Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438

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Thermal Science and Engineering Progress

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/tsep

Thermal regulation of photovoltaic panel installed in Upper Egyptian T

conditions in Qena
Ahmed N. Shmroukh
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, South Valley University, Qena 83521, Egypt

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Keywords: High ambient temperature and excessive solar radiation, especially in Upper Egypt, are essential factors in
PV panel photovoltaic (PV) panel overheating, which in turn reduce its efficiency in such regions. Therefore, this study
Electrical efficiency aims to develop a cooling system for the proposed thin-film PV panel installed in a harsh climate region in Qena
Thin film City in Upper Egypt to obtain practically reasonable electrical efficiency. To achieve this target, three different
Free and forced convection
cooling systems and operating modes were investigated: open-loop water-based cooling system, closed-loop
water-based cooling system with free-convection air-cooled heat exchanger, and closed-loop water-based cooling
system with forced-convection air-cooled heat exchanger using a DC fan. All these systems were supplemented
with a fourth operating mode without cooling, i.e., normal conditions. The PV panel efficiency was experi-
mentally investigated using the proposed cooling systems, and the experimental results demonstrated that
without cooling, the daily average efficiency reached only approximately 6.2%, whereas it increased to 11.3%
when the open-loop system was used. However, the daily average efficiency reached 8.5% using the closed-loop
free-convection cooling system, and it reached 10.5% when the closed-loop forced-convection cooling system
was used. Therefore, these cooling systems are highly recommended for application as effective techniques to
increase the PV panel performance. The entire experimental data were obtained during a 10-h period from 7:00
a.m. to 5:00p.m.

1. Introduction remaining amount of radiation is converted to electricity [2]. When the

Egypt has high average annual global solar radiation of
5.5847 kW·h/(m2/day) [1]. Therefore, using photovoltaic (PV) for re-
newable and clean electricity generation in this region is very pro-
mising, especially in Qena City in Upper Egypt, which is located at
latitude 26°10′ N and longitude 32°43′ E with annual average total daily
solar radiation on a tilted surface of 5.955 kW·h/(m2/day) [1]. The
received solar radiation in Qena can exceed 1200 W/m2, particularly in
summer when the ambient temperature can reach 52 °C. The PV surface
temperature can easily reach up to 75 °C, which produces a drop in its
efficiency and power production [1]. One of the major operational
challenges in using PV in Qena is the high ambient temperature, which
leads to the decrease in the power generation and efficiency, especially
during summer time.
PV panels have become one of the most common renewable energy
transformers. Recently, many countries have focused on using this
technology to generate clean energy. The PV panel is a device that
converts solar energy into direct electric current using semiconductor
materials that exhibit a PV effect. During their operation, approxi-
mately 85% of solar radiation is converted to heat, whereas the
PV operating temperature increases, the electrical efficiency decreases.
Therefore, cooling the PV system is critically needed to reduce its
temperature and increase its electrical efficiency [2]. However, the
high-temperature and dry conditions in the region in Upper Egypt,
especially in Qena City, should be considered when using a PV system.
Generally, many techniques such as water- and air-based cooling sys-
tems are used to cool the PV system to maintain a lower operating
temperature.
1.1. Water-cooled PV related works
One of the successful PV cooling techniques experimentally per-
formed by Rahimi et al. [3] used water as a cooling fluid in single- and
multi-header microchannels for PV cooling. According to their experi-
mental outcomes, the PV surface temperature decreased by approxi-
mately 6.8% when a multi-header microchannel was used, and the heat
decreased by 19% compared with that using a single-header micro-
channel. Moreover, the achieved generated power increased by 28%. In
addition, Peng et al. [4] experimentally improved the output-energy
efficiency of a solar PV panel using a cooling-water system. Their results

