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Helios 180
Najla Al Mohannadi
Rackan Mansour
Syed Umer Ahmad
Khaled Al-Hassan
Hilal Al-Kuwari
Humaira Shaffique

Abstract
The intent of this project is to determine the ways in which dust decreases the longevity and efficiency of
solar panels in Qatar, and develop a solution to counteract dust accumulation on the surface of solar
panels. The research done used mechanical, and electrical means to find the factors of dust accumulation,
and the effect it has on overall power generation. This project is a small part in the collective effort to
ultimately reduce Qatar’s depletion of natural resources substantially.

Introduction
As natural resources of energy deplete rapidly across the globe, the issue of shifting to a renewable source
of energy is becoming increasingly relevant. According to the US Energy Administration [1], there is a 6.6
million barrels per day increase in the consumption of petroleum and liquid fuels in 2022. Throughout its
history, Qatar has utilized its oil and gas reserves as a method of generating electricity for the country. In
recent years as the population has grown, an increase in demand for electricity consumption is quite
visible. According to EnerData [2], a study done on the overall electricity consumption within Qatar
showed that Qatar’s Electricity Consumption has rapidly increased at a rate of 10% yearly, making it rank
5th internationally for highest electricity consumption. Furthermore, another study by EnerData
highlighted 81% of energy consumed is produced through natural gas. Due to heavy dependence on these
reserves, utilizing solar energy as a means for renewable energy sources was seldom discussed. However,
given the increasing focus on the destructive impact of fossil fuels and increasing viability of renewable
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energy sources, Qatar is embracing the need for a shift in its energy production and consumption
strategies.

The Qatar 2030 Vision [3] aims to supply 20% of its energy requirements through renewable resources.
Qatar is located within a region abundant with solar energy, making solar panels the most optimum option
for renewable energy conversion. Other renewable energy sources have limited functionalities within
Qatar. There are no flowing bodies of water to take advantage of watermills, and wind turbines would be
rendered useless for the majority of the year since the average winds recorded within the country range
from 9 to 10 mph [4].

However, Qatar’s extremely harsh climate limits the extent of use of solar panels; the accumulated dust on
the panels reduces the optimal energy efficiency by reducing sunlight absorption, as well as creating “hot
spots” that overheat the surface. Hence, increasing solar panel efficiency and longevity through
sustainability of photovoltaic cells is a solution worth considering if a society wants to make solar panels
their principal source of generating power.

Fig. 3: Example of dust accumulation on solar panels

The efficiency of solar panels can be compromised due to environmental factors or vulnerability of
materials. Without the careful analysis of the environmental conditions and the degradation and sensitivity
of the materials used the longevity of the solar panels will not be achieved [5]. This is a problem in the
desert areas such as the Middle East and North Africa, as compared to the tropical areas. The shocking
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fact is that the energy reduction for the solar panels in just a few months in the tropical region is equal to
the reduction in just a few hours for the desert region [6].

The bar chart below shows the different factors that contributed to the failures that usually occur in solar
panels in the US. Where hot spots on the panel have the highest ratio, along with other issues such as low
power output, low voltage output and mounting holes distortion.

Fig. 4. The failures of distribution of solar panels in the US.[6]

Narrowing down to the research in Qatar the following chart shows the rapid increase in the transmittance
reduction percentage to 21% from 6% in the range of 2g/m2 and 6g/m2 [5]. It is alarming how such a small
quantity of sand and its increase in a few grams over a meter can tremendously affect the amount of light
absorbed by the solar panels.

Fig. 5. The transmittance reduction with the increase of dust deposition density. [5]

The power of a solar panel is also compromised as shown in the scatter plot. The line of best fit shows the
decrease in power from 70W to 40W with the increase of dust particles by 0.8mg/m 3 on the surface of the
panel and including its surrounding air. This graph was also used to estimate that 0.006 QAR money is
lost per hour for only one solar panel where the revenue per hour is 0.0092 QAR per hour when the
density is zero [5].
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Fig. 6. The plot of power versus dust density [5]

The Al-Kharsaah Project [5] in Qatar covering 10km2 has a linear increase in the money lost due to the
accumulation of dust in just milligrams reaching over 12,000 QAR per hour for 1 mg/m3 of dust. Again,
this emphasizes and reinforces the importance of finding ingenious ways that can reduce these large costs
that arise due to the simple collection of dust on the PV cells.

