Methodology for Evaluating Solar Module Encapsulant Materials

38th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 719-722
Polymeric encapsulant material is the key to high performance and reliability of solar module. It is known that the most common encapsulant Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) has been widely used in c-Si solar module for past decades. According the literature and reports, it is revealed that most failure modules were caused by the degradation of encapsulant though the solar modules were qualified and certificated with IEC standards, in which only one parameter is controlled during the test, but it is performed in sequence. In fact, a real environment is a complex mixture of UV exposure, temperature variation, and humidity change. And the key factor degrading the EVA performance is still unclear. Therefore, by studying the key factors that cause failure, we can establish accelerated aging test to fast screen the applicability of encapsulant materials. In this research, a methodology for evaluating solar module encapsulant materials is constructed to characterize the reliability and performance.