Self-cleaning and antireflective packaging glass for solar modules

Abstract

Incident energy on solar modules is lost both through reflection at the first air/glass interface of the packaging glass and through scattering or absorption by accumulated dust on outdoor panels. While simple antireflective coatings on the glass can help alleviate reflection in systems with motorized tracking, the problem of dust accumulation on module surfaces over time remains and can even be exacerbated by certain antireflective coatings. Here, a process of non-lithographic nanostructuring of the packaging glass surface is shown to both reduce reflection at the air/glass interface and to have a self-cleaning property. The glass surface becomes superhydrophilic upon nanostructuring, with a measured contact angle less than 5° which is proven to be self cleaning by outdoor testing. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd.