Concentrated Photovoltaics (CPV) technology, as an energy saving method which can directly generate electricity from the Sun, has attracted an ever-increasing attention with the deepening worldwide energy crisis. However, operating temperature is one of the main concerns that affect the CPV system. Excess cell temperature causes electrical conversion efficiency loss and cell lifespan decrease. Thus, reasonable cooling methods should decrease the operating temperature and balance the flare inhomogeneity. They also need to display high reliability, low power consumption, and convenient installation. This paper presented the architectural, commercial, and industrial usage of CPV system, reviewed the recent research developments of different cooling techniques of CPV systems during last few years, including the spectral beam splitting technology, cogeneration power technology, commonly used and promising cooling techniques, active and passive cooling methods. It also analysed the design considerations of the cooling methods in CPV systems, introduced the classification and basic working principles and provided a thorough compilation of different cooling techniques with their advantages, current research limitations, challenges, and possible further research directions. The aim of this work is to find the research gap and recommend feasible research direction of cooling technologies for CPV systems.

In recent years, residents in high-rise residential complexes (HRCs) in China have been placing an increasing demand on the living quality in HRCs. Particularly, the outdoor wind conditions are garnering more attention; however, few studies on the wind conditions within HRCs with densely arranged buildings and high plot ratios have been reported. Therefore, this study investigated the relation between the buildings’ layouts in HRCs and their wind conditions and it proposes optimization strategies to enhance body comfort in their outdoor environments. The research methods in this work involved field surveys, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, and field monitoring. The field surveys were used to determine the types of activities undertaken by the residents in the selected HRCs and their perceptions of the wind conditions within the HRCs. Field monitoring was primarily conducted to measure the present wind conditions in the HRCs. The CFD simulations were performed to analyze the interactions between individual buildings and the wind as well as the performance of the wind conditions in the HRCs before and after a building layout optimization. The simulation results and monitoring data showed that the present wind conditions in the HRCs were uncomfortable due to high wind speeds (exceeding 5 m/s) and large windless areas. To achieve a comfortable outdoor wind environment, future HRCs should adopt a point-to-point building layout and the buildings should be oriented south. Moreover, the ratios of the height to width (H_b/W_b) for individual buildings should be kept at approximately 1.33. For existing HRCs, landscape walls, trees, and moveable windbreak panels can be used to reduce the wind speeds, especially in open exit/entrance areas and windward areas.

The direction and environment of photovoltaics (PVs) may influence their energy output. The practical PV performance under various conditions should be estimated, particularly during initial design stages when PV model types are unknown. Previous studies have focused on a limited number of PV projects, which required the details of many PV models; furthermore, the models can be case sensitive. According to the 18 projects conducted in 7 locations (latitude 29.5–51.25N) around the world, we developed polynomials for the crystalline silicon PV energy output for different accessible input variables. A regression tree effectively evaluated the correlations of the outcomes with the input variables; those of high importance were identified. The coefficient of determination, indicating the percentage of datasets being predictable by the input, was higher than 0.65 for 14 of the 18 projects when the polynomial was developed using the accessible variables such as global horizontal solar radiation. However, individual equations should be derived for horizontal cases, indicating that a universal polynomial for crystalline silicon PVs with a tilt angle in the range 0°–66° can be difficult to develop. The proposed model will contribute to evaluating the performance of PVs with low and medium tilt angles for places of similar climates.

Infrared (IR) radiation curing technology has a high potential to improve the curing process of thermosetting polymers. To investigate the IR curing reaction mechanism, the present study explores the curing kinetics of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA)/dodecanedioic acid (DDDA) powder coatings subjected to IR radiation. Fourier-transformed infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy is employed to record the concentration of epoxide groups with respect to time under different temperature conditions, with the reaction conducted under IR radiation. The resulting data are then fitted by the Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm using MATLAB software to obtain the kinetic parameters, namely the rate constant (k), catalytic constants (n, m), manifestation activation energy (E), and the pre-exponential factor (A) of the curing reaction. Additionally, this study proposes a new concept: the ‘photo-thermal synergistic effect’ of infrared curing and its evaluation criteria using a dimensionless quantity. Incredibly, this index integrates the impact of IR curing technology on two aspects: the curing process and the properties of the cured product. Overall, this study deepens our understanding of the IR curing reaction mechanism and provides a reference for the application of this technology in practical engineering.