Title:	Lightweight PV Modules Compatible with One Step Lamination Process
Author(s):	A. Buceta, M. Aguirre, A.B. Cueli, M. Ezquer Mayo, E. Llarena, S. Cal Ramirez, A. Linares, R. Castelo Mato, J. Bengoechea
Keywords:	c-Si, Lamination, Honeycomb, Lightweight Module
Topic:	Photovoltaic Modules and BoS Components
Subtopic:	PV Module Design and Manufacturing
Event:	8th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion
Session:	3DV.1.27
Pages:	847 - 850
ISBN:	3-936338-86-8
Paper DOI:	10.4229/WCPEC-82022-3DV.1.27
Price:	0,00 EUR
Document(s):	paper

Abstract/Summary:

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Lab scale PV module designs, aiming to obtain lightweight solutions, produced in a conventional lamination process and capable of withstanding the impact of hail were studied. To reach this goal, a polypropylene (PP) HoneyComb (HC) with non-woven polyester skin as backsheet with ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) or a thin glass (1 mm thick) as frontsheet were used. For this study two different samples of polypropylene HC were tested. The first challenge was adapting the lamination recipe for the HC, since the conventional one caused crushing of the material, especially at the edges. The solution, in order to be able to use one step lamination process, was to use an auxiliary frame to protect the HC during the lamination. Depending on the type of honeycomb the reduction of the pressure was also needed. The samples with ETFE as frontsheet did not resist the hail impact without breaking the solar cell (SC), even if the HC was reinforced. On the other hand, using 1 mm thick glass as frontsheet proved to meet the pass criteria. The preliminary results of temperature and humidity resistance showed that there is some humidity permeability that disappeared after a few days out of the climatic chamber. Even though, the performance was not jeopardized by it.