Hands-free cleaning for solar panels
November 30th, 2008 - Posted in solar energyBy STEVE HART
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
A Petaluma startup is hoping to plug in to the booming market for solar technology with an automated system for cleaning photovoltaic panels.
OCS Energy’s SolarWash system can increase the output of solar energy plants by 5 to 25 percent, said Rich O’Connell, the company’s CEO.
Dirt, leaves, moss, mold, sap, bugs — even bird droppings — collect on solar panels and prevent them from working properly, said O’Connell.
“If you’re not cleaning those panels, they’re not going to perform as designed,” said Mariclair O’Connell, his wife and partner in the business.
OCS Energy is the latest solar technology startup in Sonoma County, which has spawned a cluster of clean-tech companies in recent years.
Enphase Energy Inc., a Petaluma startup that makes micro-inverters that boost the output of solar panels, has raised more than $21 million from investors this year.
Santa Rosa’s Soladigm, an early-stage company backed by green tech investor Vinod Khosla, is developing “smart glass” for energy-efficient windows.
OCS Energy’s SolarWash system grew out of the O’Connells’ 7-year-old alternative energy design and installation business, O’Connell Solar.
It’s intended for cleaning commercial solar installations that generate at least 100 kilowatts of power.
Large arrays of solar panels can be cleaned by maintenance crews, but the job is labor-intensive and it can be dangerous, Rich O’Connell said. The energized systems must be shut down before crews can safely clean them, he said.
“Anybody who has a big plant has a problem,” O’Connell said.
Rich O’Connell, an electrical engineer and former project manager at Santa Rosa’s wastewater treatment plant, designed a cleaning system with spray nozzles that attach to solar panels. Tubing connects the nozzles to a water tank, and the system is controlled by a programmable microprocessor. It can be programmed for weekly cleanings that maximize energy output, O’Connell said.
“It’s really simple, about as low-tech as you can get,” he said.
The system will cost about 30 cents a watt, or $30,000 for a 100-kilowatt solar plant, he said. The system should pay for itself in three to five years if a plant is losing at least 5 percent of its output due to dirty panels, he said.
OCS Energy launched SolarWash earlier this month and already has sold a system for a 400-kilowatt solar generation plant at Edison Technology Park in Menlo Park. The plant has 2,388 panels covering 33,000 square feet.
“Manual cleanings have turned out to be time- and cost-prohibitive,” said Ron Newdoll, who owns the business park.
Until now, OCS Energy was self-funded, but it’s looking for $1 to $5 million from investors to grow the business and cut system costs, O’Connell said.
With global production of photovoltaic panels doubling every two years, he expects strong demand for the new technology.
“We see a worldwide market,” O’Connell said.
You can reach Staff Writer Steve Hart at 521-5205 or steve.hart@pressdemocrat.com.
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