Energy, exergy and environmental impact analysis of a jute cloth embedded Photovoltaic thermal cooling system wetted with floating solar fountain

The performance of a solar photovoltaic (PV) panel is highly influenced by its temperature. In this study, experiments were conducted to estimate the effectiveness of a photovoltaic (PV) panel embedded with jute cloth using a floating solar fountain system. Jute's breathability promotes better air circulation, aiding in temperature regulation. The significance of this work lies in its potential to enhance PV performance, which is crucial for improving solar energy efficiency and reducing environmental impact. Experiments were conducted to evaluate cooling strategies, including jet impingement on plain and jute-embedded panels, in both spanwise and lengthwise tilt configurations. For the experimentation, two 30 W PV panels of similar configurations were employed. One panel served as the reference, while the other was modified. Experiments were conducted between 10 hrs. and 15 hrs. with multiple levels of solar radiation intensities. Results show that jet impingement on the jute-embedded PV panel led to a maximum temperature reduction of 15.7%, power improvement of 16.3%, and electrical efficiency of 12.8%. Additionally, this configuration achieved a maximum exergo-economic parameter of 12.15 kWh/$ and an annual CO₂ reduction of 1.5 tons. These findings highlight the necessity and novelty of integrating natural materials like jute with advanced cooling methods to significantly improve solar PV performance.