ARCI Develops Self-cleaning Solar Panels

The institute has used Nano-technology to build self cleaning solar panels that are capable of cleaning themselves.

Hyderabad based International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI) has developed self-cleaning solar panels adding another breakthrough in solar industry.

The institute has used Nano-technology to build solar panels that are capable of cleaning themselves.

The principle coat on the surface of the solar panels is a highly water-proof material that prevents dust particles to settle on the panels.

The new invention of self-cleansing mechanism makes the process of management easier than the traditional method where panels were cleaned with detergents manually.

Dr S. Sakthivel said, “Solar panels should be cleaned every week or few weeks to maintain high efficiency which is especially hard to do for large solar panel arrays. The surface of solar panels with super-hydrophobic coating stays clean. It works like Lotus flower. Water droplets fall off the leaves themselves during the rainy season.”

The self-cleaning panels are said to be facing no loss of transmittance due to other uncertain climatic conditions of India.

Assuring the importance of self-cleaning panels, Sakthivel said, “Power capabilities of an uncleaned solar panel in a high dust area can drop by 30-40 percent.”

Source: TNN