Design of an Energy System Based on Photovoltaic Thermal Collectors in the South of Algeria

The objective of this work is the design of a new energy system where the energy source will be provided by solar photovoltaic thermal (PV/T) hybrid collectors. This system will be applied to a habitation in the region of Gharda？a in the south of Algeria. The cold water reaches the thermal storage tank and then will be heated by the hybrid collector. The hot water will be used directly as sanitary water. The electric power produced by the hybrid collector will be used to charge the battery and will be delivered to the load (electrical appliances, lamps, etc.). Two types of loads are considered: a DC load and the other alternating current. The fans located adjacent to the radiators supplied with hot water will provide warm air to the house in winter. 1. Introduction Research on hybrid solar collectors began in the 70s and was intensified in the 80s. Thus, the work of Wolf [1] in 1976 performs the analysis of a solar thermal collector with PV modules based on silicon and coupled to a heat storage system. Subsequently, the study of Kern and Russel in 1978 provides the basics of using solar water or air as coolant in PV/T systems. Hendrie, in 1982 [2], develops a theoretical model of PV/T hybrid based on correlations related to solar standards. In 1981, Raghuraman [3] presents numerical methods for predicting the performance of flat solar PV/T water or air. In 1986, Lalovic et al. [4] proposed a new type of amorphous a-Si cells as transparent economic solution for the construction of PV modules. Various experimental and theoretical studies have been conducted, then, for the development of PV/T hybrid [5]. In 2005, Zondag [6, 7] proposes a state of the art on the solar PV/T hybrid based on the report of the European Project PV-Catapult. Among the first studies reviewed by Zondag [6], some focus on the evolution of the geometry and other components of the modeling methods are studied. In 2007, Tiwari and Sodha [8] proposed a parametric comparative study of four types of solar air close to the system presented above. Tripanagnostopoulos [9] conducted, at the University of Patras, the study of solar PV/T hybrid of which the coolant is either air or water and can be integrated to the frame. The objective of this work was to reduce the operating temperature of PV modules. In Algeria, the work of Touafek et al. [10–12] is the important research done on PV/T systems. They have studied various configurations in many conditions. This work is the application of the hybrid collectors studied in detail in previous papers [11, 12]. 2. General Outline and Constitution of