Defined term
Photovoltaic soiling loss
NREL PVWatts defines soiling as a reduction in incident solar irradiance from dust or other seasonal module-surface soiling.
measurement · Concept code GS-CONCEPT-130 · Last verified August 28, 2026
Evidence as-of date unavailable · 1 source has no source-event date
Content modified 2026-08-28
Definition and decision context
Definition
NREL PVWatts defines soiling as a reduction in incident solar irradiance from dust or other seasonal module-surface soiling.
Verified August 28, 2026
Why it matters
PVWatts accepts monthly soiling values and applies a uniform irradiance reduction to each subarray, making the result input-dependent.
Verified August 28, 2026
Selector-derived public graph
Learning navigation
Primary topic: Performance
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Primary sources
- National Laboratory of the Rockies: PVWatts V8 API — Request Parameters and Output Fields: poa, poa_monthly, dc_ac_ratio, inv_eff, bifaciality, albedo, and soiling
Source event date unavailable · Ontology accessed August 28, 2026 · Ontology verified August 28, 2026