Sustainability of Photovoltaic Power Plants in Desert Environments: From Design to Maintenance Strategies

The deployment of large-scale photovoltaic systems in desert regions offers significant potential due to high solar irradiance and vast unoccupied land. However, these environments also present extreme challenges that impact the performance of the systems and their longevity. This paper reviews several major photovoltaic projects in desert areas worldwide, outlining their key technical characteristics and some of their environmental constraints. Two experimental platforms – ATOMOS-TEC in Chile and Green Energy Park in Morocco – are then presented as case studies for the analysis of degradation mechanisms such as soiling, delamination and thermal stress. Their findings contribute to the optimization of the design of photovoltaic modules for desert applications. The paper also examines advanced maintenance strategies, including robotic and waterless cleaning solutions, infrared thermography, electroluminescence imaging, and aerial inspection techniques using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and AI-based fault detection. These approaches are essential for maintaining efficiency and reducing operational costs in harsh climates and ensuring the long-term sustainability of the photovoltaic plants in arid environments.