Research shows that the arrival of Saharan dust can severely affect solar energy production. What can be done to better manage the problem? Climate Now reports from Andalusia on efforts to combat dust.
This month, we at Climate Now are in southern Spain to report on the growing problem of Saharan dust and its impact on solar energy production.
At the same time, the Copernicus Climate Change Service reveals that May 2024 was the warmest on record, with temperatures that are 0.65 degrees Celsius above the 1991-2020 average.
It is the twelfth consecutive month in which there are warmer than usual temperatures.
In May 2024, extreme weather occurred in many areas. Floods in Brazil displaced more than half a million people, India’s Delhi region hit a new monthly record of 49.9 degrees Celsius and Finland issued a heat wave warning as it reached 27 degrees Celsius.
In Europe, heavy rain caused flooding in southwestern Germany, Belgium and northern Italy.
Solar energy losses in large quantities due to Saharan dust
Saharan dust is best known in Europe for turning the sky orange, reducing air quality and leaving a thin layer of dust on roofs and cars. However, it is also responsible for a growing problem: the so-called “dirt” of solar cells.
In the Jaen University In Andalusia we met Dr. Eduardo F. Fernández and Professor Florencia Almonacid, who participated as authors on a recent article that discovered that The arrival of heavy dirt in March 2022 reduced solar energy production capacity by up to 80 percent.
Dr. Fernández told Euronews the following: “It looked like the environment of Mars, because everything was dyed red.”
There was an extreme event in March 2022, but even small amounts of dust can reduce the sunlight reaching solar cells by 15%, and with the rapid growth of solar energy in Europe, losses due to dirt could reach represent billions of euros a year.
Therefore, the Jaén research team is using its optical laboratories to find solutions. Some scientists are focused on developing dust-resistant coatings, while others are investigating how dust behaves under warmer, colder, drier or wetter weather conditions.
There are many variables to take into account. For example, dust grains can be of different sizes or colors and could affect the performance of solar installations.
Even the design elements make a difference; for example, a panel having no frame or having a rigid frame around its edge.
Professor Almonacid says Saharan dust is especially tricky: “The particles of Saharan dust are very fine. And they are especially difficult to clean.”
The cost-benefit in cleaning solar panels
The renewable energy company Sonnedix faces the challenge of dirt every day, monitoring the production of each of its solar plants and carefully calculating when it is commercially viable to clean its photovoltaic panels. Cleaning is expensive, around 400-500 euros per megawatt, so concessions have to be made depending on the price of the plant’s electricity.
The company’s Director of Operations, Juan Fernández, tells us: “When you generate energy and every kilowatt hour you generate is important to the plant’s income, these large accumulations of dust have an impact.”
He now works with meteorologists to help plan cleaning sessions according to dust arrivals and the type of rain, as light drizzle can dirty the panels and heavy downpours can wash them away for free.
“A severe Saharan dust haze could cause a significant drop in production within the network, and that could become a problem for the network operator,” he explains.
“So anticipation, foresight and the ability to proactively manage this is really key,” he says.
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The recent increase in Saharan dust arrivals could be part of normal climate variation, or it could be something else.
A spokesperson for Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Service told Euronews: “Although it is not unusual for Saharan dust plumes to reach Europe, there has been an increase in the intensity and frequency of such episodes in recent years, which could be attributed to changes in atmospheric circulation patterns.”
These changes in atmospheric circulation are supposed to be linked to climate change.
“Science is always cautious when drawing conclusions, as it should be, right?” says expert Eduardo Fernández. “But what we are seeing is that there are more and more extreme phenomena, not only dirt, but also rain and winds.
“We are seeing more and more Saharan phenomena, which are increasingly reaching northern Europe, and the suspicion is that it is due to global warming,” he concludes.
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