Thermal and electrical performance of photovoltaic modules with combined cooling fin and phase change materials

Photovoltaic (PV) systems play a vital role in the global transition to clean energy, yet elevated operating temperatures continue to reduce electrical efficiency, accelerate module degradation, and limit long-term energy production. Passive cooling provides an attractive alternative because it requires no external power and involves minimal maintenance. This study evaluates the thermal, electrical, and techno-economic performance of a passive cooling framework that combines aluminium cooling fins with paraffin wax phase change material (PCM). Three identical 50 W monocrystalline PV modules were tested outdoors at a Malaysian power station over seven consecutive days. The configurations comprised an uncooled reference module, a fin-cooled module, and a hybrid fin–PCM module. Hourly measurements of solar irradiance, module temperature, and electrical power output were collected, followed by lifetime economic assessments based on Malaysia's Feed-in Tariff (FiT) and Net Energy Metering (NEM) schemes. The additional cooling in Module 3 is mainly attributed to increased thermal mass and sensible heat storage in the paraffin wax, since the measured operating temperatures remained below its melting range (58–60 °C), thereby limiting the latent heat contribution. The fin-only module reduced temperature by 2.9 °C and improved power output by 3.94%. Economic analysis showed that PCM integration increased the cost per unit to 0.0384 RM/kWh, with an ROI of 193.65% under FiT and 125.60% under NEM. The novelty of this work lies in integrating experimental thermal–electrical evaluation with lifetime techno-economic assessment, providing practical evidence that hybrid fin–PCM cooling improves PV performance while highlighting the need for lower-cost, longer-lasting PCM materials.