The removal of snow on photovoltaic (PV) panels has become an important issue in current research on PV panels. In this study

the influence of ambient temperature on the snow removal effect ofself-heating PV panels was studied using the basic principles of PV cells

heat transfer and mechanics. When the snow thickness was 6 cm

heating power was 230 W/m2

snow density was 420 kg/m3

and the inclination angle was 18°

the pre-melting time was shortened by approximately 6 min

the melting time was reduced by approximately 11 min

the total snow removal time was shortened by approximately 17 min

and the power consumption of snow removal was reduced by approximately 380.9 kJ for every 1 °C increase in ambient temperature. Thus

the total snow removal time was greatly affected by ambient air temperature.