Sand and Dust Storms’ Impact on the Efficiency of the Photovoltaic Modules Installed in Baghdad: A Review Study with an Empirical Investigation

Abstract

Airborne dust and dust storms are natural disasters that transport dust over long distances from the source basin, sometimes reaching hundreds of kilometers. Today, Iraq is a basin that produces dust storms that strike all neighboring countries such as Iran, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. These storms affect the productivity and capacity of the photovoltaic modules and reduce the amount of electricity that is generated clearly. Airborne dust reduces the intensity of solar radiation by scattering and absorbing it. In addition, the dust accumulated on the photovoltaic modules causes a deterioration in their productivity. In this study, an extensive review of wind movement and its sources, especially those that hit the city of Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, was conducted. Practical experiments were also carried out during a storm to measure important variables that had not been measured practically before at this site. The experimental tests were carried out starting from 1 April 2022 and continued until 12 April. Within this period, a dust storm occurred that lasted for three consecutive days that was considered one of the most severe storms that the city of Baghdad had experienced in the last few years. Practical measurements showed a deterioration in the solar radiation intensity by up to 54.5% compared to previous days. The air temperature during the storm decreased by 21.09% compared to the days before the storm. From the measurements of ultrafine aerosol particles PM1 and PM2.5, there was a significant increase of 569.9% and 441% compared to the days before the storm, respectively. Additionally, the measurements showed an increase of 217.22% and 319.21% in PM10 and total suspended particles, respectively. Indoor performance experiments showed a deterioration of current, voltage, power and electrical efficiency by 32.28%, 14.45%, 38.52% and 65.58%, respectively, due to dust accumulated during the storm days compared to the previous days. In the outdoor experiments, the rates of deterioration of current, voltage, power and electrical efficiency were greater, reaching 60.24%, 30.7%, 62.3% and 82.93%, respectively, during the storm days compared to the days before it. During a storm, cleaning the panels is futile due to the high concentration of dust in the air, especially by water. However, the photovoltaic modules can be dry cleaned with bristle brushes after the storm has subsided.

Experimental Investigation and Modelling of Sediments Effect on the Performance of Cadmium Telluride Photovoltaic Panels

“…The impact of these conditions on the performance of PV energy generation can be predicted by the development of supporting models. The development of models capable of predicting the effects of dust and sediments on the performance of PV panels is a current state-of-the-art methodology to mitigate these effects [14,15,18]. These models may allow for better decision-making during the PV systems projects or during the planning of maintenance operations [8,[19][20][21][22] and also in the development of active and passive technologies to mitigate these effects [23].…”

“…[8], a review of cleaning methods for PV modules was conducted. Another point of view is to categorize sediments in different clusters according to their impact on the performance of solar cells, namely due to their chemical, physical and optical properties [18].…”