Power Boosting Self Cleaning Solar Panels

Taking a cue from the self cleaning properties of the lotus leaf researchers at ben gurion university of the negev have shed new light on microscopic forces and mechanisms that can be optimized to.

Power boosting self cleaning solar panels.

Two weeks ago it was a new solar thermal device capable of converting more of the sun s energy into efficient heat now mit and madsar institute engineers are reporting on another innovation that could significantly boost the power output of solar panels. High power self cleaning solar panels might be coming soon to a roof near you. Olson recommends homeowners use a soft bristle brush with an extended handle like the type used to clean off an rv. They found that tilted panels don t require cleaning as much as flat panels.

Because you don t want to scratch the panels in any way it s best to use just water and a non abrasive sponge to apply soapy water. There are two obvious problems with photovoltaic cells solar panels. And don t forget to choose an environmentally friendly soap. Cleaning in addition to what is done naturally by rain will boost panel output since on average they will have even less dirt on them but it doesn t help much.

First they are very shiny and so a. Fortunately cleaning solar panels is easy for ground mounted systems or for rooftop solar systems on a typical one story house. However unless you live somewhere with high amounts of smog dust dirt or sand blowing around solar panel cleaning is generally not necessary. There are two obvious problems with photovoltaic cells solar panels.

The coating itself is very robust says curran. High power self cleaning solar panels might be coming soon to a roof near you. Your solar panels need to be exposed to sunlight in order to produce power. Self cleaning solar panels have been the holy grail of those in regions without a lot of rainfall.

Essentially in the same manner you would wash your car at home. To solve this problem curran and his nanophysics group in the institute for nanoenergy developed a self cleaning nanohydrophobic material that coats the solar panel to maintain peak efficiency over longer periods of time. This was confirmed by another study by engineers at the university of california san diego which found that a minimum five degree angle helped debris to slide off the panels. First they are very shiny and so a lot of the.