Investigation of the impact of atmospheric pollutants on solar module energy efficiency

Abstract

Soiling is a term used to describe the deposition of dust (dirt) on the solar modules, which reduces the amount of solar radiation that reaches the solar cells. This can cause a more difficult operation of the entire photovoltaic system and therefore generation of less electric energy. This paper presents the results of the influence of various pollutants commonly found in the air (carbon, calcium carbonate ? CaCO3, and soil particles) on the energy efficiency of solar modules. Scanning electron microscope investigation of carbon powder, CaCO3, and soil particles which were applied to solar modules showed that the particles of carbon and CaCO3 are similar in size, while the space between the particles through which the light can pass, is smaller in carbon than in CaCO3. Dimensions of soil particles are different, and the space between the soil particles through which the light can pass is similar to CaCO3. Solar radiation more easily reaches the surface of solar modules soiled by CaCO3 and soil particles than the surface of the solar modules soiled by carbon. The efficiency of the module soiled by carbon on average decreases by 37.6%, the efficiency of the module soiled by CaCO3 by 6.7%, and the efficiency of the module soiled by soil particles by 6.8%, as compared to the clean solar module. The greatest influence on reducing the energy efficiency of solar modules by soiling exerts carbon, and the influence of CaCO3 and soil particles is similar.

The Influence of Solar Modules Soiling on Their Energy Efficiency

“…Reducing the efficiency of solar modules due to their soiling depends on the area in which they are located and on the climate characteristics of the area [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12].…”

“…cement factories), and partly from the permanent construction activities and degradation of building elements. There are many exceptions, bearing in mind that dust composition depends heavily on local conditions [1,2,7,9,11,[13][14][15][16][17][18].…”

“…Metal frames of solar modules can eventually corrode under the atmospheric influences, dirt, bird droppings, etc. [1][2][3].…”

Urban and architectural character of thermal ambient influences in operation of photovoltaic panels on buildings

“…Constructing power plant in the city core has some limitations regarding air pollution because air pollution, as well as the increasing concentrations of the ground-level ozone in Serbia, have impact on solar radiation intensity and solar cells efficiency, and could result in their values decrease [9]. According to conducted research main cause for decrease of power and total electricity, in terms of air pollution, is most due to carbon soiling, soil particles soiling and least due to calcium carbonate soiling [10]. Because of possible pollution, it is important to take all the aspects of urban environmentboth physical and created when choosing location for PV system installation.…”

Estimation of photovoltaic power generation potential in Serbia based on irradiance, air temperature, and wind speed data

“…For example, Pavlović et al [2] investigated how much energy a different type of PV plants of 1 MW generates in the same place, using the co-ordinates of Sokobanja in PV geographical information system (PVGIS). The influence on reducing the energy efficiency of solar modules by soiling was researched by Radonjić et al [3] and Radivojević et al [4]. Pantić et al [5] made a practical field study of three identical solar modules with different inclinations in order to analyze changes in their efficiency, performance ratio, and fill factor during the year 2013.…”