Futuristic approach for thermal management in solar PV/thermal systems with possible applications

•Futuristic solutions for thermal management in PV/T collectors.•Categorical description of the latest techniques and applications.•Techno-economic feasibility of the PV/T technology.•Significant role to counter building’s load requirement and emission challenges.•Exploiting latent heat for efficient thermal regulation. This paper aims to present a futuristic review on the potential of photovoltaic-thermal or PV/T systems in a wide spectrum for the efficient utilization of solar radiation through well engineered hybrid PV/T systems. These hybrid PV/T system based technology is just 30 years old which had gained significant attention from the researchers and academicians all over the world in a recent decade. The word PV/T is composed of [PV (photovoltaic) + T (thermal)] i.e. the simultaneous production of heat and electricity in an integrated manner thus paving the way towards improving the overall energy efficiency of the system. It is a sort of co-generation technology so that the issue of low efficiency associated with existing PV technology can be impact fully addressed. It provides an opportunity for the efficient utilizing of solar radiation which is eventually dissipated as waste heat in the PV cells causing decrease in the efficiency of the PV cells. This paper covers an extensive overview of the most recent trends and useful technologies available for thermal management in PV/T collectors in a categorical manner i.e. air based, liquid based, phase change material (PCM) based and heat pipe based along with wide range of possible applications in building, solar distillation /desalination and thermoelectric generators & heat pumps. The paper also covers economical aspects like payback period, concept of Net Present Value (NPV) and exergo-economic & enviro-economic parameters for the economic assessment of the PV/T systems. The results are being tabulated for visual understanding of the different techniques being reviewed. The paper also identifies the potential role of PV/T systems to mitigate emission challenges particularly with respect to building applications.