Thermo-economic assessment of a novel PVT-driven combined cooling and power system integrating ORC with an absorption heat transformer

A novel PVT-driven combined power system integrating ORC with an absorption heat transformer (AHT) is proposed in this work to enhance solar energy utilization efficiency and collaboratively recover waste heat. The focus is on clarifying the thermodynamic interaction, thermal-resource competition, and performance trade-off between the subsystems powered by shared solar irradiation and thermal resources. Parametric analyses are performed to assess the effects of structural and operating parameters, such as PVT air gap thickness, thermal storage tank volume, photothermal fluid temperature (T w ), and ORC evaporation temperature (T eva ). The results indicate that the optimal PVT air gap thickness is 20 mm and thermal storage tank volume is 150 L which yields a maximum total electrical efficiency of 23.81%. In addition, the thermal demand competition between ORC and AHT, along with the trade-off between PV and solar thermal efficiency caused by photothermal fluid temperature, significantly impacts the performance of integrated system. When the photothermal fluid temperature in PVT outlet increases from 95 °C to 120 °C, both ORC efficiency and AHT’s COP increase, and the peak integrated electrical efficiency occurs at 108 °C. Under the baseline operating conditions considered in this study, the optimal values of T w and T eva are identified as 108 °C and 96 °C, at which the lowest economic indicators are achieved, with LCOE of 0.22 $/kWh and LCOC of 0.045 $/kWh, respectively.