Design and performance evaluation of selective energy optimization of PV/t system

Purpose: This paper aims to develop a selective energy optimisation of the photovoltaic–thermal (PV/T) system performance. The PV cell inside the PV/T system could be periodically manipulated to produce domestic hot water without applying an external power supply. Design/methodology/approach: A numerical simulation model of the proposed PV/T model was developed in MATLAB/Simulink to analyse the selective energy optimisation of the model. The extrinsic cell resistance (Rse) is adjusted to control the ratio of thermal to the electrical energy, generated from the PV cell inside the PV/T system. Therefore, the internal heat of the PV cell inside the PV/T system is periodically used as a thermal element to produce electrical power and hot water. Findings: The optimisation of PV/T energy shows that the electrical power efficiency can increase by 11.6% when Rse was 0 Ω, and the 200 L water tank temperature increased by 22ºC when Rse was 50 Ω. Originality/value: This study showed that the use of the PV cell could be extended to domestic hot water and space heating, and not only for electricity.