Infrared and Electroluminescence Imaging for PV Field Applications: An Overview of the Latest Report by IEA PVPS Task 13

35th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 1440-1447
This paper presents an overview of the latest research and technical reporting activity of TASK13 participants, within the Subtask 3.3 (“Characterization of PV Module Condition in the Field”); and particularly, key findings of the new “Review on Infrared (IR) and Electroluminescence (EL) Imaging for PV Field Applications” TASK13 Report. Goal of the latter is to provide guidelines and recommendations for using IR and EL imaging, in order to identify and assess specific failure modes of PV modules and systems in field applications. As such, the paper provides first a discussion on the relevant state-of-the-art and particularly the new IEC standards, Technical Specifications (TS) and guidelines. It also describes current practices for IR and EL imaging of PV modules and systems, looking at environmental and device requirements and the interpretation of sample patterns with abnormalities. In addition, examples of typical inspection results are given, showing characteristic IR/thermal and EL signatures of different failure modes occurring in fielded PV modules and arrays.