An in-depth field validation of “DUSST”: A novel low-maintenance soiling measurement device

Muller, Matthew; Micheli, Leonardo; Solas, Alvaro F.; Gostein, Michael; Robinson, Justin; Morely, Kenny; Dooraghi, Michael; Alghamdi, Yusif A.; Almutairi, Zeyad A.; Almonacid, Florencia; Fernandez, Eduardo F.

doi:10.1002/pip.3415

An in-depth field validation of “DUSST”: A novel low-maintenance soiling measurement device

Journal Article · Wed Mar 31 00:00:00 EDT 2021 · Progress in Photovoltaics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/pip.3415· OSTI ID:1779805

^[1]; ^[2]; ^[2]; Gostein, Michael ^[3]; Robinson, Justin ^[4]; Morely, Kenny ^[4]; Dooraghi, Michael ^[4]; ^[5]; Almutairi, Zeyad A. ^[5]; Almonacid, Florencia ^[2]; ^[2]

National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Univ. of Jaen (Spain)
Atonometrics Inc., Austin,TX (United States)
GroundWork Renewables Inc., Logan UT (United States)
King Saud Univ., Riyadh (Saudi Arabia)

This study presents indoor and field validation results for two versions of the “DUSST” optical soiling sensor, intended to be a low-cost and low-maintenance device for measuring photovoltaic soiling losses. Indoor testing covers irradiance calibration and temperature dependencies, which are necessary to achieve high accuracy, low uncertainty field measurements. Field testing includes an array of different environments including Saudi Arabia, California, Utah, and Colorado. DUSST versions include a configuration with a 530-nm light emitting diode (LED) (discussed in previous work) and a unit with seven white LEDs and a polycarbonate collimating optic. The new design increases light intensity fivefold and demonstrates a single linear calibration coefficient is effective to measure soiling losses as high as 75%. Field data from Utah and California demonstrate that daily soiling loss measurements and soiling rate calculations closely match both reference cell and full-size module measurements of soiling losses and soiling rates. Corrective methods employed on the Utah DUSST sensor suggest that it is possible to achieve measurement errors as low as ±0.1% at two standard deviations. Field data from both Colorado and Saudi Arabia demonstrate that LED lens soiling can occur and that further design optimizations are needed. The lesson learned from all the field deployment locations suggests directions for future design improvements.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE; USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Solar Energy Technologies Office (EE-4S)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC36-08GO28308; SC0020012

OSTI ID:: 1779805

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1786528

Report Number(s):: NREL/JA-5K00-78792; MainId:32709; UUID:19936131-89ce-43ba-8c8c-0f8038c8bd50; MainAdminID:22314

Journal Information:: Progress in Photovoltaics, Journal Name: Progress in Photovoltaics Vol. early view; ISSN 1062-7995

Publisher:: WileyCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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