Effect of dusty environment on the electrical performance of different photovoltaic modules

With high solar radiation during most parts of the year (7.65 kWh/m2.day), Kuwait is showing increased interest in solar energy technology. Despite the high solar radiation, Kuwait suffers from dust and high ambient temperature. This work experimentally investigates the performance of two types of solar PV modules based on monocrystalline and polycrystalline silicon cells under Kuwait environment. The effects of dust and ambient temperature on the PV modules performance were investigated over a period of 12 months where measurements of input solar radiation, voltage, current, cell surface temperature and accumulated dust were carried out. Measurements at two different days where ambient temperatures are 41°C and 15°C with similar radiation level of 1000 W/m2 revealed that the percentage power output reduction of dusty polycrystalline module was higher than dusty monocrystalline module compared to the clean testing. Compared to the clean PV, the monocrystalline dusty module has shown 21% and 19.5% reduction in power output while the polycrystalline dusty modules showed 28% and 25% loss in power output at hot and cold day, respectively, therefore, the monocrystalline is more suited for hot and dusty environments like Kuwait.