Abstract
The performance of a combined solar photovoltaic (PV) and thermoelectric generator (TEG) system is examined using an analytical
model for four different types of commercial PVs and a commercial bismuth telluride TEG. The TEG is applied directly on the back of
the PV, so that the two devices have the same temperature. The PVs considered are crystalline Si (c-Si), amorphous Si (a-Si), copper
indium gallium (di) selenide (CIGS) and cadmium telluride (CdTe) cells. The degradation of PV performance with temperature is shown
to dominate the increase in power produced by the TEG, due to the low efficiency of the TEG. For c-Si, CIGS and CdTe PV cells the
combined system produces a lower power and has a lower efficiency than the PV alone, whereas for an a-Si cell the total system
performance may be slightly increased by the TEG.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | Solar Energy |
| Volume | 120 |
| Pages (from-to) | 187–194 |
| ISSN | 0038-092X |
| Publication status | Published - 2015 |
Keywords
- Thermoelectrics
- Photovoltaics
- Thermal
- Efficiency
- Bismuth telluride
