Performance evaluation of bifacial PV modules using high thermal conductivity fins

The air cooling method for bifacial PV modules is highly significant for PV power station, especially when the environmental wind speed is low, as the high temperature of bifacial PV modules will reduce the power con-version efficiency and lifetime. In this paper, a new concise and convenient air cooling method (natural con-vection hybrid air-fin heat sink cooling method) for the bifacial PV module is developed, which uses fins with high thermal conductivity material to achieve passive cooling of the bifacial PV module. The results show that bifacial PV modules coupled with natural convection hybrid air-fin heat sink cooling method can decrease the maximum and average temperatures in subtropic climate(Dubai) and temperate climate(Harbin). For the bifacial PV module with high thermal conductivity embedded fins in Dubai, the best temperature drops of 13.6 K and 11.9 K can be acquired for the maximum and average temperatures, respectively. The best fin height is 60 mm by considering the structural stability and convenient installation, and the best thermal conductivity of non -embedded or embedded fins is around 200 W/(m K). The power conversion efficiency improvement of 4.4 % can be achieved when high thermal conductivity embedded fins are applied for the bifacial PV module.