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Design and Development of Solar Cleaning Robot

Published: 28 June 2024 Publication History

Abstract

Renewable energy technologies, particularly solar power systems, have emerged as a compelling solution to environmental concerns, depleting resources, and escalating energy costs. By harnessing solar radiation, photovoltaic (PV) systems convert sunlight into electricity. In the context of Oman, with its ample solar potential, this technology holds significant promise. However, the challenge of soiling, where dust and other substances accumulate on solar panels, poses a substantial obstacle. Soiling degradation leads to decreased sunlight penetration and reduced electricity generation [1]. Investigations have shown energy output reductions of up to 50% due to soiling [2]. To address this, effective cleaning mechanisms are crucial, with automated robotic systems emerging as a preferred solution [3].This paper synthesizes the research landscape, highlighting the impact of soiling on PV modules and the imperative for regular cleaning. Solar cleaning robots represent a pivotal innovation, integrating advanced technologies to optimize cleaning efficiency and mitigate power losses [4]. The proposed Solar Cleaning Robot prototype not only addresses the mechanical and electrical intricacies of its design but also underscores its role in elevating energy generation from local PV systems in Oman. During the course of this project, the paper contributes to the advancement of solar power systems in the region, ensuring optimal efficiency amidst Oman's conditions.

References

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Mohanraj, M., & Chandrasekar, M. (2011). A review of the effects of dust on the performance of solar photovoltaic cells. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 15(8), 3649-3653.
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Al-Karaghouli, A., & Kazmerski, L. L. (2013). Energy payback time and carbon footprint of PV systems. Solar Energy, 85(8), 1943-1950.
[3]
Yan, S.Z., Jian, Y. & Xu, L.J. (2020). Research on design of intelligent cleaning robot for solar panel. In Proceedings of The 20th International Conference on Electronic Business (pp. 313-320). ICEB’20, Hong Kong SAR, China, December 5-8.
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Patil, P. A., Bagi, J. S., & Wagh, M. M. (2017, August). A review on cleaning mechanism of solar photovoltaic panel. In 2017 International Conference on Energy, Communication, Data Analytics and Soft Computing (ICECDS) (pp. 250256). IEEE.
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Zaidi, B. (2018) ‘Introductory chapter: Introduction to photovoltaic effect’, Solar Panels and Photovoltaic Materials [Preprint].
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Al Garni, H.Z. (2022) ‘The impact of soiling on PV module performance in Saudi Arabia’, Energies, 15(21), p. 8033.
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B. Abhilash and A. K. Panchal, "Self-cleaning and tracking solar photovoltaic panel for improving efficiency," 2016 2nd International Conference on Advances in Electrical, Electronics, Information, Communication and Bio-Informatics (AEEICB), Chennai, India, 2016, pp. 1-4.
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Huld, T., Dunlop, E. D., & Ossenbrink, H. A. (2010). Analysis of multi-year measurements of dust on photovoltaic modules. Solar Energy, 84(2), 324-337.
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Al-Ajmi, F. F., Alam, M. S., & Malik, A. S. (2012). Dust and soiling issues in photovoltaic power systems: A review. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 16(1), 1-16.
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Xu, B., Chen, H., Xu, G., & Huang, J. (2014). Soiling loss evaluation of PV modules in different climatic conditions. Energy Procedia, 61, 2271-2274.
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Sharif, A., & Elmenreich, W. (2015). Soiling detection and cleaning of solar panels: A survey. IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Energy, 6(2), 337-344.
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Lee, S., & Lee, K. (2016). A review on the recent development of automated robotic systems for solar panel cleaning. Journal of Cleaner Production, 137, 905-922.
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El-Sayed, A. E. M., & Farag, A. S. (2017). Cleaning solar photovoltaic panels using robotic systems: A comprehensive review. Energy Reports, 3, 199-210.
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Ansari, M. O., Pandit, V., & Sudhakar, K. (2019). An overview on cleaning methodologies of photovoltaic solar panels. International Journal of Energy and Environmental Engineering, 10(4), 337-348.
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Kumar, A., & Kumar, A. (2020). Robotic-based dust cleaning system for solar panels. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics: Systems, 50(10), 3993-4002.
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Dustiq Soiling Monitoring System (no date) DustIQ for PV soiling monitoring - Kipp & Zonen. Available at: https://www.kippzonen.com/Product/419/DustIQ-Soiling-Monitoring-System#.Y5ReIXZByUk (Accessed: December 10, 2022).

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ICRSA '23: Proceedings of the 2023 6th International Conference on Robot Systems and Applications
September 2023
335 pages
ISBN:9798400708039
DOI:10.1145/3655532
Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than the author(s) must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected].

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Association for Computing Machinery

New York, NY, United States

Publication History

Published: 28 June 2024

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Author Tags

  1. (Solar Power Mitigation
  2. Soiling Effects )
  3. Solar Cleaning Robot

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  • Research-article
  • Research
  • Refereed limited

Funding Sources

  • BP Oman
  • Research Council (TRC) in Oman
  • EJAAD
  • German University of Technology in Oman

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ICRSA 2023

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