E-mail address: eng_ahmednagah@yahoo.com.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsep.2019.100438
Received 1 April 2019; Received in revised form 30 October 2019; Accepted 30 October 2019
2451-9049/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
A.N. Shmroukh
Nomenclature
List of symbols
A area [m2]
FF fill factor [–]
I electrical current [A]
N number of measured values [–]
P power [W]
P.S power saving [W]
R determined value [–]
S solar-radiation intensity [W/m2]
T temperature [°C]
V electrical voltage [V]
x measured value [–]
Greek symbol
δ uncertainty [–]
Η efficiency [–]
demonstrated that the solar PV efficiency increased by 47% under the
said cooling condition. The annual output electric efficiency of the PV
could increase up to 35%, and the cost payback period could be reduced
to 12.1 years, instead of the 15 years for the same system without
cooling. Nizetic et al. [5] experimentally investigated the performance
of a PV panel when cooled using water spray applied to its front and
back sides. They found that by applying this cooling technique, the
output power and panel efficiency increased by 16.3% and 14.1% re-
spectively, and the panel temperature decreased from 54 °C (for the PV
panel without cooling) to approximately 24 °C. Irwan et al. [6] studied
the PV panel performance using a water-cooling technique by per-
forming an indoor test. They used a solar simulator equipped with a
halogen-lamp bulb that acted as a natural sunlight. They mentioned
that by applying this cooling mechanism, the operating temperature
decreased by a range of approximately from 5 to 23 °C and the output
power increased by 9–22%. They also concluded that their proposed
cooling system realized an increase in the panel efficiency. Its lifespan
became longer, and the investment system payback period was reduced.
Another PV panel water-based cooling technique was demonstrated in
the system used by Ebaid et al. [7]. They conducted an experimental
study on cooling a PV panel using two mixtures. The first was
TiO2–water nanofluid with polyethylene glycol mixture, and the second
was Al2O3–water nanofluid with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide
mixture. They demonstrated that the reduced average PV panel surface
temperature was the effect of using nanoparticles compared with that of
pure water. Further, as the mixture concentrations and flow rates in-
creased, the PV panel surface temperature decreased. Moreover, the
Al2O3 nanofluid mixture achieved the best reduction in the PV panel
surface temperature and the best increment in the power and efficiency
compared with those using the TiO2 nanofluid mixture and pure water.
Furthermore, Fakouriyan et al. [8] experimentally analyzed the effect
of PV cooling in a PV/thermal system by directing outlet preheated
water to a solar water heater to enhance the PV efficiency and generate
heat power. Their combined system improved the overall efficiency up
to 61.7%. Moreover, their proposed system payback period reached
8.7 years. Furthermore, Nardi et al. [9] evaluated the performance of a
PV/thermal system under summer conditions. Their proposed system
consisted of a polycrystalline PV panel with simple solar concentrator.
They concluded that the system enhanced the overall efficiency by
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Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438
Subscripts
avg average
c.w cooling water
fan fan
in input
m maximum
net net
NOCT normal operating cell temperature
no,cooling without cooling mode
oc open circuit
pump pump
sc short circuit
Abbreviations
DC Direct current
H. ex Heat exchanger
PV Photovoltaic
more than 28% over that using standalone PV without cooling or hot-
water production. On the other hand, Pang et al. [10] experimentally
compared an aluminum substrate-based water-cooled PV/thermal
system with conventional glass substrate-based PV. Their results de-
monstrated that the aluminum-based system had electrical efficiency of
20% more than that of the glass-based one. Moreover, their proposed
system had a flexible compact design. Sainthiya et al. [11] experi-
mentally and analytically studied the performance parameters of a
surface-cooled PV/thermal module. They concluded that the cooling
water on the PV surface significantly enhanced the PV back tempera-
ture. Moreover, the electrical, thermal, and overall efficiency improved
and reached up to 12%, 22%, and 49% in the summer season, respec-
tively, whereas these efficiency values were enhanced up to 14%, 25%,
and 45% in the winter season, respectively.
1.2. Air-cooled PV
Moreover, many publications are available that focused on PV air-
cooling techniques, such as that of Teo et al. [12]. Their experimentally
investigated cooling system depended on the flow of 0.055 kg/s of air in
ducts fixed behind a PV module. Their results revealed that the module
temperature decreased to 38 °C, and its efficiency increased to ap-
proximately 12.5% where without cooling, the module temperature
and efficiency were 68 °C and 8.6%, respectively. Popovici et al. [13]
improved the PV efficiency using air-cooled heat sinks. Their numerical
approach depended on the modification of the angle between the base
plate and ribs of the different heat-sink configurations using ANSYS-
Fluent software. Their results revealed that the reduction in tempera-
ture reached 10 °C below the obtained value in the nominal case. In
addition, the maximum generated power was more than 90% of the
normal one. Tonui et al. [14] extracted heat from a PV module using
forced- and natural-air circulation through channels to improve the PV
module performance. They mentioned that under a forced-convection
mode with a 60 m3/s air-volume flow rate and 15-cm channel depth,
they obtained better electrical performance due to the achieved PV
cooling. Another PV air-cooling technique was demonstrated by Jamali
et al. [15]. They theoretically investigated the performance of novel
semi-transparent PV arrays that acted as roofs of a solar chimney and
cooled down by air drawn from the solar chimney. The results indicated
A.N. Shmroukh Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438

