Simulation Studies on Heat Transfer During the Cooling of Solar PV Panels with Wet Sponge Cooling

This study investigates the feasibility of mitigating the detrimental effects of high ambient temperatures on solar photovoltaic (PV) panels using external cooling methods. Using numerical simulations conducted using ANSYS software, we explored the integration of cooling pads, specifically a wet sponge (a polyurethane foam sheet) in direct contact with the back panel of the PV panel setup. By varying the convective heat transfer coefficient 'h' via wind velocity tuning, we analyzed temperature distributions and heat flux variations across the thickness. Our simulation studies reveal promising outcomes, showing significant improvements in cooling efficiency, as evidenced by reduced front and back panel temperatures. A maximum temperature drop of 15% has been observed in the velocity range of 0-2 m/s, revealing that the insertion of a wet sponge can be one of the practices that can reduce panel temperature in still air conditions. The temperature drop obtained from the numerical simulation is consistent with experimental data from the literature. These results emphasize the potential of external cooling as a viable solution for optimizing the solar PV panel performance under challenging environmental conditions. Furthermore, it enables practical implementation through thickness optimization. Computational Fluid Dynamics Wet Bulb Temperature Photovoltaic Phase Change Material Photovoltaic and Greenery Dry Bulb Temperature Leaf Area Index Nominal Operating Cell Temperature.