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The semi-transparent photovoltaic (STPV) module is an emerging technology to harness the solar energy in the building. Nowadays, buildings are turning from energy consumers to energy producers due to the integration of the STPV module on the building envelopes and facades. In this research, the STPV module was integrated on the rooftop window of the experimental room at Kovilpatti (9°10′0″ N, 77°52′0″ E), Tamil Nadu, India. The performance of the STPV modules varies with respect to the geographical location, incident solar radiation, and surface temperature of the module. The surface temperature of the STPV module was regulated by the introduction of the mixture of graphene oxide and sodium sulphate decahydrate (Na2SO4·10H2O). The various concentration of the graphene oxide was mixed together with the Na2SO4·10H2O to enhance the thermal conductivity. The thermal conductivity of the mixture 0.3 concentration was found to be optimum from the analysis. The instantaneous peak temperature of the semi-transparent photovoltaic phase change material (STPV-PCM) module was reduced to 9 °C during summer compared to the reference STPV. At the same time, the energy conversion efficiency was increased by up to 9.4% compared to the conventional STPV module. Due to the incorporation of the graphene oxide and Na2SO4·10H2O, the daily output power production of the STPV module was improved by 12.16%.

The solar-powered water heating method is the best way to use the available free solar radiation for thermal energy. Electrical water heating systems all over the world consume more electrical energy for their operation. The Solar Water Heating System (SWHS) has a higher efficiency than the electrical water heating system. As a result, SWHS plays an important role in the home, industry, hostel, and hotel. Various types of SWHS are published by different researchers. Concrete Collector Solar Water Heating (CCSWH) System used for dual purposes is one of the published works (space cooling and hot water production). The CCSWH system is discussed in this review, which includes both traditional and recent developments. Also, future research opportunities in this field are provided.

Demand for renewable energy sources has increased significantly during the past 15–20 years. Due to this demand, one positive scenario has occurred as there has been a decrease in the use of fossil fuels. Among various usages of the fuels, a significant amount of energy is being used in heating and cooling for commercial, domestic houses, etc. Traditional air conditioning systems use a lot of energy and are particularly inefficient in tropical countries . Earth-air heat exchanger (EAHE) systems can help to reduce the air conditioning demand while also promoting the development of renewable energy. This paper focuses on a review of previous research on this notion for system installation done by earlier researchers. Researchers working on efficient heating and cooling for human comfort will benefit from this review article. The researchers working on EAHE for heating and cooling will benefit from this review paper because it will give them the basic knowledge they need to begin their experimental work.

The study explored the use of a black rubber mat as a cost-effective material for energy storage and water splitting, and its potential for enhancing potable water production. In this research, a solar still (SS) and a modified version incorporating a rubber mat were designed and tested. The rubber mat was placed at the bottom of the conventional tubular SS, and the performance of the experimental work was evaluated on 09-10-2019, from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm. The yield of the standard solar still was 1.99 kg, while the modified version with the rubber mat attained a highest water generation of 0.60 kg, with a total output of 2.82 kg. The thermal efficacy was calculated for a modified model, which used a rubber mat, and was 54.80%, significantly higher than the 34.90% of the unmodified version, an improvement of 19.9%. Furthermore, with the addition of a black rubber mat, the upgraded solar’s second law (Exergy) efficiency still reached 2.94%, compared to 1.78% for the standard version, representing a 1.16% increase.

In this work, a new attempt was made to study the behavior of the conventional solar still (CSS) by adding a black-painted copper plate and phosphate pellets. Therefore, the performance of the three solar stills has been studied and compared. The first is the CSS, and the second is the modified solar still (MSS). The MSS performance was tested using black-coated copper plate (measuring 49 × 49 cm and 0.2 cm thick) with and without phosphate pellets and compared to the CSS in the similar climatic conditions. The results showed that the combination of black coated copper plate and the inclusion of phosphate pellets improved the evaporation rate and daily productivity. During the experiments, yields using black coated copper plate without and with phosphate pellets were 14.96% and 29.53% greater than the CSS. The effectiveness of the CSS, MSS with copper metal plate (MSS-CP), and MSS with copper metal plate with phosphate pellets (MSS-CP and PP) are around 30.23, 35.3, and 41.44%, respectively.

A detailed exergy analysis of a conventional and copper finned acrylic solar still has been presented in this manuscript. The evaporative, convective, and radiative heat transfer coefficient of water-glass has been calculated. Also energy efficiency, exergy destruction of basin, water, and glass has been determined. Conventional acrylic solar still with fins produced maximum hourly output of 1.24 kg and it produced daily output of 5.08 kg. The conventional acrylic solar still without fins produced maximum hourly output of 0.94 kg and it produced daily output of 3.75 kg. The maximum exergy destruction of the basin, water, and glass for the conventional acrylic solar still with fins are 655.206, 83.35, and 90.48 W/m 2 , respectively, and conventional acrylic solar still without fins are 616.28, 122.34, and 48.64 W/m 2 , respectively. The energy and exergy effectiveness of the conventional acrylic solar still with fins are 32 and 2.81%, respectively, and without fins are 24.93 and 1.69%, respectively. The study reveals that exergy destruction of water in the case of still with fins is minimum as related to the exergy destruction of water in the case of still without fins.