Fig. 1. Experimental procedures’ flow chart for the four experiments.

that their solar-chimney system could cool the local temperature of PV up to 29%.
arrays by up to 38 °C, and the array-generated power improved as the On the other hand, according to the literature, cooling of the PV
chimney height increased. Therefore, the use of such a solar-chimney panels plays a vital role for improving their generating power and op-
system for PV cooling purposes could improve the power generation by erating efficiency because the electrical power output and efficiency of

3
A.N. Shmroukh
Fig. 2. A photograph of the proposed test rig.
PV panels are inversely proportional to their temperature. However, no
studies have succeeded in cooling the PV panels in the hot arid areas in
the Upper Egypt region, especially in Qena City. Therefore, the present
study focused on using the open-loop water-cooling system and closed-
loop water-cooling system with a natural-convection air-cooled heat
exchanger to cool down the circulated cooling water and a closed-loop
water-cooling system with a forced-convection air-cooled heat ex-
changer to cool down the PV panel built at the backyard in the Faculty
of Engineering, South Valley University in Qena City (26°10′ N and
32°43′ E) in Upper Egypt, which has an annual total irradiation of not
less than 2100 W·h/(m2/day) [16,17].
This paper is organized into different sections. One of them is the
Section 2 that presents the test-rig operation and instrumentation, fol-
lowed by the section based on error analysis to present the error of all
measured and determined parameters. Then, the Section 4 provides the
results of the experiments and their analysis. Finally, the Section 5
clarifies the outcomes of the present work.
2. Methodology, experimental setup, and measurements
2.1. Methodology
The experimental procedures for the four proposed experiments are
shown in the flowchart in Fig. 1.
Cooling water passes through the copper pipes, which are attached
to the back side of the panel to absorb a reasonable amount of heat from
the panel by conduction. Then, the heated water from the outlet passes
to the DC pump and its tank and then to the heat exchanger (H. ex). The
DC pump pushes the heated water into H. ex via the DC fan installed at
its front (for the forced-convection experiment mode). The DC fan sends
the forced-convection air to H. ex, which cools down the hot water.
After the water is cooled, it returns to enter the back side of the panel to
absorb heat again to complete the cycle.
The detailed schematic diagram of the test facilities for each
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Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438
experiment is shown in Fig. 2.
2.2. Experimental setup
An experimental test rig is designed and constructed, as shown in
Fig. 3. It is flexible to accommodate different cooling techniques. This
section outlines the construction description, design criteria of the test
rig, and different cooling-technique experiments.
The test facilities mainly consist of the following.
1- PV module: a thin-film type (SCHOTT Solar Panel) is used whose
specifications are listed in Table 1.
2- Panel holder: a thick wooden frame constructed to hold the pro-
posed PV panel with an optimum solar angle of 27° facing south.
This angle enables reception of maximum radiation from the sun in
Qena City.
3- Copper pipes: 3/8-in-diameter copper pipes with thermal con-
ductivity of 385 W/(m·K) are fixed at the back side of the panel.
4- Insulation: 1-in-thick glass wool insulation is used to cover the pipes
to prevent the surrounding air from heating the pipes.
5- DC pump: an insulated 12-V DC pump is used to circulate the
cooling water in both free- and forced-convection closed-loop ex-
periments (4.3 W, 1.5 l/min).
6- DC pump tank: a galvanized steel water tank insulated by 1-in-thick
glass wool insulation and holds the DC pump and circulated cooling
water to stabilize the flow.
7- Heat exchanger: a fin-and-tube heat exchanger is used to cool the
exiting cooling water from the panel using ambient air in both free-
and forced-convection closed-loop experiments.
8- DC cooling fan: an axial flow 12-V 2.1-W cooling fan is used in the
closed-loop forced-convection experiment to increase the heat-
transfer rate between the heat-exchanger flowing water and ambient
air.
2.3. Measurements and instrumentation
All measurement devices and instrumentation used in the experi-
ments are summarized and listed in Table 2.
3. Data reduction and error analysis
The error in the experiments is evaluated. The following calcula-
tions are used to obtain the required parameters and their uncertainty.
The total incident solar radiation on the PV panel or its input power
is calculated as follows [20]:
Pin = SAPV . (1)
The maximum output power of the panel is calculated using the
following formula [20]:
Pm = Im Vm. (2)
Therefore, the net PV system power is calculated using the following
formula:
Pnet = Pm (Ppump + Pfan). (3)
The module fill factor, which is the ratio of the maximum electrical
output power to the short-circuit current and open-circuit voltage
multiplication [21] can be determined by [20,21]
Im· Vm
FF = .
Isc ·Voc (4)
Moreover, the PV panel electrical efficiency is determined by the
A.N. Shmroukh Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438