Fig. 7. The money lost versus the Dust density for the Al- Kharsaah Density project. [5]

Our solution has further economical benefits, due to its limited amount of panel maintenance required.
According to Omran Al-Kuwari, the founder and CEO of GreenGulf, there was an underlying “Paradox”
regarding renewable energy within gulf nations for decades, including Qatar. This was due to increased
costs, which resulted in lack of demand. Thus, tackling the financial [7] conflict was significant in finding
a viable solution towards the renewable energy issue.
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Current Solutions
Many of the issues that come with installing solar panels in a region like Qatar have solutions that are
implemented in other regions. High temperature decreases the effectiveness of a solar panel, usually that
happens when the weather exceeds 25°C, as it increases the temperature in the panels which causes
energy to be lost. This led different researchers to invent methods that reduce the temperature in the
panels so less energy is wasted.

The French PV system installer 13 , Sunbooster, developed a cooling system that relies on water.
Sunbooster’s solution is a pipe with very small holes that is built into the top of the solar panel, and when
the panel’s temperature exceeds 25°C, stored rainwater collected from a rainwater tank is pushed on the
edge of the solar panels so it cools down, though water could have some influence on the modules light
absorption, the increase in power yield compensates theat by preventing temperatures from surpassing
30°C [8]. Though this is a great solution that is rapidly decreasing in price, it isn't sustainable in Qatar as it
relies on rain water and Qatar barely gets any rainwater. The application of solar panels in a desert region
that lacks rain such as Qatar has a serious restriction which is the accumulation of dust on the PV panels.
A soiled PV panel in Qatar will only provide about 85% of its potential electricity if it wasn’t cleaned for
a month. The issue of dusting has many potential solutions, such as manual labor manually cleaning the
panels, however it might be a bit challenging considering the harsh environment and weather especially
during the summer season.

An alternative solution [9] that was initially developed to remove lunar dust adhered to spacesuits is a
device that’s applying an electrostatic wave that would make the dust particles fall off downward with the
help of gravity. When this method was tested it had an irrelevant amount of energy consumption
compared to the output of the panel. The electrostatic cleaning device would be a somewhat possibility
for a sustainable solution in Qatar considering that it doesn't use water and the whole system could be
automated without the intervention of humans. Coincidentally, a prototype was tested at a solar testing
facility in Doha, Qatar for 6 months, by researchers [10] . Two PV cells with integrated Electrodynamic
Dust Shields were compared to a regular PV cell, in terms of soiling, the cells with the integrated EDS
were able to reduce soiling by 16 to 33 percent when operating at 9kVpp [11]. The disadvantage arises with
the impracticality of the method, as it is likely to have low performance, especially in relation to smaller
sized dust particles, and would require specific power to function effectively which in itself is a setback.

Our Proposed Solution

After thorough consideration of all the potential solutions, the team developed a modification of
traditional solar panels - Helios 180 - that reduces dust accumulation and maximizes efficiency and
longevity. This solution utilizes advanced technological, mechanical and chemical concepts to tackle the
problem, hence minimizing the need for constant maintenance of the cells. These mechanisms are what
will make Helios 180 stand out from all current solutions, as it takes a part of most of them and combines
this to create a solution, which is practical while also being feasible financially.
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Fig 8: The first mock up of Helios 180

The Helios 180 will be a bifacial solar panel, which is an already existing type of solar panel. However,
current models utilize the backwards face to collect diffused or “secondary” sunlight. With Helios 180,
both faces of the solar panel can act as fully functioning solar panels. The main idea is that after a lot of
dust has accumulated on the surface of the panel, instead of requiring maintenance and cleaning, the panel
will rotate 180 degrees about its center axis, effectively allowing the backside to take over. This upgrade
would essentially double the time in between, and in turn halves the cost of maintenance and cleaning.

An anti-static dust spray coating on each surface of Helios 180 will aid to minimize the dust
accumulation, especially on the backside surface. Dust will have a tougher time piling on the backside
face. Based on this ideology and the dust repellent, when it is time for Helios 180 to make a half
revolution, the backside faee should be almost as clean as a newly washed solar panel face.

As with most current solar panels, Helios 180 is equipped with a luminosity sensor to track the movement
of the sun, hence increasing the efficiency by maintaining an optimal angle with the sunlight. Moreover,
the supporting legs will be programmed to the data retrieved from the sensor and will utilize hydraulic
pistons and a custom designed universal hinge allowing the panelto have the freedom to function within
the space of a dome. This feature would allow the solar panel system to adjust to the seasonal changes in
the sun's daily path across the sky further increasing daily efficiency.

