Thermal management of the PV-PCM module via arc-porous fins

• This study presented a comprehensive numerical analysis of PV panels integrated with PCM enhanced by arced porous fins. • Multiple configurations were examined, and the thermal and energy storage performance was compared against a conventional PV–PCM system. • Results show that the introduction of porous fins significantly improved both sensible and latent heat storage. • Adjusting the number of fins and optimizing porosity produced more uniform and accelerated melting profiles. • Lower porosity structures were found to improve thermal uniformity and cooling efficiency. • Overall, the findings highlight the pivotal role of both fin geometry and porosity for optimizing passive cooling in PV–PCM systems. This study numerically simulates the thermal regulation of a photovoltaic (PV) module by combining phase change materials (PCMs) with various curved metal foam arrangements. In this simulation, both the charging (melting) and discharging (solidification) behaviors of the PCM were investigated. Five arced fin configurations were analyzed, featuring arc numbers of 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 for three different porosities (ε = 0.85, 0.9, and 0.95). The ANSYS Fluent software, based on a finite volume approach, was used to solve the melting process of PCM, and the implemented code was verified against available experimental data. This study illustrates the importance of arced metal foam structures for maximizing thermal regulation and energy storage in a PV module. The results of this study indicate that combining arc metal foam with PV-PCM modules can significantly enhance cooling and heat storage capabilities, improving PV performance compared to conventional modules. Among the considered cases, Case-E achieves the highest temporal enhancement ratio of 43% when ε = 0.85 compared to the conventional PV module design.