The present study aims at enhancing the yield of tubular solar still (TSS) by employing fins and coating the absorber plate. We doped the SiO 2 nanoparticles into black paint at the weight concentration ranging from 10 to 40%. The solar still was tested in a bright sunny climatic condition of Chennai, Indian (lat. 13° 08′ N and long. 80° 27′ E). Under transient heat flux conditions, water, basin, and TSS glass temperatures with and without fin were measured. The rate of heat transfer by convection between the water and absorber plate was increased. Results revealed that the basin and water temperatures were improved by 10.49% and 10.88%, respectively when using black paint with SiO 2 nanoparticle in the concentration of 20%, coated on the absorber plate compared to that when using the ordinary black paint, while using the fins on the absorber plate enhanced the potable water produced by 55.18% when using 20% SiO 2 nanoparticle compared to that of conventional TSS. The cost per liter of water produced using the flat and finned absorber coated using 20% SiO2 nanoparticle in black paint is found as 0.0187 and 0.012 $/L respectively.

Renewable energy-based desalination (RED) technique is gaining more importance over the desalination techniques as it appeared to be a promising technique towards low-cost desalination for sustainable growth as the energy demand towards other developments is continuously increasing. This study aims to incorporate energy storage materials and wick materials in the inclined solar to improve the fresh water produced. In this work, the performance of inclined solar still using coconut coir disk and energy storage material is analyzed experimentally. Characterization results showed that the porosity, absorbency, capillary rise, and heat transfer coefficient of 1-year dried coconut coir disk were found as 73.25%, 2 s, 10 mm/h, and 37.21 W/m 2 K, respectively, which is higher as compared with that of other coconut coir disks. The experimental results on the performance showed that total distillate from novel inclined solar still with hybrid techniques (energy storage materials and wick materials) were recorded as 3645, 4080, 4570, and 4890 ml for 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 1 year, respectively. While the total distillate outputs of an inclined solar still with only wick materials were recorded as 2560, 2670, 2930, and 3390 ml for 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 1-year coconut coir disk wick materials. The novel hybrid techniques used in the inclined solar still with energy storage materials enhanced the yield from 82.25 to 144.5% than the conventional solar still, whereas the inclined solar still with only wick materials enhanced the yield from 28 to 69.5% than the conventional solar still.

This paper aimed to improve the thermal performance of the stepped solar still. So, the effects of using different types of basin liners (corrugated and curved basin liners), jute cloth wick, CuO/paraffin wax, and vapor suction on the stepped solar still performance were investigated. The CuO/paraffin wax was placed into a groove parallel to the basin steps’ liner. Also, the stepped distiller was integrated with an external condensation unit. The experimental results revealed that using the corrugated and curved liners increased the productivity of the modified stepped solar still (MSSS) by 42% and 33%, respectively. In addition, using the corrugated liner with wick, corrugated liner with wick and CuO/paraffin wax, corrugated liner with wick, CuO/paraffin wax, and vapor suction improved the freshwater productivity of the distiller by 95%, 127%, and 170%, respectively. At the last studied case (MSSS with corrugated liner, wick, CuO/paraffin wax, and vapor suction), the daily freshwater productivities of the MSSS and conventional still (CSS) were 7000 and 2600 mL/m 2 ·day, respectively. Also, the thermal efficiency of MSSS was calculated as 59% which was obtained at the last studied case. And the efficiency of the CSS was 35%. Besides, the distilled water cost of CSS and MSSS with corrugated liner with wick, CuO/paraffin wax, and vapor suction was 0.023 and 0.014 $/L, respectively.

Conventionally accessible silicon solar cells experience two major drawbacks, such as reduced efficiency and increased fabrication costs. The prospects for the reduction in the cost of the photovoltaic form of energy conversion are bifacial solar cells. Bifacial solar cells show potential opportunity in reducing the cost of solar energy conversion when analyzed with respect to monofacial cells. The bifacial solar cells exploit sunlight occurrence on both sides of the cell more efficiently. Bifacial-based solar photovoltaic (PV) is a technology that increases the generation of electrical energy per square meter of PV module through the utilization of light absorption from the albedo. This technology can generally be categorized based on the type of solar cell material and the fabrication technique. PV devices are classified as a silicon-based, thin film, organic, and advanced nano PV. This paper takes a second look at some recent initiatives and significant issues in enhancing the efficiency of bifacial solar cells from material sciences and chemical composition aspects. From this review, it is concluded that screen-printed solar cells have produced a maximum efficiency of 22%. Additionally, triode structure single-crystalline cells produced a maximum front side efficiency of 21.3% and rear side efficiency of 19.8%. Considering the recycling of solar panels, organic solar panels can be developed.