Research on Photovoltaic Arrays and Dust Deposition

Dear Colleagues,

Dust deposition on photovoltaic (PV) arrays is a critical issue that directly degrades energy conversion efficiency, increases operation and maintenance costs, and shortens the service life of PV systems, particularly in arid, semi-arid, and desert regions. With the rapid expansion of large-scale PV power plants in desert and Gobi areas, the accumulation of wind-blown sand and atmospheric dust on panel surfaces has become a major operational bottleneck, significantly reducing energy yield and increasing maintenance costs. Thus, understanding the coupled processes of sand-dust transport, deposition, adhesion, and resuspension on PV surfaces is essential for developing effective mitigation strategies. Addressing these challenges requires interdisciplinary approaches combining atmospheric physics, particle mechanics, surface engineering, and intelligent control.

This Special Issue on “Research on Photovoltaic Arrays and Dust Deposition” seeks high-quality works that focus on the latest advances in the interaction between sand-dust sedimentation and PV systems. Topics within the scope of this issue include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Mechanisms of sand-dust transport, deposition, and adhesion on PV surfaces;
• Numerical modelling of dust accumulation processes under windy and dusty conditions;
• Field measurements and model-predicted power losses of PV systems;
• Anti-soiling and anti-sand coatings for photovoltaic glass;
• Automated dry/wet cleaning technologies for dusty environments;
• Wind-sand flow fields around PV arrays and their influence on dust settlement;
• Atmospheric dust deposition prediction;
• Economic and life-cycle assessment of dust mitigation strategies for desert PV farms;
• Optical properties of dust particles, including mechanisms of light transmittance attenuation in PV cover glass, non-contact soiling detection using spectroscopic techniques, and remote sensing inversion of dust deposition density.

Prof. Dr. Xingcai Li
Dr. Jianhua Xiao
Prof. Dr. Zhongju Meng
Dr. Wenjun Zhao
Guest Editors

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