A significant obstacle to maximizing solar energy output is the accumulation of dirt and dust on the photovoltaic solar panels, which reduces output considerably. This is especially true for solar energy parks located in deserts. But cleaning the panels of a entire park may take days, during which the park works at a less than optimal level. The dirt and dust accumulated between cleaning cycles also need to be taken care of as the soiling could lead to a decrease in production levels.
Ecoppia, a privately-held, Israel-based company, has provided a solution to this problem. The company develops energy-independent E4 cleaning robots that use a soft microfiber and air flow cleaning system to remove 99 percent of dust daily and put zero load on the panel surface. The company has installed its robotic system at Ketura Sun Solar park, which is jointly owned by Siemens AG and Arava Power, located in Israel’s Negev desert. Ecoppia reports that the 8-hectare facility is serviced by nearly 100 E4 robots that clean the solar panels every night.
Instead of using water, Ecoppia’s centrally-controlled robot crew uses microfibers and controlled air flow to push the dirt off the panels.
“We conducted a thorough worldwide search for a cleaning solution that could deal with the challenging weather conditions in our solar parks. Only Ecoppia’s solution showed actual significant uplift in production, while offering an extremely appealing business model. We are proud to be their partners,” Arava Power CEO Jon Cohen was quoted as saying.
by RTT Staff Writer
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World"s First Autonomously Cleaned Solar Park In Israel
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