Can waterless cleaning remove dust from solar panels?

MIT engineers have now developed a waterless cleaning method to remove dust on solar installations in water-limited regions, improving overall efficiency. The new system uses electrostatic repulsion to cause dust particles to detach and virtually leap off the panel’s surface, without the need for water or brushes.

How to clean solar panels?

The water used for cleaning these solar panels using pressurized water jets has to be trucked in from a distance, and it has to be very pure to avoid leaving behind deposits on the surfaces. Dry scrubbing is sometimes used but is less effective at cleaning the surfaces and can cause permanent scratching that also reduces light transmission.

Could a waterless 'No-contact' system reduce solar dust?

Now, a team of researchers at MIT has devised a way of automatically cleaning solar panels, or the mirrors of solar thermal plants, in a waterless, no-contact system that could significantly reduce the dust problem, they say.

How does a solar panel work?

The new system uses electrostatic repulsion to cause dust particles to detach from the panel’s surface, without water or brushes. An 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.

What happens after a PV panel is removed?

After the frame, glass, and junction box are removed from a PV panel, the inner, bendable layers of silicon, polymers, and metal conductors remain. Workers cut the inner layers into large sections in preparation for the oven. Luigi Avantaggiato

Why are there so few facilities for recycling solar panels?

The reason there are so few facilities for recycling solar panels is because there has not been much waste to process and reuse until recently. The first generation of domestic solar panels is only now coming to the end of its usable life. With those units now approaching retirement, experts say urgent action is needed.