Influence of Dust Deposition on the Electrical Parameters of Silicon-Based Solar Panels Installed in Senegal (Dakar Region)

Dialo Diop^1*, Moulaye Diagne², Abel Sambou¹, Pascal Djicoly Bassene¹, Serigne Abdoul Aziz Niang¹, Astou Sarr¹

¹Groupe des Laboratoires de Physique des Solides des Sciences des Matériaux (GLPSSM), Département de Physique, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques (FST), Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Sénégal.
²Laboratory of Semiconductor and Solar Energy, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science and Techniques, University Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Senegal.

DOI: 10.4236/epe.2021.135012                

Abstract

In recent years, photovoltaic (PV) modules are widely used in many applications around the world. However, this renewable energy is plagued by dust, airborne particles, humidity, and high ambient temperatures. This paper studies the effect of dust soiling on silicon-based photovoltaic panel performance in a mini-solar power plant located in Dakar (Senegal, 14°42'N latitude, 17°28'W longitude). Results of the current-voltage (I - V) characteristics of photovoltaic panels tested under real conditions. We modeled a silicon-based PV cell in a dusty environment as a stack of thin layers of dust, glass and silicon. The silicon layer is modeled as a P-N junction. The study performed under standard laboratory conditions with input data of irradiation at 1000 W/m², cell temperature at 25°C and solar spectrum with Air Mass (AM) at 1.5 for the monocrystalline silicon PV cell (m-Si). The analysis with an ellipsometer of dust samples collected on photovoltaic panels allowed to obtain the refraction indices (real and imaginary) of these particles which will complete the input parameters of the model. Results show that for a photon flux arriving on dust layer of 70 μm (corresponding to dust deposit of 3.3 g/m²) deposited on silicon-based PV cells, short circuit current decreases from 54 mA (for a clean cell) to 26 mA. Also, conversion efficiency decreases by 50% compared to clean cell and the cell fill factor decreases by 76% - 50% compared to reference PV cell.

Keywords

Dust Deposition, PV Cell, Fill Factor, Modeling, Ellipsometer

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.

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