Dust impact on photovoltaic technologies: a comparative analysis using deep recurrent neural networks

ABSTRACT

Photovoltaic (PV) behavior and productivity are affected by environmental parameters such as temperature, humidity, dust, etc. This study was conducted in Sohar, Oman, six standalone PV modules, each rated at 100 W, were meticulously tested outdoors for 35 days, specifically focusing on the detrimental effects of dust. What sets this research apart is the pioneering use of a deep recurrent neural network (DRNN) to comprehensively analyze and simulate the adverse impact of dust on PV power generation. The study employed various PV module technologies, including monocrystalline, polycrystalline, and flexible monocrystalline modules. The experimental findings, which encompassed a comparative analysis of both clean and dusty PV modules over the course of a month, revealed substantial performance degradation: 30.24%, 28.94%, and 36.21% for the respective PV module technologies. Furthermore, the presence of dust not only reduced power output but also led to lower module temperatures. The results obtained through practical experiments underscore the heightened negative influence of dust on solar panels, as explained by the DRNN network, resulting in a significant decrease in energy production across all panels. In the cross-validation phase at epoch number 500, the MSE for the DRNN module was 0.0145, while in the training phase at epoch number 827, it was 0.0178. A set of performance factors has been applied to test the accuracy of the results predicted from the proposed model DRNN. The sensitivity analysis showed that the flexible monocrystalline panel (Clean) is less uncertain based on its sensitivity rate of 0.0092. It is followed by the flexible monocrystalline panel (Dusty) with a rate of 0.0176.

KEYWORDS:

• Solar energy
• energy generation
• photovoltaic
• dust particles impact
• deep recurrent neural network

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

“The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the first author upon reasonable request.”

Additional information

Funding

“The research leading to these results has received funding from the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (MoHERI) of the Sultanate of Oman under the Block Funding Program. MoHERI block Funding Agreement NO TRC/BFP/SU/01/2018 and Research Project Grant Funding from the Research Council of the Sultanate of Oman, Research Grant Agreement No. [ORG SU EI 11 010]”.

Notes on contributors

Jabar H Yousif

Dr. Jabar H Yousif have 20 years of experience in academics and research. Dr Jabar boasts a commendable research record, and extensive experience, that makes him a valuable asset for advancing scientific knowledge and fostering innovation in his field. He has published over 90 high-impact research papers and book chapters, obtained external research funds, and served as a reviewer and editorial member. According to AD Scientific Index, Dr Jabar is one of Oman’s Top Computer Science Scientists interested in researching artificial intelligence, cloud computing, soft computing, artificial neural networks, natural language processing, renewable energy modeling , simulation and optimization, and virtual reality. Dr Jabar H. Yousif is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Computing and Information Technology at Sohar University. He completed his postdoctoral work on computer graphics and virtual/augmented reality at the National University of Malaysia (UKM). He earned a Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing from the Faculty of Information Science and Technology, National University of Malaysia (UKM). He holds M.Sc. and B.Sc. in computer science. Dr Jabar fosters a collaborative environment and encourages team-oriented research, urging colleagues and junior faculty members to publish their findings in reputable journals. He contributed to several research publications, collaborating closely with the talented teammates within the faculty and with my postgraduate students, recognizing the importance of impactful publications.

Hussein A Kazem

Hussein A Kazem holds a BSc and MSc in electrical engineering from the University of Technology (UOT), Baghdad-Iraq, and a PhD from Newcastle University (NCL), United Kingdom. His academic journey began in 1995 at Al-Mamon College, and in 1996 he assumed the role of Assistant Lecturer at UOT. From 1997 to 2002, he served as a Program Coordinator at the Faculty of Engineering, Al Tahady University, Libya. Since 2002, Hussein has been a Professor at Sohar University (SU), Oman. He also holds the position of a visiting Professor at UKM and UNITEN - Malaysia, and Newcastle University-UK. With a dedicated focus on academics and research spanning over 25 years, Hussein is actively engaged with prestigious professional organizations and engineering societies. He serves as a member, researcher, editor, and reviewer several publishers. Hussein has organized and participated in numerous conferences, symposiums, and workshops. His scholarly contributions include more than 260 published papers in scientific journals and conferences, 60 invited talks, nine chapters, and eight books. Recognizing his exceptional research, Hussein has been honored with the SU Vice-Chancellor Award for Research, as well as national and international accolades such as the “Golden Medal Award” at Pecipta’13 in Malaysia, “The Outstanding Renewable Energy Lab Award” at the World Renewable Energy Congress 2014 in UK, “Renewable & Sustainable Energy Pioneer Award” at the World Renewable Energy Congress 2016 in Indonesia, and “Special Award of Excellence in Renewable Energy Research” at the World Renewable Energy Congress 2018 in Kingston-UK. In addition, he has received the IEEE Best Paper Award in 2021, Golden Medal Award on Malaysia Technology Expo (MTE) 2023 and holds two patents as an inventor and co-inventor. Hussein has successfully supervised and guided the graduation of more than 60 BSc, 8 MSc, and 7 PhD students. Throughout his career, Hussein has led and contributed to several research projects, including six research grants. His research interests revolve around Photovoltaic, solar thermal, PV/T, Renewable Energy, Power Electronics, Power Quality, and Electrical Power Systems. Notably, Hussein serves as the chairman of the Renewable Energy & Sustainable Technology Research Group and leads the Generation & Storage task force in the Oman Renewable Energy Strategic Program. Furthermore, he holds the position of Associate Editor-in-Chief for the journal of Renewable Energy & Environmental Sustainability.

Kelvin Joseph Bwalya

Kelvin Joseph Bwalya is professor of computer information systems and Head of Research Development. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (Hong Kong) and is a rated scholar by the South African National Research Foundation: C1 (Established Researcher). He has been extensively involved in postgraduate supervision, and examined over 100 Masters and PhD works. Kelvin has published over 100 pieces of peer-reviewed works including 3 authored and 6 edited books. He is a Visiting Professor in several universities around the world and has a very strong network of collaborators from China, Spain, USA, South Korea, among others. He has been involved in tertiary accreditation exercises in Botswana, South Africa and Zambia as a Reviewer or Team Leader for IT programmes. He has also been engaged in consultancies for reputable public and private-sector organisations. He is a member of various professional organisations including the South African Institute of Computer Scientists and Information Technologists; Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa; Global Community of Information Professionals (Association of Information and Image Management); Association of Information Systems Professionals and Korea Information Processing Society (KIPS).