Performance Assessment of a Solar Photovoltaic Thermal Heat Pipe Collector Under Hot Climate: A Case Study

Modeling and Simulation analysis is performed in this study to investigate the thermal and electrical performance of a hybrid solar photovoltaic thermal (PVT) heat pipe. This investigation was performed for the first time under hot climate conditions. Mathematical models were developed for both the thermal energy as well as the electrical energy of the solar collector. The numerical results were validated with existing experimental data available in the literature. The numerical results compare well with the experimental data. The monthly thermal and electrical energies generated by the solar collector under Sharjah weather conditions were determined and analyzed. The results obtained in the course of this study show that the integration of heat pipes with solar PV (Solar PV/Thermal) collector offers better electrical power production compared to the classical solar PV module. The maximum monthly electric electrical energy output PV/T heat pipe and classical PV module were respectively, 116 kWh and 102 kWh. However, the maximum monthly thermal generated by the PVT heat is 400 kWh.