Fig. 3. Schematic layout of the proposed experimental setup in case of cooling modes (a) open-loop, (b) closed-loop natural-convection, (c) closed-loop forced-
convection.

following [20,22]: 4. Results and discussion

Pm
= . Different experiments from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00p.m. on May 15, 17,
elect
Pin (5)
20, and 21, 2018 were carried out to investigate the influence of the use
The net system efficiency is also determined as follows: of an open loop with continuous source of water, closed loop with
natural-convection-cooled cooling water, and closed loop with forced-
Pnet
= . convection-cooled cooling water as cooling mechanisms for the PV
net
Pin (6)
module. Detailed analysis of the thermal and electrical sides of the
The electric power saved and the cost savings can be determined by proposed PV module was conducted. Subsequently, the necessary and
the following equation: most efficient cooling mechanism for the proposed PV module was
specified.
P . S = Pnet Pno, cooling . (7)

Finally, the error of the determined values can be calculated by

applying the following general equation for the uncertainty generated 4.1. Environmental conditions in the test days
by the calculations [23,24]:
The environmental conditions in the four test days in May 2018 are
R
2
R
2
R
2 shown in Figs. 4 and 5 for the solar radiation and ambient temperature,
R= x1 + x2 + ....+ xN respectively. Fig. 4 shows that the solar radiations in the test days ex-
x1 x2 xN (8)
hibited the same trend with a maximum difference of approximately
All the values obtained from the error analysis of the measured and 80 W/m2 only. Fig. 5 shows that the ambient air temperatures in the
determined parameters are listed in Table 3. test days had a maximum difference of approximately 0.9 °C only.

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A.N. Shmroukh Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438

Table 1
PV panel specifications.
Specifications Proposed PV panel photograph

Peak power (Pm) 38 W

Voltage (Vm) 19.8 V
Current (Im) 1.92 A
Open circuit voltage (Voc) 22.8 V
Short circuit Current (Isc) 2.5 A
Dimension 0.6 m × 1 m (0.6 m2)
Weight 6.2 kg
Operating temperature From −40 to +85 °C
Normal operating cell temperature (TNOCT) 47 °C ( ± 2 °C)
Temperature coefficient of Pm −0.2%/°C
Temperature coefficient of Voc −0.33%/°C
Temperature coefficient of Isc +0.08%/°C

Table 2 Table 3
Measurement device specifications. Error analysis of the measured and determined parameters.
Device Specifications Variable Accuracy

Pressure gauge Pressure range 0–15 bar Pressure ± 0.125 bar or ± (0.83% of full scale)
Operating temperature: 0–80 °C Temperature ± 0.1% [23,24]
Voltage ± 0.1%
Temperature measurement Model: K-Type thermocouples
Current ± 0.05%
Temperature range: −50 °C to 150 °C
Solar radiation intensity up to ± 1%
Operating humidity: 5–95% RH
Water volume flow rate ± 5 ml or ± (0.25% of full scale) [18,19]
Avometer Model: A2F1 Wind speed ± 5%
Maximum AC current: 10 A Relative humidity ± 5%
Maximum DC current: 200 mA Input power ± 0.14% of the result
Maximum AC voltage range: 750 V Maximum output power ± 0.23% of the result
Maximum DC voltage range: 1000 V Net efficiency ± 0.84% of the result
Resistance measurement: 200 Ω–2000 KΩ

Pyrometer Model: CM4

Measurement range: 0–4000 W/m2
Sensitivity (nominal): 4–10 × 10−6 V/(W/m2)
Rated operating temperature range: −40 to
+150 °C

