The current situation of cleaning solar panels

Why is solar panel cleaning a major challenge for solar power developers?

Solar panel cleaning is one of the major challenges for solar power developers because cleaning the solar panel surface requires careful planning and resources (time, materials, and labor) and results in higher production costs.

How to clean solar panels?

Solar panels can be cleaned using several methods of removing dirt [28, 29]; they are robotic, heliotex, electrostatic, coating cleaning, vibrating cleaning, and forced-air cleaning. The review of the cleaning methods, listed in Table 1, compares each method’s pros and cons. Table 1. Comparison of various cleaning techniques. 1.1.1. Brush Cleaning

Why should a solar panel be cleaned manually?

Labor should carefully clean the PV panel to avoid scrubbing which can lead to possible damage to the PV panel surface. Energy consumption to distill water for later usage in manual cleaning. Risk of falling from high places while manually cleaning the PV panels.

Can solar panels be cleaned wet?

As for wet cleaning, it spreads in areas where there is a nearby water source and in-home systems, with easy access to the panels for cleaning. Water or other cleaning fluids can be used, depending on the type of spots that are on the solar panels.

What is solar panel cleaning?

First and foremost, let us introduce the two different terms discussed in this article: Solar panel cleaning: this entails washing the panels like windows. The cleaning may be combined with preventive maintenance of the solar collectors.

Which cleaning technique is best for solar PV panels?

The TOPSIS method is employed to compare the cleaning techniques and rank them from most favored to least favored. Manual cleaning of the PV panels is the highest ranked cleaning technique according to the TOPSIS ranking. The efficiency and power output of photovoltaic (PV) panels are vital to the solar PV plant.