Enhanced performance of solar-driven photovoltaic–thermoelectric hybrid system in an integrated design

A solar-driven hybrid generation system (HGS) in an integrated design is successfully fabricated, which consists of a silicon thin-film solar cell (STC), thermoelectric generators (TEGs) and a heat collector. STC absorbs parts of the solar energy and directly converts it into electric energy. The undesired waste heat from STC and parts of the solar energy are collected by the heat collector and conducted to TEG to produce thermoelectric conversion. The structure and the performance of HGS are discussed. A numerical simulation is also performed on TEG to obtain the distribution of heat flux using finite element method (FEM). The results show that the performances of TEG and STC are synchronously enhanced due to the integrated design. Especially the heat flux on the hot side of TEG integrated in HGS increases by more than tenfold. The total generated power of 393 mW is obtained in HGS, which is twice larger than that of single STC. The developed HGS is a promising power system which can effectively broaden the use of the solar spectrum and increase the power output in solar conversion.

► A novel hybrid system with an integrated design has been proposed and fabricated.
► The performances of TEG and STC are both promoted due to integration.
► The heat flux on hot side of TEG increases by tenfold with the heat collector.
► The hybrid generation system broadens the use of solar spectrum.