Dependence of Solar Reflector Soiling on Location Relative to a Ferromanganese Smelter
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17159/Abstract
This paper presents the results from a solar reflector soiling study carried out at Transalloys over 8 months (from February to November 2020), assessing the soiling rates for thirty-two mirrors at different locations around the plant. Several meteorological parameters were also monitored to give insight into the conditions that lead to increased soiling. Mineralogical characterisation of dust samples collected from the reflectors and the atmosphere revealed that only a certain size fraction is of importance with regards to soiling and that the source of the dust can be attributed to both raw materials and smelter products. The reflector set’s proximity to the dust source was the primary driver for increased soiling. The location that experienced the most soiling over the entire period was located very close to raw material heaps and deemed an outlier, excluded for the summary statistics that follow. The secondary driver for increased soiling was the reflector set’s location relative to the smelter dust sources and the wind’s direction and speed. A 13.1 % lower soiling rate, averaged over the observation period, was observed for the reflector set with the best location on average relative to the set with the ‘worst’ (but still feasible) location on average, represented by an averaged mean-daily reflectance loss of 0.0186 for the considered period. The study revealed that, while there are periods of intense soiling at this particular site, proper planning of reflector location relative to the smelter dust sources can have a significant positive impact on soiling rate.Downloads
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Copyright (c) 2024 Milan André Swart, Lina Hockaday, Quinn Reynolds, Ken Craig
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