Transition from Manual to Robotic Cleaning for Large Photovoltaic Systems: Review of Innovation Technologies

With the growing trend toward renewable energy, especially high-capacity solar power plants are currently being installed, and their number is expected to increase in the future. Therefore, automated photovoltaic (PV) cleaning using robots is imperative to maintain their efficiency and prevent economic losses resulting from dirt accumulation. Dust on PV is a major challenge, reducing their efficiency by 20% to 40% in desert and arid regions. The use of robots to clean PVs has become an innovative and effective solution to improve performance and reduce operating costs. Cleaning robots are capable of removing dust with an efficiency of up to 99% without requiring large quantities of water, making them ideal for areas affected by water scarcity. Furthermore, these robots address the challenges of human labor required to clean large areas, as they can clean hundreds of square meters per day with less effort and faster than manual methods. This review focuses on three distinct types of robotic cleaning systems: rail-mounted systems, on-panel crawling robots, and aerial systems. Studies show that the use of robots can improve energy production by up to 49% compared to traditional methods in specific studies under extreme soiling.