During the
day time, when the room temperature is higher than 25oC, the A/C operate, then, the temperature cool down as well as the relative
humidity until the system is in the stabilizing period where the temperature is 25oC and RH is about 50%. At the late night, there is
no heat gain from the solar radiation and the ambient temperature is lower than those of the room, thus, the A/C is not operated.
Although the desiccant adsorbs some moisture in the air, its adsorption rate is not enough to adsorb the moisture gained from the
ventilation, infiltration and human, thus, the RH in the room increases. In the next day, after the A/C turns on when the room
temperature is higher than threshold, the temperature and the RH will be in comfort zone again.

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B-039 (O) 21-23 November 2006, Bangkok, Thailand

100 1

90 0.8

RH ambient
80 0.6
Cond RHout
70 0.4
PV/T RHout

.
.
60 0.2

Temperature (oC)

Relative Humidity
50 0
PV/T Tout

40 Cond Tout
-0.2

30 Ta -0.4

20 -0.6

10 -0.8

0 -1
6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00 3:00 6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00 3:00 6:00
Time of Day (Hours)

Fig. 5 The simulated temperature and relative humidity of outlet air from PV/T collector and condensing unit

The temperature and relative humidity of air passed though the fin of the condenser unit in the A/C system are shown in Fig 5.
The saw tooth curves represent the operation of A/C for turning on and off. The ambient air will receive the rejected energy from the
room plus the work done at the compressor when the A/C system operates. It results in the rise of air temperature up to about 50 oC
and the relative humidity decreases from 85% to about 30%. On the other hand, when A/C turns off, the relative humidity and
temperature of air outlet are still the same as those of ambient condition which is obviously seen at the night time.
Moreover, Figure 5 also presents the variation results of temperature and relative humidity results at the outlet of PV/T collector.
The temperature and RH are also initially set to be equal to the ambient. During the day, the PV/T collector is initially heated up by
solar irradiance. The solar cell temperature appears the highest as most solar radiation passes through the cover and absorbed by the
solar cell. The solar energy is partly converted to electricity and transferred to the absorber plate as thermal energy. This useful
energy then heats up the air which flows in channel 1 (between the glass cover and PV/T absorber plate) and channel 2 (between the
PV/T plate and the back plate). When the air is heated up, the relative humidity is decreased. The highest temperature and the lowest
RH of the hot air, flowed out from PV/T collector, are about 50oC and 20%, respectively. The hot air from PV/T is mixed with the
one that passing through the condenser and, then, used to regenerate the saturated desiccant that has already used to adsorb moisture
in the room. During the night, there is no solar radiation to heat up, thus, the temperature and RH at outlet of PV/T collector are
almost to those of ambient.

0.4

Regeneration Process
0.35
Sorption Process
.

0.3
Mass of Water in Desiccant (Kg/Kg)

0.25

0.2

0.15

0.1

0.05

0
6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00 3:00 6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00 0:00 3:00 6:00
Time of Day (hours) .

Fig. 6 The moisture content in silica gel desiccant bed

Figure 6 shows the moisture content in the desiccant during the sorption and regeneration process. For the regeneration process,
the saturated desiccant with 0.3 kg water/kg air moisture content is heated by the hot air from the mixture unit, thus, the moisture is
evaporated. The first saturated pack uses about 6 hours to regenerate to ready to use but the second pack uses only about 3 hours
because in the afternoon there is more heat gain to the room resulting in the more heat rejected. Moreover, the PV/T can collect the
more energy from the sun, thus, there is more energy to regenerate the desiccant leaded to the shorter time for regeneration. But,
during the night, there is no heat collected by PV/T collector and there is no heat rejected at the condenser, therefore, the moisture in
desiccant cannot be removed until the next day. On the other hand, in the sorption process, starting with dry silica gel, the moisture
in the room is adsorbed in the high adsorption rate until the adsorbent is saturated at the moisture contest is 0.3 which takes about 6
hours. After that new dry desiccant pack is replaced to keep the living space is in the comfort condition.

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B-039 (O) 21-23 November 2006, Bangkok, Thailand

Table 1 The comparison of heat gain, water drain and energy used by A/C in the A/C system and A/C with Desiccant system
Q Gain (MJ) Water drain (Kg) ToTal Energy Saving
Sensible Latent Total A/C MJ Des. MJ Used in A/C %
A/C only 63.159 38.979 102.138 15.884 38.979 0.000 0.000 102.138 0.000
A/C with 60.128 44.373 104.501 7.458 18.301 10.624 27.060 77.441 24.180
Dessicant

Table 1 shows the comparison of heat gain, water drain and energy used by A/C in (1) the A/C system and (2) A/C with Desiccant
system. In system (1), the A/C must operate cover both of sensible heat and latent heat with the total energy of 102.13 MJ. But in
system (2) the desiccant can adsorb some moisture in the air which is equal to 27.06 MJ of latent heat, thus, the A/C must take care
only 77.441 MJ. Therefore, the air conditioning room with desiccant dehumidification unit can save the energy up to 24.18%.

5. CONCLUSION

The model can predict the dynamic variations of several system performance parameters such as the electrical power output, the
mount of heat that can be drawn from the system, temperature and humidity of each considered parts. The results show that the silica
gel can be used to dehumidify the moisture in the air which leads to about 24% energy saving for the air conditioning system. In
addition, the PV/T air heating can be used to supply the hot air, which is about 50oC, for mixing with those of condensing unit of air
conditioning system to regenerate the saturated desiccant while the generated electrical energy is used to supply the electrical device
in the system or sent to the grid line. However, the simulated results are needed to directly compare with those of relevant
experiments. Finally, it is expected that once the developed simulation model is successfully verified by experimental results, it will
be useful not only for predicting the whole system transient performance, but also for designing the system to meet the load
requirements at any operating site location provided that the local meteorological data is available.

6. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors thank the Thailand Research Fund (TRF) for her kind contribution in providing financial support.

7. NOMENCLATURE

A = Area (m2), C = Specific heat ( J/kg K), F = View Factor, G = Global Radiation (W/m2), h = Heat Transfer Coefficient (W/m2K), L
= Length of Collector (m), m = Mass (kg), m & = Mass Flow Rate (kg/s), T = Temperature (K), t = Time (s), U = Overall heat loss
coefficient (W/m K), W = Width of Collector (m), Greek letters: α = absorptance, σ = Stephan-Boltzmann constant (5.67x10-8
2

W/m2K4), γ = coefficient for photovoltaic conversion efficiency, τ = transmittance, η= efficiency,

Subscripts: a = ambient, b = back plate, c, conv = convection, elec = electrical, f = working fluid (air), g = glass cover, in = input,
out = output, p = PV/T absorber plate, r = room, rad = radiation, s = sky, S = solar cell, Th = thermal, u = useful energy, 1=
Channel 1, 2 = Channel 2

8. REFERENCES

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