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Exergy and SCAPS 1-D Analysis on Modified Thermophotovoltaic Cell with Fresnel Lens Concentrator and Absorber–Emitter Materials

  • Research Article-Mechanical Engineering
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Abstract

In this paper, the exergy and SCAPS 1-D analysis of the modified thermophotovoltaic (TPV) system were carried out using an augmented absorber–emitter configuration of Gold (Au), Chromium (Cr), Graphene Layers as absorbers with Si3N4 as the emitter. The aspect ratio for the absorber–emitter was considered as 10 and the concentrator used in the system was a Fresnel lens with a thickness of 1.5 mm. The PV cell used in the system was composed of silicon with a power output of 221 W at the maximum solar irradiance of 715 W/m2. The maximum first law efficiency of the system was determined and found out to be 30.86%. The exergy efficiency throughout the day for the whole system was observed to be 23% for the modified TPV system with the absorber–emitter materials. Using SCAPS 1-D modeling software the solar panel was simulated and the open-circuit voltage, current density and fill factor was calculated. The observation is that the solar photovoltaic system with Au/Cr/Graphene layers as absorber materials and Si3N4 emitter with Fresnel lens concentrator configuration reaches higher performance and enhances the maximum power output by 8–9% compared to conventional solar PV systems.

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Abbreviations

A :

Area (m2)

C :

Specific heat capacity (J/kg.K)

CE:

Conversion efficiency (%)

E :

Exergy (J)

FF:

Fill factor (%)

I :

Solar irradiance (W/m2)

J :

Current density (mA/cm2)

J sc :

Short circuit current density (mA/cm2)

m :

Mass (kg)

p :

Pressure (Pascal)

P :

Power (W)

Q :

Heat transfer in the component (J)

t :

Thickness (nm)

T :

Temperature (K)

V oc :

Open-circuit voltage (V)

Au:

Gold

AM:

Air mass

Cr:

Chromium

TPV:

Thermophotovoltaic

SCAPS:

Solar cell capacitance simulator

Si3N4 :

Silicon nitride

a :

Absorber

c :

Concentrator

e :

Emitter

n :

Si-n layer

p :

Si-p layer

s :

Solar cell

0:

Atmospheric condition

el:

Electrical

th:

Thermal

η :

Efficiency of the system

ξ :

Overall exergy efficiency of the TPV system

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Mailam Engineering College, Tindivanam, Tamilnadu, India

    P. Govindan

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sri Krishna College of Technology, Coimbatore, Tamilnadu, India

    S. Sundararaj, M. Prince, S. Aadhishwaran & John George

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Panimalar Engineering College, Chennai, Tamilnadu, India

    C. Karthikeyan

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  1. P. Govindan
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  2. S. Sundararaj
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  5. S. Aadhishwaran
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Correspondence to S. Sundararaj.

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Govindan, P., Sundararaj, S., Karthikeyan, C. et al. Exergy and SCAPS 1-D Analysis on Modified Thermophotovoltaic Cell with Fresnel Lens Concentrator and Absorber–Emitter Materials. Arab J Sci Eng 47, 15673–15687 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-022-06712-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-022-06712-w

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