Photovoltaic electricity generation loss due to snow – A literature review on influence factors, estimation, and mitigation

This paper provides a critical literature review of the impact of snow accumulations on photovoltaic (PV) system electricity generation. The review quantifies the impact of snow, identifies factors that influence the generation loss, examines existing snow impact estimation techniques, and identifies mitigation strategies to reduce the impact of snow accumulations. Reported annual and monthly electricity generation losses resulting from snow accumulations on photovoltaic systems show that annual electricity generation losses were less than 10% in most climates; however, monthly generation losses throughout the winter were generally higher than 25%. The influences of climatic characteristics and system characteristics on the impact of snow were examined individually, and the codependence between influence factors was also discussed where relevant. Estimation techniques for electricity generation loss due to snow cover were summarized. Relatively accurate estimates are achievable by several models when considering ambient temperature, solar irradiance, and snow depth. Ten mitigation methods were identified as having the potential to reduce the impact of snow on PV system electricity generation and were discussed qualitatively. This review provides system designers and operators with the information required to identify how to manage the effect of snow on PV systems and highlights the need for researchers to develop ways to reduce and predict the impact.