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Predictable profitability: The importance of soiling monitoring & mitigation

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In this pv magazine Webinar, presenters share their expertise in environmental monitoring, SCADA integration, and solar panel cleaning using robotics and automation to increase awareness of soiling losses and emphasize the importance of long-term considerations during development.

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Predictable profitability: The importance of soiling monitoring & mitigation

PV module soiling presents a very real and tangible opportunity: recoverable production loss. Historically Solar panel cleaning has been an afterthought in project planning and O&M, often resulting in site cleanings scheduled at arbitrary intervals or based on visual inspection.

Proper soiling monitoring and mitigation can significantly reduce maintenance costs and improve the return on investment (ROI) of the solar farm. Unlike well understood parameters such as irradiance and temperature, variations in soiling type and rate (both inter- and intra- site) make it difficult to precisely measure module soiling. Soiling sensors provide critical site-specific data that enables asset managers and site operators to evaluate the optimal approach for both cleaning method and cleaning frequency.

In this pv magazine Webinar, presenters Damon Nitzel, Troy Morlan, and Carla Dawson share their expertise in environmental monitoring, SCADA integration, and solar panel cleaning using robotics and automation to increase awareness of soiling losses and emphasize the importance of long-term considerations during development.

pv magazine Webinar content

  • The role of soiling in underperformance
  • Optimizing mitigation strategies
  • Monitoring technologies
  • Designing sites with cleaning in mind
  • Q&A – Read the extended Q&A here!

Questions can be submitted beforehand or during the webinar through a chat window. Tim Sylvia from pv magazine USA will be the moderator of this webinar.

Registration for this pv magazine Webinar is free of charge.

Speakers

Damon Nitzel, Application Development Manager, OTT HydroMet

Damon is an Application Development Manager with OTT Hydromet. OTT Hydromet is a manufacturer of industry-respected meteorology brands such as OTT, Lufft, and Kipp & Zonen. Damon has held a number of roles supporting the solar energy market through weather and scientific data over the last eight years. With OTT Hydromet, Damon has primarily been focused on helping customers apply meteorological data to uncover sources of inefficiency in solar energy applications.

Troy Morlan, Lead Engineering Proposal Coordinator, Nor-Cal Controls

Troy Morlan is a lead engineering proposal coordinator and technical advisor for Nor-Cal Controls ES, Inc (NCC). After achieving his MS in electrical engineering, Troy joined NCC in 2015 as an automation engineer. Since then, he has touched nearly every aspect of NCC’s engineering services and now works primarily with the business development team. Troy was instrumental in the development of NCC’s first DAS projects and has assisted with commissioning more than 30 utility-scale solar PV projects to date.

Carla Dawson, Chief Innovation & Growth Officer, Relysm

Carla is an entrepreneur dedicated to bringing innovation to the solar panel cleaning industry. Relysm is a company specialized in bringing automation to the solar panel cleaning industry via robotics in both the utility scale and commercial & industrial sector. Clean panels increase production and improve reliability and return on investment. Each solar installation is unique and knowing the best way to automate to reduce costs is what Relysm brings to the solar industry. Relysm’s solar panel cleaning robotic solutions accomplish cleaning solar installations at the lowest possible cost.

Moderators

Tim Sylvia | Editor, pv magazine USA

Tim Sylvia is an associate editor at pv magazine USA. A graduate of Hood College, Tim has been with pv magazine since May 2018. Tim covers project development, legal issues and renewable energy legislation, as well as contributing to the daily Morning Brief.

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