Photovoltaic researchers at Sandia National Laboratories are partnering with tech-company Morgan Solar to identify and quantify the amount of energy lost when a solar PV plant is covered in snow. Scientists will evaluate Morgan’s I IOT sensor, the IV DAQ, which captures continuous in situ data and can operate in any solar environment, making the device an ideal tool for measuring the effects of remediable losses like dust and pollen soiling and snow- cover.
“The amount of energy lost in winter from snow shading of PV power plants is a significant problem, given the rapid pace of solar growth in northern regions of the world,” said Dr. Laurie Burnham, technical lead for a larger research project that includes this study. “The more performance data we can collect to illuminate losses under different weather conditions, including snow depth and temperature, and for different PV designs, including tilt angles and module types, the smarter we can be about installing systems that are highly efficient at snow-shedding. The Morgan Solar IV DAQ has the potential to be a valuable tool in identifying the design parameters that matter the most.”
