Experimental investigation of the effects of silica/water nanofluid on PV/T (photovoltaic thermal units)

In this research, the effects of using nanofluid as a coolant on the thermal and electrical efficiencies of a PV/T (photovoltaic thermal unit) are experimentally studied. Coolant fluids in the experiments are pure water and silica (SiO2)/water nanofluid 1% and 3% by weight (wt%). A brief uncertainty analysis is performed which shows that the measurements are sufficiently accurate. By converting the output electrical energy of the PV/T system into an equivalent thermal energy, it is found that the overall energy efficiency for the case with a silica/water nanofluid of 1 wt% is increased by 3.6% compared to the case with pure water. When using the silica/water nanofluid of 3 wt%, however, the increase is 7.9%. The thermal efficiency of the PV/T collector for the two cases of 1 wt% and 3 wt% of silica/water nanofluids are increased by 7.6% and 12.8%, respectively. The total exergy of the PV/T system, with and without nanofluids, is also compared with that of the PV system with no collector. It is observed that by adding a thermal collector to a PV system, the total exergy for the three cases with pure water, 1 wt% silica/water nanofluid, and 3 wt% silica/water nanofluid is increased by 19.36%, 22.61% and 24.31%, respectively. •The effects of adding nanofluids as a coolant on a PV/T system are investigated.•Experiments are performed on SiO2/water nanofluids (1 wt % and 3 wt %).•The system is analyzed from both energetic and exergetic viewpoints.•Adding nanofluids to the PV/T system increased overall efficiency up to 7.9%.•Total exergy of the PV/T system with nanofluids was increased up to 24.31%.