IMPACT OF AIR POLLUTION ON SOLAR ENERGY GENERATION IN RAIGAD DISTRICT

Due to the continuous increase of environmental pollution in recent years, the high concentration of particulate matters in air has greatly reduced the amount of solar radiation that can reach the earth, and this reduction has a direct effect on the use of solar energy in buildings. To quantify this attenuation effect, historical meteorological data collected from Panvel region from January 2021 to December 2021 and it is used to investigate the correlation between clearness index (reflecting available radiation) and air quality index (reflecting pollution level). The analysis results have revealed that higher air quality index would result in lower clearness index, and the sunny days gave higher decreasing rate than cloudy days. This study presents an impact of air pollution and PV soiling on solar resources and techno-economic performances of PV systems