KEYWORDS: Solar energy, Solar energy systems, Gallium antimonide, Multilayers, Solar radiation, Solar cells, Molybdenum, Photovoltaics, Absorption, Photons
In this paper, high-efficiency STPV systems are investigated using spectrally selective absorber/emitter consisted of metal-dielectric multilayer and a GaSb TPV cell. A solar-thermophotovoltaic (STPV) system is expected to as highefficiency solar energy conversion using single-junction photovoltaic (PV) cells. However, the reached experimental system efficiency has been still low because spectral control of emitter is not sufficient. Narrowband thermal radiation from the emitter is effective for obtaining high-efficiency STPV systems, exceeding the Shockley-Queisser limit. From theoretical analysis, the narrowband thermal emitter can leads to obtain PV conversion efficiency over 45% at Qvalue= 30 and 1300K. The spectrally selective absorber/emitter was also investigated to obtain high ηPV. The ηPV = 23.5% was estimated by the fabricated emitter spectrum, which exceeds the Shockley-Queisser limit of 19.6% for a GaSb bandgap of 0.67 eV. The entire STPV system and the power generation tests were conducted using the fabricated absorber/emitter. The total system efficiency 4.9% at 1505K was obtained under an irradiance of 109 Wcm-2.
KEYWORDS: Gallium antimonide, Solar energy, Absorbance, Solar cells, Optical properties, Photovoltaics, Temperature metrology, Tungsten, Coating, Solar radiation
We demonstrate a high-efficiency solar-thermophotovoltaic system (STPV) using a monolithic, planar, and spectrally selective absorber/emitter. A complete STPV system using gallium antimonide (GaSb) cells was designed and fabricated to conduct power generation tests. To produce a high-efficiency STPV, it is important to match the thermal radiation spectrum with the sensitive region of the GaSb cells. Therefore, to reach high temperatures with low incident power, a planar absorber/emitter is incorporated for controlling the thermal radiation spectrum. This multilayer coating consists of thin-film tungsten sandwiched by yttria-stabilized zirconia. The system efficiency is estimated to be 16% when accounting for the optical properties of the fabricated absorber/emitter. Power generation tests using a high-concentration solar simulator show that the absorber/emitter temperature peaks at 1640 K with an incident power density of 45 W/cm2, which can be easily obtained by low-cost optics such as Fresnel lenses. The conversion efficiency became 23%, exceeding the Shockley–Queisser limit for GaSb, with a bandgap of 0.67 eV. Furthermore, a total system efficiency of 8% was obtained with the view factor between the emitter and the cell assumed to be 1.
KEYWORDS: Solar energy, Solar cells, Gallium antimonide, Photovoltaics, Temperature metrology, Solar radiation, Energy efficiency, Absorbance, Control systems, Optical properties
In solar thermophotovoltaic (STPV) generation systems, the thermal radiation from emitters heated by the high temperature solar absorbers is converted into electricity at a photovoltaic (PV) cell. STPV systems have some advantages over PV generation systems. For instance, it is possible to control the thermal radiation spectrum of the emitter. Generally, the PV cell has an inherent sensitive region where an incident photon excites the electron. Enhancing the thermal radiation in this sensitive region of the PV cell, therefore, increases the generation efficiency. Theoretically, the efficiency of STPV systems can reach up to 85% when Carnot efficiency is considered and up to 45% when a monochromatic radiation releasing emitter is used. However, the experimental STPV system is less efficient than theoretical one as a consequence of the large amount of heat loss from the high-temperature absorber/emitter system. The purpose of this study is to achieve a high-efficiency STPV generation system using a monolithic planar spectrally selective absorber/emitter. The temperature superiority of the monolithic planar absorber/emitter is estimated by using spectral and thermal properties of STPV system components. Using the enitre configuration of the STPV system, a system efficiency of over 10% is estimated in this study.
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