Infrared camera Model: IC120LV

Measurement range: −20 to 1500 °C
Sensitivity: ± 2% of the reading
Resolution: 384 × 288 Pixel

water volume flow rate Model: laboratory-graded glass bottle

Capacity: 2000 ml with 5-ml minimum scale
[18,19]

Anemometer Model: UT363

Measurement range: 0–30 m/s
Accuracy: ± 5% reading
Operating temperature range: −10 to +50 °C

Humidity probe Model: HTC.PT.2H

Measurement range: 1%–99% RH
Accuracy: ± 5% reading Fig. 4. Solar radiation during the test days.
Operating temperature range: −50 to +70 °C

6
A.N. Shmroukh
Fig. 5. Ambient air temperature during the test days.
Fig. 6. PV panel average surface temperatures for the four operating modes
with ambient temperature.
Therefore, we can conclude that the environmental conditions in the
test days were almost identical.
4.2. PV panel surface temperature
Determination of the temperature distribution in a PV panel is a
decisive factor for providing an effective cooling system. Fig. 6 shows
the ambient temperature and average temperatures of the proposed PV
panel back-side surface without cooling operation, with an open-loop
cooling operating mode, with a closed-loop cooling and free-convection
operating mode, and with a closed-loop cooling and forced-convection
operating mode. The cooling-water flow rate for the three cooling-mode
experiments was adjusted to 1.5 l/min, and its initial inlet temperature
was maintained at 30 °C.
Fig. 6 shows that the PV panel without cooling exhibited the highest
level of surface temperature. A maximum temperature of approximately
66.8 °C was observed at ambient temperature of approximately 40.5 °C.
Because of the high solar-radiation intensity, some of the incident ra-
diations were converted into heat instead of electrical energy. On the
7
Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438
other hand, the lowest level of PV panel surface temperature was ob-
served in the system with an open-loop operating mode, which was
approximately 44.2 °C at the same ambient temperature. Meanwhile, at
the same point, the surface temperature in the closed-loop free-con-
vection operating mode was approximately 55.5 °C, and it was ap-
proximately 48.5 °C in the closed-loop forced-convection operating
mode.
Comparison of the PV panel front-surface-temperature distribution
using an infrared camera under the proposed four operating modes at
12:00p.m. is shown in Fig. 7. Generally, with no cooling operation, i.e.,
normal operating condition, average PV front surface temperature Tavg
reached nearly 69 °C. However, when the open loop-cooling was ap-
plied, Tavg sharply decreased to approximately 45 °C. Meanwhile, Tavg
reached 58 °C only when the closed-loop free-convection cooling was
applied. The application of the closed-loop cooling forced convection
reduced Tavg to approximately 49 °C.
The daily average-temperature reduction in the PV surface tem-
perature with no cooling operation relative to the remaining three
operating modes is shown in Fig. 8. Fig. 8 shows that the highest daily
average-temperature difference found in the open-loop operating mode
was 12.7 °C, whereas that in the closed-loop cooling and free-convec-
tion operating mode was approximately 2.7 °C. It was approximately
10.1 °C in the closed-loop cooling and forced-convection operating
mode. The peak reduction in the PV surface temperature is also shown
in Fig. 8. The results revealed that the open-loop cooling mode was the
most efficient in regulating the PV surface temperature among all
cooling operating modes.
Fig. 9 shows the difference between the inlet and outlet cooling-
water temperatures in the open loop, closed loop with natural-con-
vection-cooled cooling water, and closed loop with forced-convection-
cooled cooling water experiments. We could observe that at the be-
ginning of the experiment, the temperature difference was low because
of the week effect of the cooling techniques and the decrease in both
ambient and panel surface temperatures. However, as time progressed,
the effect of cooling was observed, especially in the open-loop me-
chanism, which produced a cooling water-temperature difference of
approximately 5 °C. On the other hand, the lowest cooling-water-tem-
perature difference was realized by the closed-loop free-convection
mechanism, which was approximately 1.3 °C only. The profile of the
removed heat could also be assessed from Fig. 9 because the tempera-
ture difference is an indication of the removed heat.
4.3. PV system net power
The net power of the entire PV panel system is a key factor that
provides an initial estimation of the effectiveness of the cooling sys-
tems. Fig. 10 shows the hourly PV panel net output power with no
cooling operation, with an open-loop operating mode, with a closed-
loop cooling and free-convection operating mode, and with a closed-
loop cooling and forced-convection operating mode. We can clearly see
that the PV panel without cooling demonstrated the lowest maximum
output power of approximately 24.8 W due to the high PV surface
temperature. On the other hand, the highest value of PV net power was
achieved under the open-loop operating mode, which was approxi-
mately 30.9 W, due to very low PV surface temperature. At the same
time, the net power in the closed-loop free-convection operating mode
was approximately 27.3 W, and that in the closed-loop forced-convec-
tion operating mode was approximately 29.3 W.
The daily average power increase in the PV output net power under
no cooling operation relative to the remaining three operating modes
A.N. Shmroukh
Fig. 7. PV front surface temperature distribution during the proposed operating modes at 12:00 pm.
are shown in Fig. 11. Fig. 11 shows that the highest daily average net
power increase and savings could be found in the open-loop operating
mode, which was 6.1 W, whereas it was approximately 2.3 W in the
closed-loop cooling and free-convection operating mode. That for the
closed-loop cooling and forced-convection operating mode reached
approximately 5.1 W. The peak increase and savings in the PV electrical
net power output are also shown in Fig. 11, which reached approxi-
mately 8.9, 4.7, and 8.1 W for the open loop, closed-loop with free-
convection cooling system, and closed-loop with forced-convection
cooling system, respectively. This result proved that the open-loop
cooling mode is the most reliable among all cooling modes of operation.
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Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438
4.4. PV system net efficiency
The comparison of the PV system net efficiency under the proposed
four operating modes is shown in Fig. 12. The application of the dif-
ferent cooling techniques indicated that the introduction of cooling
resulted in a significant increase in the PV net efficiency. Generally,
without cooling application, which represented the normal operating
condition, the maximum PV system net efficiency reached only ap-
proximately 7.4%. On the other hand, application of the open-loop
cooling increased the maximum PV system net efficiency to approxi-
mately 12.9%. Meanwhile, application of the closed-loop free-convec-
tion cooling increased the maximum PV system net efficiency to
A.N. Shmroukh Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438

