“In the winter, snow poses a major challenge for solar farms, because modules covered with snow do not generate any energy and, in the worst case, can even collapse,” explains SunBrush® mobil Managing Director Franz Ehleuter. Manual hand cleaning with a broom is slow and labor intensive, so a practical answer needed to be found. “We are pleased that with our Winter Kit upgrade, we have now found the ideal solution,” adds Ehleuter.
SunBrush has completed extensive testing and run pilot tests successfully. The first mass-produced Winter Kits have been in operation in Kazakhstan for several weeks in Central Asia's largest solar farm, SES Saran. This solar plant was installed by GOLDBECK SOLAR. The 100 MW site is managed by the GOLDBECK SOLAR O&M team. They are taking care about the cleaning of more than 300,000 solar modules.
“I am impressed how quickly and efficiently we can clean our solar park with the new Winter Kit from SunBrush® mobil. During a regular winter period it snows in Kazakhstan for four months. Due to the use of the PV cleaning devices from SunBrush® mobil we will increase our plant availability and the plant performance,” says Paul Scheibel, Technical Asset Manager from GOLDBECK SOLAR.
Improved features for higher requirements
For the Winter Kit, SunBrush has doubled the power of the brush motor and reinforced the frame of the PV cleaning system. The centerpiece of the new kit are the aluminum snow deflector blades, which deflect snow away from the modules on either side of the brush like a plow. As a result, the blades prevent the snow from being flung onto the modules. This not only increases efficiency, but also significantly speeds up the cleaning process. Within a very short time, the snow is simply swept off by the brush without the need for additional cleaning agents. Any remaining icing melts as soon as the snow is gone because the module heats up as it produces electricity.