Helios 180 will require regular maintenance checks within Qatar, and we have opted for manual
maintenance to be conducted after both solar panels are unusable due to dust accumulation. With every
maintenance check, both faces will be polished and clear of all dustm and will be recoated with the
anti-static dust spray if needed.
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Figure 9: Isometric view of Helios 180 Figure 10: Side view of Helios 180

One of the most important aspects of the panel will be its cleanliness. Due to the Anti-Dusting Spray, and
bifacial attribute, the surface of the Helios 180 will gather considerably less dust than a normal solar
panel. For this very reason, the cleaning of the surface would not be required for a longer period of time,
allowing less cost of maintenance. The method applied to clean the panels would be manual labor, since it
has proven historically to be the most safest way of cleaning the glass surface. The glass surface would be
cleaned manually once every month, and then coated with an Anti-Dusting Spray. This would allow the
surface to remain as clean as possible for another month, as the dusting spray would keep a large portion
of the dust particles from gathering onto the surface.

Fig 11: Multaqa Building in Education City

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Our aim is to implement the Helios 180 project within Multaqa (shown in Fig 11), before expanding
further throughout Qatar and into the industrial sector. We chose Multaqa as our initial location due to
its expanded and substantial electricity usage within the institute as it comprises students from multiple
educational institutes as well as residents attending the building daily. Moreover, solar panels in
Education City produce about 5 MWh of renewable energy per day, contributing 1.0% of the electricity
demand. If our solution is implemented, Multaqa could generate its own power, more efficiently than the
rest of Education City based panels.

Impact
The major future impact of our solution is the increase in efficiency of solar panels that are used in Qatar,
by reducing the time that the panel is used when dust is accumulated on it. When the panels operate while
there is dust on them, many issues arise such as the decrease in power generated and the hotspots that
reduce the lifespan of a panel by damaging the PV modules. By increasing the efficiency of solar panels,
we aim to increase the overall use of solar energy which directly reduces the use of energy from
non-renewable resources.

Reducing the usage of non-renewable energy resources is one of the top priorities most countries have
right now, it’s even mentioned in the Qatar national vision 2030. Non-renewable energy resources have
many drawbacks, starting with the damage these resources due to the nature and the climate, Qatar is one
of the most polluted countries in the globe due to the extraction of oil and natural gas, though most of
these natural resources are exported and sold to other countries, reducing the dependence on these
resources inside the country will still make a difference. Adapting our solution widely would decrease the
impact of these problems mentioned. Using an effective solar panel would reduce pollution in the air, as
other non-renewable energy would have less local demand.

Helios 180 will have a great impact on the energy’s security in Qatar, especially in times of conflict.
Many countries in Qatar’s region got their energy supply affected due to conflicts that no one predicted.
Such as the Saudis getting their largest oil fields attacked by drones very commonly in the past couple of
years, or even other less fortunate countries getting their electricity cut off for the most of the day due to
economic reasons. Our solution would diversify the energy resources and if for some reason the use of
natural resources as an energy resource suddenly decreased, the solar panels would be somewhat efficient
to cover the deficit in local demand for a period of time.

Conclusion
The goal of our project is to introduce a sustainable solution that will increase the efficiency and longevity
of solar panels with consideration to adapt to the desert conditions in Qatar. Our product “Helios 180” is
designed to solve the problem of dust accumulation on the surface of the panel with the adaptive
installation of a bi-facial solar panel, its ability to rotate one-eighty degrees using the luminosity sensors
being able to create a dome motion and adjust its height vertically with its retractable legs. These
additional features of the solar will help Qatar reach its 2030 Vision increasing its dependence on
renewable resources by 20%. The next goal is make this product user friendly to be used in households
which will finally mark the full implementation and success of the solar model. Therefore, our solution
can bring a significant impact to create a green environment, encouraging industries to purchase “Helios
180” in order to save maintenance costs and take advantage of its unique qualities.
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References

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[9] Electrostatic cleaning equipment for dust removal from soiled solar panels. (2019, March 1).
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r_conditions_on_photovoltaic_performance_in_Doha_Qatar/links/5ff1635b92851c13fee30cd3/Effect-of-
dust-and-weather-conditions-on-photovoltaic-performance-in-Doha-Qatar.pdf