News Release
For Immediate Release
28.07.2023
Sandia Partners with Morgan Solar to Measure Snow Losses from PV Systems
Toronto, Ontario: Morgan Solar and Sandia National Laboratories are partnering on a study to identify and quantify the amount of energy lost when a photovoltaic (PV) power plant is covered in snow. Among the technologies being evaluated is Morgan’s novel IOT sensor - the PV DeepSweep, 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. By first isolating for loss factors like snow and soiling loss, researchers can more effectively understand other DC Health signals like degradation, temperature coefficient shift, mismatch and MPPT tracker efficiency - all loss factors for which the PV DeepSweep can provide further insight.
Morgan Solar is proud to partner with Sandia, a U.S. Department of Energy research and development lab, and a global leader in evaluating the performance and reliability of emerging photovoltaic technologies. The study, led by PV systems expert Jennifer Braid, aims to compare the performance of the PV DeepSweep curve tracer with more traditional technologies, such as snow-depth sensors and mounted cameras to measure and analyze snow impacts the energy yield of solar farms.
“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,” says 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 PV DeepSweep has the potential to be a valuable tool in identifying the design parameters that matter the most.”
Data from the PV DeepSweep is being collected at the Michigan Regional Test Center (RTC) for Emerging Solar Technologies located in Calumet, Michigan, where the average annual snowfall exceeds 202 inches (513 cm) per year. A world-class research facility, the MI RTC is owned by Michigan Technological University and operated in partnership with Sandia. Sandia will collect more data from the PV DeepSweep this coming winter and Morgan Solar is pleased to have such an optimal location for validating the PV DeepSweep’s performance and reliability in severe winter environments.
Burnham predicts there will be other opportunities to partner with Morgan Solar. As chair of an international organization called the PV Collaborative to Advance Multi-climate Performance and Energy Research, or PV CAMPER, she says, “Snow shading is a big problem for PV in some regions of the world; in others, soiling is the bigger challenge. Having high-quality cross-climate data is key to developing new designs and mitigation strategies to reduce shading and steer the world toward a more robust solar economy.”
Experimental array at the Michigan Regional Test Center for Emerging Solar Technologies is generating data on comparative rates of snow shedding and energy output in winter across multiple module technologies.
About Morgan Solar
Morgan Solar has been developing technology solutions serving the utility and urban solar markets since 2007. Our utility-scale solar solutions are driven by in situ Iot sensors that enable a live digital twin of solar plants. The company’s deep datasets unlock unprecedented analysis and insights that bring value to stakeholders across the solar sector.
For more information on Morgan Solar visit: www.morgansolar.com/diagnostic-pv-deepsweep
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For more information on Sandia visit: https://www.sandia.gov/
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