Enhancing Efficiency of Photovoltaic-Thermoelectric Hybrid System through Optical Concentrator

This study aims to enhance the solar energy conversion into electrical energy by integrating two different systems namely: photovoltaic panel (PV) and thermoelectric generator (TEG). The TEG converts the thermal energy generated by the PV panel via the Seebeck effect, thereby adding additional electrical power to the overall system. A comparison between the hybrid system with solar concentrator and without solar concentrator was carried out. The contribution of the thermoelectric generator in both types of the hybrid system is evaluated. The study also focused on the impact of irradiation, and optical concentrator, on the performance of both hybrid systems. To achieve this, a mathematical model was developed that considered environmental factors, as well as thermal and optical losses within the hybrid system. Six energy balance equations were derived corresponding to six surface temperatures, and these nonlinear equations were solved using the Newton-Raphson method. Results showed that the contribution of the thermoelectric generator in the hybrid system with solar concentrator is large compared to the hybrid system without solar concentrator which shows a small improvement. The power generated by the hybrid system with solar concentrator is very large with respect to the photovoltaic panel, while the power generated by the hybrid system without solar concentrator only shows a slight improvement. The results encourage the use of a solar concentrator in this hybrid system for better solar energy conversion.