Fig. 8. PV panel daily average and peak temperature reduction.

Fig. 9. Inlet and outlet cooling water temperature difference for the three cooling mechanisms with time.

approximately 9.9%, and that of the closed-loop cooling forced con-
vection increased the maximum PV system net efficiency to approxi-
mately 11.6%. This result signified the importance of using cooling
water to cool down PV panels to increase their overall performance.
The daily average PV system net efficiency is shown in Fig. 13,
which shows that the lowest daily average PV net efficiency of 6.2%
was obtained when no cooling operation was applied. Meanwhile, the
highest daily average PV net efficiency of 11.3% was obtained when the
open-loop cooling technique was applied.
5. Conclusion
In the present study, the effect of using different PV cooling tech-
niques is experimentally investigated. The experimental results illu-
strated the following.
- The surface temperature of the PV panel was regulated by cooling its
back-side surface. The daily average decrease in the PV surface
temperature reached approximately 2.7, 10.1, and 12.7 °C with the
application of the closed-loop free-convection cooling, closed-loop
forced cooling, and open-loop cooling operating modes,

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A.N. Shmroukh Thermal Science and Engineering Progress 14 (2019) 100438

Fig. 10. PV system net output power for the four operation modes.

Fig. 11. PV system net daily average and peak power saving.

respectively. loop free-convection cooling, closed-loop forced-cooling and open-

- PV system net power could be saved as the PV surface temperature
decreased. The daily average net power savings were found to be
2.3, 5.1, and 6.1 W for the closed-loop free-convection cooling,
closed-loop forced cooling, and open-loop cooling operating modes,
respectively.
- Increasing the net power savings of the PV panel produced a sig-
nificant increase in its efficiency. Therefore, the daily average PV
net efficiency improved from 6.2% without cooling to approxi-
mately 8.5%, 10.5%, and 11.3% with the application of the closed-
loop cooling cases, respectively.
- By focusing on the overall point of view in terms of cost, the ap-
plication of the closed-loop forced-convection cooling system is
promising owing to its highest cost savings among all cooling
techniques.
- Therefore, cooling the PV panels is a critical and favorable issue for
increasing their performance, especially in harsh climate conditions
such as in Qena City.

10
A.N. Shmroukh
Fig. 12. PV system net efficiency for the four operation modes.
Fig. 13. PV system net daily average efficiency for the four operation modes.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influ-
ence the work reported in this paper.
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