Featured in Electric avenues – 09-2017

PID, soiling and module degradation in hot climates

PID in India: In the cost-conscious Indian solar sector, ensuring reliable power output should be the number one priority. However, an example of one solar farm suffering from the ill-effects of under-performing modules, installation malpractice and unsatisfactory maintenance shows how corner cutting from the outset is more damaging in the long run.

By

Ian Clover

05 Sep 2017

Shaded, soiled and degraded, the modules installed at this 5 MW solar plant in Rajasthan, India, had very little chance at performing to their optimum capability. So what were the lessons learned? | Image: Anonymous

The northwestern Indian state of Rajasthan is one of the nation’s hotter, drier corners. While monsoon rains do lick at the state’s southern reaches, much of the land lies in a rain shadow: the dusty Thar Desert exerts a greater climatic influence on the state, bringing aridity and extreme temperatures throughout much of the year.Bordering …

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