Superhydrophilic, antifogging and antireflecting nanoparticulate coating for solar PV modules

Superhydrophilic, antifogging, antireflective and highly transparent coating of porous silica nanoparticles is deposited on the protective glass of solar PV module. Silane precursor mixed with air sprayed on the substrate surface by aerosol deposition method. Pressure difference between the plasma chamber and the substrate was tuned by introducing additional amounts of helium resulting in good control over layered thicknesses and refractive indices. Due to the porous nature and graded index of coated film, the transmittance of glass substrate was increased from 91% to 99.2%. Surface topology of coated film is studied by AFM shows excellent antifogging and super-hydrophilic nature attributed to roughness and nano-porosity of coated film. Moreover, the superhydrophilic nature endows these coatings with self-cleaning properties, which can increase the efficiency of solar modules.