Determination of some thermodynamic parameters for a hybrid solar-hydrogen system

In this paper, we undertake a study to investigate the performance of a hybrid photovoltaic-hydrogen system through energy and exergy efficiencies, improvement potential. This will help identify the irreversibilities (exergy destructions) for performance improvement purposes. Energetic and exergetic renewability ratios are also introduced for grid dependent hybrid energy systems. A case study is presented to highlight the importance of the thermodynamic parameters and show them using some actual and theoretical data. Three different energy demand options from photovoltaic panels to the consumer are identified and considered for the analysis. The minimum and maximum overall energy and exergy efficiencies of the system are calculated based on these options. It is found that the overall energy efficiency values of the system vary between 0.88% and 9.7% while minimum and maximum overall exergy efficiency values of the system are 0.77% and 9.3%, respectively. The monthly improvement potential of the system is also studied to investigate the seasonal performance. Copyright © 2008 by ASME