To enhance the cooling of hybrid solar photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) systems, this study examines the fluid behavior of MAX phase/ethanol and MAX phase/methanol nanofluids in two-phase closed thermosyphons (TPCT). According to the results, the optimal angle for absorbing solar energy with both nanofluids is 30°. In every tested angle, the ethanol-based nanofluid continuously outperformed the others in terms of capturing solar energy. A 50% filling ratio produced the best thermal performance, resulting in lower rear panel temperatures and higher output power. Because ethanol has a lower viscosity and a more negative zeta potential, it has a slightly higher heat transfer efficiency. Temperature drop and output power were further enhanced by increasing the nanofluid concentration to 1.0%, resulting in a maximum temperature reduction of 20.5 °C and a power increase of 1.73 W behind the panel. Although both nanofluids improved electrical efficiency at lower concentrations, methanol exhibited marginally higher electrical efficiency at 1.0%. The results of the energy analysis showed that the MAX phase/methanol nanofluid had a marginally higher exergy efficiency (16.04%) than the MAX phase/ethanol (15.54%), suggesting a greater potential for improving exergy performance. While MAX phase/methanol nanofluid offers benefits in exergy efficiency, MAX phase/ethanol nanofluid is superior overall in improving solar energy efficiency and thermal management, highlighting the significance of customized nanofluid optimization for renewable energy applications.
Dashtbozorg et al. (Fri,) studied this question.