Assessing the Effect of Temperature on Degradation Modes of PV Panels

Abstract

PV panels are affected by many degradation modes. We list the Potential Induced Degradation, the Light Induced Degradation, the UltraViolet Light Degradation, the Moisture Induced Degradation, and the Cell Cracks. These degradation modes are affected by external environmental conditions as irradiance, temperature and humidity. The common factor that affects the degradation modes is temperature. The degradation process follows an Arrhenius equation; it is exponentially related to temperature. In this paper we evaluate precisely the effect of temperature on the degradation process of PV panels.

Understanding Photovoltaic Module Degradation: An Overview of Critical Factors, Models, and Reliability Enhancement Methods

“…A common crystalline silicon cell failure is interconnection breakage, often from thermal/mechanical stresses causing visible burn marks affecting fill factor (FF) and Rs [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. Cracks frequently arise in c-Si and thin film (TF) cells due to thermal cycles, transportation, installation, or manual cleaning [8,14,22].…”

“…White spots in TF cells lead to optical degradation, delamination, and anti-reflective coating damage, cutting Isc based on visual inspection . Solder bond failures in amorphous silicon cells from thermal cycling, moisture, and vibrations create observable arcing that degrades Rs and FF [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]. Misalignments, cracks, and dirt produce hot spots seen via infrared, lowering Voc and Rsh [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25].…”

“…Solder bond failures in amorphous silicon cells from thermal cycling, moisture, and vibrations create observable arcing that degrades Rs and FF [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]. Misalignments, cracks, and dirt produce hot spots seen via infrared, lowering Voc and Rsh [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. Bypass diode failures from high voltage reverse bias generate visible burn marks, reducing Voc [15,16,26,33].…”

“…A study by Shyam Singh Chandel et al (2015) showed high temperatures cause thermal fatigue and hotspots leading to delamination and other failures, with average annual power degradation E3S Web of Conferences 469, 00011 (2023) ICEGC'2023 https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202346900011 around 1.5% [14]. Modules tested under real conditions in the hot Saharan environment experienced an estimated degradation of around 19% on average versus reference modules [12]. B. Nehme et al (2020) calculated that with just 1°C less, high temperature (45-49°C) degradation is mitigated by 2.5%, but only 0.65-0.94% for moderate/low (25-39°C) temperatures [12].…”

“…Modules tested under real conditions in the hot Saharan environment experienced an estimated degradation of around 19% on average versus reference modules [12]. B. Nehme et al (2020) calculated that with just 1°C less, high temperature (45-49°C) degradation is mitigated by 2.5%, but only 0.65-0.94% for moderate/low (25-39°C) temperatures [12]. A 1°C decrease mitigates high temperature degradation by 27.63% but only 1.95-2.4% for low temperatures [12].…”