A wind-powered 'dust buster' for solar panels

Scientists in South Korea have developed a technology that can effectively ‘dust’ solar panels without external power. Their invention has the potential to be used on solar arrays in environments that are difficult to access, such as deserts, mountains and space.

The technology uses a wind-powered rotational triboelectric nanogenerator combined with electrodynamic screen (EDS) technology to move dust in the desired direction for removal. (The nanogenerator uses mechanical energy from friction between objects through rotational motion to produce electricity.)

The research is the result of a collaboration between Dr Wanchul Seung at Global Technology Research, Samsung Electronics; and a team led by Professor Juhyuck Lee from the Department of Energy Science and Engineering, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science & Technology (DGIST).

Dust that gathers on the surface of solar panels causes a significant reduction in power production efficiency. The scientists were looking to improve on an existing technology — EDS — that’s designed to address this problem. EDS uses electric fields to remove dust from the surface, and is deployed in remote locations as it does not require cleaning equipment or personnel. However, traditional EDS technology requires high voltage and, consequently, external power, with the disadvantage of additional maintenance costs.

To overcome these limitations, in 2024, the research team at DGIST suggested a single-phase wind-powered EDS system. The single-phase system, however, has a few drawbacks. It relies on gravity to remove dust as it is moved repeatedly from side to side between the electrodes; it has low efficiency; and its performance varies greatly depending on the angle at which the solar panel is mounted.

Ultimately, the team came up with an EDS system with a three-phase rotational triboelectric nanogenerator directly powered by wind and novel three-phase EDS electrode patterns to move pollutants in the desired direction. Regardless of the angle at which the panel is mounted, this technology maintains high removal efficiency, and it is more effective than traditional methods, as it sweeps dust in one direction.

Experimental results revealed that the three-phase rotational triboelectric nanogenerator produced a high voltage of up to 1383 V and achieved a dust removal efficiency of 83.48% — 1.6 times better than the previous single-phase technology. Additionally, when powered by wind alone, it restored the dirty solar panels’ conversion efficiency (PCE) to approximately 96% of their initial PCE.

“The key takeaway in this study is that three-phase high voltage generated by wind power is used to move dust in the desired direction, and it does not require external power,” Lee said. “This technology will reduce the maintenance costs of solar panels and can be applied efficiently across a wide range of environments.”

The study results were published in the journal Nano Energy and can be read at DOI: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2025.111262.

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