Significant decrease of photovoltaic power production by aerosols. The case of Santiago de Chile

Santiago de Chile frequently suffers from atmospheric pollution that contributes to the decrease of solar irradiance on the surface, leading to losses in the energy output of photovoltaic systems. In this study, a simple model is used to estimate the effect of aerosols on the solar irradiance over the city throughout the year, using as input AERONET sunphotometer data and other in-situ measurements. The results show reductions of 3.5% and 14.1%...