Researchers project that solar power is expected to reach 10% of global power generation by the year 2030, and many of these solar farms are located in desert areas, where things can get quite dusty to say the least. If too much dust gathers on the panels, they can reduce the output of photovoltaic panels by as much as 30% in 30-days, so keeping them clean is of the utmost importance. However, cleaning them the traditional way uses up to 10 billion gallons of water per year.
Instead of water, this new system utilizes electrostatic repulsion to cause dust particles to detach and jump off the panel’s surface, without the need for any water or brushes. Turning on this system happens at the push of a button, which at that time, a simple electrode passes just above the solar panel’s surface, imparting an electrical charge to the dust particles, which are then repelled by a charge applied to the panel itself.
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The water footprint of the solar industry is mind boggling. So, the industry has to be very careful and thoughtful about how to make this a sustainable solution…the good news is that when you get to 30 percent humidity, most deserts actually fall in this regime. Moreover, unlike some of the prior work on electrodynamic screens, which actually do not work at high or even moderate humidity, our system can work at humidity even as high as 95 percent, indefinitely,” said Sreedath Panat, MIT Graduate Student.
