3 ms·

Solar Panels That Clean Themselves

26 points by lxm 4y ago

CyanBird 4y ago
Interesting situation with the example of the Sahara sand being used to experiment on the panels These days it is quite common to find solar panels on lamp posts of well being areas near the Sahara and elsewhere in the world My big question is how well might these patterned panels handle erosion... It would be no fun to the investors if one, two light or medium sandstorms after installation then the pattern becomes eroded and they ended up paying a +15% premium or wherever it ends up being for fancy laser etched solar panels Ofc that edge case aside.... This will be very wonderful on most of the planet
- Haga 4y ago
  [dead]
gabereiser 4y ago
I have a solar setup. I’m fortunate that cleaning my panels is a matter of scrubbing them or taking my boat out when it’s raining. The article mentions the huge solar installations in the deserts. This is the wrong approach and is wasteful. Society needs more solar pv generation where it’s being used. Lamp posts and stuff are a great example. Thinking about providing energy and thinking about huge power plants is old school coal/oil thinking. The sum of many smaller installations on roofs, window awnings, bus stops, walkways, train stations, schools, pretty much any building needs a solar power setup to sustain its needs. The bigger the building, the bigger the setup. Forget building huge farms in the desert. Build huge farms on the rooftops and save on transporting current. Just my observation. Energy companies don’t really care for energy independence. Why would they? It’s not in their interest.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- adrianN 4y ago
  Huge installations in very sunny places are cheaper because they benefit from economies of scale. Rooftops and lamp posts(!) are the most expensive type of solar installation.
- pcdoodle 4y ago
  Lighting is a good example though. I believe under best case conditions you could get the battery and panels to last over 25 years if we reimagine their duty cycles and installation parameters. It will probably be someone that reads HN to bring small solutions to market :) Every little bit counts. Have a good day everyone!
unwind 4y ago
Of course, here "clean themselves" means To activate the system, a simple electrode passes just above the solar panel’s surface, imparting an electrical charge to the dust particles, which are then repelled by a charge applied to the panel itself. The system can be operated automatically using a simple electric motor and guide rails along the side of the panel. So it's not exactly the cells cleaning themselves, imo. I wonder how well blowing (lightly) compressed air would work in comparison, since you're already sweeping past all the cells that sounds simpler.
- Natsu 4y ago
  This seems like it'd be really good on spacecraft.
m463 4y ago
Using electrostatics is interesting. Reminds me of the old HP plotters from decades ago. You put a sheet of paper in them and pressed the HOLD button, and it would electrostatically adhere the paper to the plotter so the plotter pen wouldn't move the paper. sort of magical.
camgunz 4y ago
Damn I just started thinking about this problem and this shows up. I was only thinking about dust (etc) though; bird droppings is a whole other level of mess. Maybe you can run a sprinkler up there?
- dillydogg 4y ago
  I think the issue they discuss is that getting water to a lot of the places where you may want to place solar panels is expensive. Otherwise pressure washing with water would likely be the way to go.

26 points by lxm 4y ago

Interesting situation with the example of the Sahara sand being used to experiment on the panels These days it is quite common to find solar panels on lamp posts of well being areas near the Sahara and elsewhere in the world My big question is how well might these patterned panels handle erosion... It would be no fun to the investors if one, two light or medium sandstorms after installation then the pattern becomes eroded and they ended up paying a +15% premium or wherever it ends up being for fancy laser etched solar panels Ofc that edge case aside.... This will be very wonderful on most of the planet

Haga 4y ago
[dead]

gabereiser 4y ago

I have a solar setup. I’m fortunate that cleaning my panels is a matter of scrubbing them or taking my boat out when it’s raining. The article mentions the huge solar installations in the deserts. This is the wrong approach and is wasteful. Society needs more solar pv generation where it’s being used. Lamp posts and stuff are a great example. Thinking about providing energy and thinking about huge power plants is old school coal/oil thinking. The sum of many smaller installations on roofs, window awnings, bus stops, walkways, train stations, schools, pretty much any building needs a solar power setup to sustain its needs. The bigger the building, the bigger the setup. Forget building huge farms in the desert. Build huge farms on the rooftops and save on transporting current. Just my observation. Energy companies don’t really care for energy independence. Why would they? It’s not in their interest.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
adrianN 4y ago
Huge installations in very sunny places are cheaper because they benefit from economies of scale. Rooftops and lamp posts(!) are the most expensive type of solar installation.
pcdoodle 4y ago
Lighting is a good example though. I believe under best case conditions you could get the battery and panels to last over 25 years if we reimagine their duty cycles and installation parameters. It will probably be someone that reads HN to bring small solutions to market :) Every little bit counts. Have a good day everyone!

unwind 4y ago

Of course, here "clean themselves" means To activate the system, a simple electrode passes just above the solar panel’s surface, imparting an electrical charge to the dust particles, which are then repelled by a charge applied to the panel itself. The system can be operated automatically using a simple electric motor and guide rails along the side of the panel. So it's not exactly the cells cleaning themselves, imo. I wonder how well blowing (lightly) compressed air would work in comparison, since you're already sweeping past all the cells that sounds simpler.

Natsu 4y ago
This seems like it'd be really good on spacecraft.

m463 4y ago

Using electrostatics is interesting. Reminds me of the old HP plotters from decades ago. You put a sheet of paper in them and pressed the HOLD button, and it would electrostatically adhere the paper to the plotter so the plotter pen wouldn't move the paper. sort of magical.

camgunz 4y ago

Damn I just started thinking about this problem and this shows up. I was only thinking about dust (etc) though; bird droppings is a whole other level of mess. Maybe you can run a sprinkler up there?

dillydogg 4y ago
I think the issue they discuss is that getting water to a lot of the places where you may want to place solar panels is expensive. Otherwise pressure washing with water would likely be the way to go.