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Quantitative assessment of the power loss of silicon PV modules by IR thermography and its dependence on data‐filtering criteria
Author(s) -
Teubner Janine,
Buerhop Claudia,
Pickel Tobias,
Hauch Jens,
Camus Christian,
Brabec Christoph J.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
progress in photovoltaics: research and applications
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.286
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1099-159X
pISSN - 1062-7995
DOI - 10.1002/pip.3175
Subject(s) - reliability engineering , reliability (semiconductor) , thermography , photovoltaic system , renewable energy , computer science , power (physics) , crystalline silicon , field (mathematics) , electronic engineering , solar cell , mathematics , engineering , electrical engineering , optics , infrared , physics , quantum mechanics , pure mathematics
Abstract Reliability and quality control of photovoltaic (PV) plants increases in importance as the relevance of PV for the worldwide renewable energy production grows. In this study, a new method is presented which allows for a quantitative assessment of silicon PV module performance solely by relying on the cell temperatures measured via thermography (IR). A module temperature and power key figure are formulated and found to correlate very well with a linear relationship. The dependence of the deduced correlation's precision on measurement conditions is calculated and discussed. It facilitates decision‐making because optimal measurement conditions usually occur only very rarely, such that a compromise between data quality and measurement frequency has to be found. The power loss correlation presented in this paper may be used as part of a maintenance routine in order to ensure the best possible long‐term performance of the PV plant over its lifetime. The practical application in the field is outlined and explained.