Hybrid Solar Thermal and Photovoltaic Collector

Abstract

A single air or liquid type flat-plate solar collector assembly with a variable area proportion of the hybrid and solar thermal functions, having: a channel having a front, a back, opposite sides, a bottom inlet opening and a top outlet opening; a photovoltaic collector cover disposed across a hybrid portion of the front of the channel; and a transparent glazing covering disposed across a solar thermal portion of the front of the channel. Preferably, the body of the collector utilizes a standard standing seam metal panel with associated mounting expansion clips, and the photovoltaic collector cover and transparent glazing are both held onto the panel by a glazing mounting channel affixed to the standing seam of the metal panel.

1 . A combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector, comprising:
 a contiguous channel having, a front, a back, opposite sides, a bottom inlet opening and a top outlet opening;   a photovoltaic collector disposed across a lower portion of the front of the channel; and   a transparent glazing cover disposed across an upper thermal portion of the front of the channel.   
     
     
         2 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 1 , wherein a working fluid passes through the channel, and the working fluid is a gas. 
     
     
         3 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 1 , including an additional third layer of internal film glazing and wherein a working fluid passes internally through the heat exchanger, and the working fluid is a liquid. 
     
     
         4 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a solar thermal absorber disposed in the upper portion of the channel behind the transparent glazing covering.   
     
     
         5 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 4 , wherein the solar thermal absorber is a flat panel that is spaced apart and insulated from the back of the channel. 
     
     
         6 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 4 , wherein the solar thermal absorber is mounted at the top of the channel and is free to expand and contract along a length of the interior of the channel. 
     
     
         7 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 1 , wherein the photovoltaic collector covers a proportion, determined by design, of the front of the channel and the transparent glazing covering covers the remaining thermal proportion of the front of the channel. 
     
     
         8 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal collector of  claim 1 , wherein the channel is closed across its front, back and opposite sides to permit air or a fluid to enter the channel at the bottom inlet opening and to exit the channel at the top outlet opening. 
     
     
         9 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal collector of  claim 1 , wherein the front of the channel is closed by relative proportions of the photovoltaic collector cover and the transparent glazing cover. 
     
     
         10 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal collector of  claim 1 , wherein the back and opposite sides of the chamber are formed from a single modular metal standing seam metal roofing or siding section. 
     
     
         11 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 10 , wherein the single modular standing seam metal roofing section is a Butler Manufacturing MR-24™ roofing section. 
     
     
         12 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal collector of  claim 1 , wherein the photovoltaic collector cover is made of either a thin film amorphous silicon or a rigid crystalline silicon photovoltaic module. 
     
     
         13 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 1 , wherein the transparent glazing is made of a pair of transparent or translucent glass, fiberglass or polycarbonate films separated by an insulating air gap. 
     
     
         14 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 1 , wherein the glazing is made of at least one pane of glass. 
     
     
         15 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal collector of  claim 4 , wherein the solar absorber panel is made of a thin gauge metal with a selective absorber finish on the front side. 
     
     
         16 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal collector of  claim 4 , wherein the solar absorber panel is made of a liquid heat exchanger with a selective absorber finish on the front side. 
     
     
         17 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 10 , wherein the photovoltaic collector cover is mounted onto the front of the air channel by way of a contiguous extruded architectural glazing channel that is affixed to the standing seam portion of the metal panel. 
     
     
         18 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 17 , wherein the transparent glazing is mounted onto the front of the channel by a contiguous extruded glazing channel that is affixed to a standing seam portion of a standing seam metal roofing panel. 
     
     
         19 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a bulkhead attached to a building, wherein the combined hybrid/solar thermal collector is suspended from the bulkhead.   
     
     
         20 . The combined hybrid/solar thermal solar collector assembly of  claim 17 , wherein the collector comprises a solar thermal absorber disposed in the upper portion of the channel, and wherein an architectural glazing support framework transfer the combined weight of the photovoltaic and transparent glazing channel cover to the bulkhead.