Behavior of hybrid concentrated photovoltaic-thermoelectric generator under variable solar radiation

Transient response of a hybrid system composed of concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) cell and thermoelectric generator (TEG) is investigated in this study. This research is carried out by using a numerical simulation approach thermally coupled between the CPV and TEG. A transient model is established and solved by finite volume algorithm. In spite of temperatures profile in the hybrid CPV-TEG module, as results of variation of solar irradiation, power generation and efficiency of the CPV and TEG under the transient condition are presented. The results show that efficiency of the TEG and CPV varies diversely versus changing the solar radiation and module temperature. Moreover, the thermal response of the TEG stabilizes temperature fluctuation of the hybrid module when the solar radiation rapidly changes. In this work, impact of the thermal contact resistance on the temperature profile and system efficiency is investigated. The model presented in this study provides a fundamental understanding of the thermal and electrical effect of the TEG in hybrid CPV-TEG module under transient conditions.