Electrostatic dust removal using adsorbed moisture–assisted charge induction for sustainable operation of solar panels
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1-s2.0-S0094576522003526-main.pdf
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9.37 MB
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Author(s)
Panat, Sreedath
Varanasi, Kripa K.
Date Issued
March 11, 2022
Journal
Science Advances
Publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science
Citation
Sreedath Panat, Kripa K. Varanasi ,Electrostatic dust removal using adsorbed moisture–assisted charge induction for sustainable operation of solar panels.Sci. Adv.8,eabm0078(2022).
Abstract
Dust accumulation on solar panels is a major challenge, as it blocks a large portion of sunlight. Solar panels are therefore cleaned regularly using large quantities of pure water. Consumption of water for cleaning, especially in deserts, poses a substantial sustainability challenge. Here, we present a waterless approach for dust removal from solar panels using electrostatic induction. We find that dust particles, despite primarily consisting of insulating silica, can be electrostatically repelled from electrodes due to charge induction assisted by adsorbed moisture. We experimentally determine dust particle charge by conducting Stokes experiments under an electrostatic field. By considering electrostatic, van der Waals, and gravitational forces, we define the threshold electric potential for particle removal. We also demonstrate dust removal over a broad range of relative humidity, making our approach widely applicable. Last, we develop a lab-scale prototype and demonstrate up to 95% recovery of lost power output using our approach.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abm0078
