The Compatibility of Water/Core-Shell Ag-SiO2 Nanofluid as a Spectral Splitting Optical Filtration Fluid to Six Types of Photovoltaic Solar Cells Under Concentrated Solar Conditions

The spectral-splitting optical filtration (SSOF) approach has sparked considerable attention as a solution to the unnecessary portion of solar irradiance that can be retained as heat in the cells of conventional photovoltaic (PV) and photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) systems. This technique’s key answer was to transmit the electrically effective portion depending on the SSOF fluid optical range and the integrated cell’s spectral response spectrum. The numerical viability of using the potentially proved water/core-shell silver-silica (Ag-SiO2) nanofluid as an SSOF fluid for incident radiation on six different types of PV cells with different spectral response ranges is investigated in this study. PV and hybrid PV/T (PV/CF) systems with and without SSOF were examined and compared. In mid-July in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, the functionality of each system was determined by measuring the generated electrical and thermal energy for a whole day, besides the electrical efficiency and average PV temperature of the systems. The results revealed that the employed nanofluid was more compatible with only half of the examined cells. At high solar concentrations, the PV and hybrid PV/CF systems with SSOF integration produced more electricity at lower PV temperatures. Each cell type’s electrical energy output and efficiency differ depending on their spectrum response. When conventional systems are paired with SSOF, several conceivable combinations are achieved out of the liquid’s spectral transmittance range and the cells’ separate spectrum response ranges. This influenced the choice of a highly functioning system suitable for the type of PV cell. At high solar concentrations, the hybrid SSOF/PV/CF system with the m-Si cell had the highest overall energy output and electrical efficiency due to better cooling and reduced solar radiation exposure.