Title:	Multifunctional Coated Composite Material for Encapsulation of Photovoltaic Devices
Author(s):	N. Yurrita, J. Aizpurua, J.M. Vega de Seoane, G. Imbuluzketa, I. Arrizabalaga, W. Cambarau, F.J. Cano, O. Zubillaga
Keywords:	Encapsulation, Abrasion, composites
Topic:	New Materials and Concepts for Photovoltaic Devices
Subtopic:	New Materials and Concepts for Cells and Modules
Event:	36th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition
Session:	1BV.3.51
Pages:	87 - 89
ISBN:	3-936338-60-4
Paper DOI:	10.4229/EUPVSEC20192019-1BV.3.51
Price:	0,00 EUR
Document(s):	paper

Abstract/Summary:

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Glass fiber reinforced composite materials are widely used in various industrial fields due to their combination of low density and high mechanical performance. When presenting an acceptable transparency degree, they offer an alternative encapsulant protective support for photovoltaic modules. In this work, the photovoltaic cells were encapsulated by vacuum resin infusion process and afterwards the modules were coated with the aim to enhance the optical properties, the abrasion performance and the surface contact angle. The short-circuit current was calculated from the external quantum efficiency (EQE) data, observing an improvement of 1% in coated modules with respect to non-coated ones. An increase of the surface contact angle with respect to the bare composite was observed after coating, rendering the module surface hydrophobic. Regarding the abrasion resistance, the contact angle and EQE measurements showed that the coating was damaged gradually. After 1500 Taber cycles, the contact angle of the coated composite decreased up to the value of the bare composite, whereas the short-circuit current value was kept in higher values. This last performance was found to be related with surface roughness, observing lower short-circuit current values as the roughness increases.