An exploratory framework for analyzing the impact of salt deposition on offshore photovoltaic system

Offshore photovoltaic systems utilise marine environments for solar energy generation. This provides an effective solution to the increasing scarcity of land resources and increasing competition for space on land. However, unique challenges posed by the marine environment, such as salt deposition, can significantly affect the efficiency of solar panels. To weaken the impact of environmental factors when studying the effects of salt buildup on solar panels, this paper introduces a new framework for analysing the effects of salt deposition. The framework uses drones or fixed cameras to capture images on-site and applies advanced image-processing methods to accurately identify areas with salt deposition. By collecting essential parameters, such as power output, temperature, humidity, illuminance, and salt deposition mass, a method is derived to convert the salt mass, area, and average thickness. The predictive models were trained to assess the rate of power decline caused by salt deposition. This comprehensive analysis enhances the accuracy of power generation efficiency assessments and supports operational decision making. Under the experimental conditions, at an illuminance of 100,000 lx, the power decline rate of the photovoltaic panels was 9.69 % when the salt deposition area proportion was 10 %. When the area proportion increased to 20 %, the power decline rate reached 14.52 %. Additionally, the decline rates gradually increased as the illuminance decreased; when the illuminance decreased to 20,000 lx, the power decline rates increased to 48.91 % and 70.29 %. Meanwhile, under fixed lighting conditions of 100,000 lx, as the salt deposition thickness increased from 0.4 × 10⁻⁴ to 1.1 × 10⁻⁴ g/mm2, the power decline rate increased from 4.17 % to 14.52 %.