2-D Numerical Analysis Of The Photovoltaic-Phase Change Material (PV-PCM) Model With Flat Fins

In this study, a 2-D numerical analysis was conducted the melting characteristics of phase change material (PCM) placed inside the container formed by using rectangular flat fins and to evaluate its effect on the average surface temperature of the PV panel accordingly. Flat fins were used in this study for the purpose of improving heat transfer and thermal enhancement in the latent heat storage system. To produce a two-dimensional analysis of the one-hour experimental study carried out under laboratory conditions, melting fraction, the temperature distribution and flow fields of the PCM were shown using ANSYS Fluent 18.2 software. The experimental results obtained from the previous study and the analysis results carried out in this study were quite similar and the difference between the average surface temperatures of the PV Panel was found to be 4.25%. In addition, the effects on the PV panel average surface temperature were observed by changing the initial ambient temperature and the amount of radiation.