Experimental study of particle deposition on a solar photovoltaic panel based on the response surface method

To explore the influence of different factors on particle deposition, four crucial factors, including particle size, wind speed, inclination angle, and wind direction angle (WDA), were considered, and the particle deposition concentration was used as the response variable for experimental research. In this paper, the Box‒Behnken design analysis method in the response surface method was used to conduct experiments. First, the element composition, content, morphology characteristics, and particle size distribution of dust particles were analyzed experimentally. The changes in wind speed and WDA were obtained through a month-long test measurement. Then, the effects of particle size (A), wind speed (B), inclination angle (C), and WDA (D) on the deposition concentration were examined utilizing a test rig. The test data were analyzed by using Design-Expert 10 software, and the results show that four factors have different degrees of influence on the particle deposition concentration, in which the inclination angle effect is the smallest. In the two-factor interaction analysis, the P values of AB, AC, and BC are all less than 5%, indicating that the correlation between the two-factor interaction term and the response variable is acceptable. In contrast, the correlation between the single-factor quadratic term and the response variable is weak. According to the analysis results of single-factor and double-factor interactions, the quadratic fitting formula of particle deposition influencing factors and deposition concentration was obtained, which could quickly and accurately calculate the variation trend of particle deposition concentration under different environmental conditions.