Evaluation of Anti-Soiling and Anti-Reflection Coating for Photovoltaic Modules

Abstract

Areas with abundant sunlight, such as Middle Eastern deserts in Asia, are optimal sites for photovoltaic power generation. However, the average power loss of photovoltaic modules caused by soiling is 14.3% after two months of use. We evaluate the effect of a silica-based anti-soiling and anti-reflection coating for photovoltaic modules. The coating is intended to not only improve the optical transmission of the cover glass but also mitigate the performance loss due to soiling. We compare the optical properties of bare glass and the coated glass. The power of the module exhibits a 2.56% improvement on average because of the anti-reflection function. The anti-soiling effect of the coating is evaluated by in-house artificial-soiling tests. The soiling loss is mitigated by over 3.85% according to the tests. The multifunctional coating can be easily applied at room temperature using a low-cost solution through the manual coating method.