Inspection Data Collection Tool for Field Testing of Photovoltaic Modules in the Atacama Desert

Vásquez, Pía Smok; Devoto, Ignacia; Ferrada, Pablo; Taquichiri, Abel; Portillo, Carlos; Palma‐Behnke, Rodrigo

doi:10.3390/en14092409

“…In operating PV parks in the Atacama Desert, Vásquez et al (2021), found soiling as the most frequent problem, since layers of dust on the panels reduce their power output. To reduce soiling, common cleaning options include natural cleaning by wind and rain, manual cleaning with water and cleaning robots.…”

Section: Photovoltaic Cleaningmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainable Astronomy: A comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Off-grid Hybrid Energy Systems to supply large Telescopes

Viole,

Shen,

Camargo

et al. 2023

Preprint

0

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Purpose Supplying off-grid facilities such as astronomical observatories with renewable energy-based systems (RES) instead of diesel generators can considerably reduce their environmental impact. However, RES require oversized capacities to counter intermittency and comply with reliability requirements, hence shifting the environmental impact from operation to construction phase. We assess whether 100% RES scenarios are favorable from an environmental point of view, and discuss the trade-offs in systems with backup fossil generators versus 100% renewable ones. Methods In this comparative life cycle assessment (LCA), we study various RES supply systems to power a new telescope in the Atacama desert, Chile. We compare six setups, including 100% RES scenarios, namely photovoltaics (PV) with batteries and hydrogen energy storage; high-renewable scenarios, with fossil fuel power generation next to RES and storage; and a system combining PV with diesel generation. We base system sizing on a techno-economical optimization for the start of operation in 2030. Foreground data stem from recent life cycle inventories of RES components and 2030 electricity mix assumptions of production places. We assess environmental impact in the categories climate change, mineral resource depletion and water use. Results and discussion We find that 100% RES and high-renewable scenarios result in emissions of 0.077-0.115kg CO2e/kWh supplied, compared to 0.917kg CO2e/kWh in the reference case with solely diesel generation. 100% RES scenarios have a lower CO2e impact than high-renewable scenarios. However, the latter lower the mineral resource depletion and water use by about 27% compared to 100% RES scenarios. Applying hybrid energy storage systems increases the water use impact, while reducing the mineral resource depletion. Conclusions None of the six energy systems we compared was clearly the best in all environmental impacts considered. Trade-offs must be taken when choosing an energy system to supply the prospective off-grid telescope in Chile. We find high-renewable systems with some fossil generation as the better option regarding power reliability, mineral resource depletion and water use, while inducing slightly higher greenhouse gas emissions than the 100% RES scenarios. As remote research facilities and off-grid settlements today are mainly supplied by fossil fuels, we expect to motivate more multifaceted decisions for implementing larger shares of RES for these areas. To advance the LCA community in the field of energy systems, we should strive to incorporate temporal and regional realities into our life cycle inventories. To ease the path for upcoming studies, we publish this work’s inventories as detailed activity level datasets.

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“…Climate change impact both from direct and indirect emissions. This study examines the cradle-to-gate environmental impacts of different energy system configurations for the telescope in question, combining an ex-post LCA with the findings from the highRES-AtLAST energy system optimization model, developed by Valenzuela Venegas (2022), see methodology flowchart in Fig. 1.…”

Section: Life Cycle Assessment (Lca) For Renewable Energy Systemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainable Astronomy: A comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Off-grid Hybrid Energy Systems to supply large Telescopes

Viole,

Shen,

Camargo

et al. 2023

Preprint

0

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose Supplying off-grid facilities such as astronomical observatories with renewable energy-based systems (RES) instead of diesel generators can considerably reduce their environmental impact. However, RES require oversized capacities to counter intermittency and comply with reliability requirements, hence shifting the environmental impact from operation to construction phase. We assess whether 100% RES scenarios are favorable from an environmental point of view, and discuss the trade-offs in systems with backup fossil generators versus 100% renewable ones. Methods In this comparative life cycle assessment (LCA), we study various RES supply systems to power a new telescope in the Atacama desert, Chile. We compare six setups, including 100% RES scenarios, namely photovoltaics (PV) with batteries and hydrogen energy storage; high-renewable scenarios, with fossil fuel power generation next to RES and storage; and a system combining PV with diesel generation. We base system sizing on a techno-economical optimization for the start of operation in 2030. Foreground data stem from recent life cycle inventories of RES components and 2030 electricity mix assumptions of production places. We assess environmental impact in the categories climate change, mineral resource depletion and water use. Results and discussion We find that 100% RES and high-renewable scenarios result in emissions of 0.077-0.115kg CO2e/kWh supplied, compared to 0.917kg CO2e/kWh in the reference case with solely diesel generation. 100% RES scenarios have a lower CO2e impact than high-renewable scenarios. However, the latter lower the mineral resource depletion and water use by about 27% compared to 100% RES scenarios. Applying hybrid energy storage systems increases the water use impact, while reducing the mineral resource depletion. Conclusions None of the six energy systems we compared was clearly the best in all environmental impacts considered. Trade-offs must be taken when choosing an energy system to supply the prospective off-grid telescope in Chile. We find high-renewable systems with some fossil generation as the better option regarding power reliability, mineral resource depletion and water use, while inducing slightly higher greenhouse gas emissions than the 100% RES scenarios. As remote research facilities and off-grid settlements today are mainly supplied by fossil fuels, we expect to motivate more multifaceted decisions for implementing larger shares of RES for these areas. To advance the LCA community in the field of energy systems, we should strive to incorporate temporal and regional realities into our life cycle inventories. To ease the path for upcoming studies, we publish this work’s inventories as detailed activity level datasets.

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“…There are currently undergoing investigations on how PV hotspots occur in PV modules. Some researchers suggest that hotspots are present due to the rapid change in the night-to-day temperature 5 , particularly in deserts and coastal areas 6 . However, there is no complete demonstration of how hotspots develop, especially for new PV modules that are not affected by any means of cracks or physical damages.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An empirical investigation on the correlation between solar cell cracks and hotspots

Dhimish

¹

,

Lazaridis

²

2021

Sci Rep

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In recent years, solar cell cracks have been a topic of interest to industry because of their impact on performance deterioration. Therefore, in this work, we investigate the correlation of four crack modes and their effects on the temperature of the solar cell, well known as hotspot. We divided the crack modes to crack free (mode 1), micro-crack (mode 2), shaded area (mode 3), and breakdown (mode 4). Using a dataset of 12 different solar cell samples, we have found that there are no hotspots detected for a solar cell affected by modes 1 or 2. However, we discovered that the solar cell is likely to have hotspots if affected by crack mode 3 or 4, with an expected increase in the temperature from 25$$^\circ $$ ∘ C to 100$$^\circ $$ ∘ C. Additionally, we have noticed that an increase in the shading ratio in solar cells can cause severe hotspots. For this reason, we observed that the worst-case scenario for a hotspot to develop is at shading ratios of 40% to 60%, with an identified increase in the cell temperature from 25$$^\circ $$ ∘ C to 105$$^\circ $$ ∘ C.

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Inspection Data Collection Tool for Field Testing of Photovoltaic Modules in the Atacama Desert

Cited by 7 publications

References 30 publications

Sustainable Astronomy: A comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Off-grid Hybrid Energy Systems to supply large Telescopes

Sustainable Astronomy: A comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Off-grid Hybrid Energy Systems to supply large Telescopes

Sustainable Astronomy: A comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Off-grid Hybrid Energy Systems to supply large Telescopes

An empirical investigation on the correlation between solar cell cracks and hotspots

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