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Journal of Experimental and Theoretical NANOTECHNOLOGY

About the Journal :

Experimental and Theoretical NANOTECHNOLOGY (ETN) abbreviated as Exp. Theo. NANOTECHNOLOGY is a multidisciplinary peer-reviewed and open access journal. It includes specialized research papers, short communications, reviews and selected conference papers in special issues on the characterization, synthesis, processing, structure and properties of different principles and applications of nanotechnology with focus on advantageous achievements and applications for the specialists in engineering, chemistry, physics, materials science and medicine. ETN covers and publishes all aspects of fundamental and applied researches of experimental and theoretical nanoscale technology dealing with materials synthesis, processing, nanofabrication, nanoprobes, spectroscopy, properties, biological systems, nanostructures, nanoelectronics, nano-optics, nano-mechanics, nanodevices, nanobiotechnology, nanomedicine, nanotoxicology within the scope of the journal. ETN aims to acquire the recent and outstanding researches for the benefit of the human being.



NATURAL CONVECTION IN INCLINED CHANNEL FOR AIR COOLING OF PHOTOVOLTAIC PANELS


Reducing the operating temperature of a photovoltaic (PV) module is an effective way to improve efficiency and prevent damage from overheating. The present paper focuses on the study of the effect of inclination on air natural convection in an asymmetrically heated channel (at uniform heat flux), in laminar regime. This configuration models the passive and natural air-cooling of PV panels by inclined chimneys. The computational procedure solves the unsteady two-dimensional Navier-Stokes and energy equations by a finite volume approach while the projection method decouples the pressure from the velocity. The heat transfer and fluid flow are analyzed for a wide range of modified Rayleigh numbers varying from 102 to 105 and for inclination angles between 15o and 90o with respect to horizontal position. The results show that the mass flow rate and the average Nusselt number increase with the angle of inclination as well as with the modified Rayleigh number. However, a significant reduction in heat transfer rate and induced flow rate is observed for the low angles of inclination. To enhance the cooling of the PV panel, extensions are added at the inlet and outlet of the channel. The simulations show that only the downstream extensions of the channel are effective in improving the induced mass flow rate and therefore the convective heat transfer.