Scale-up issues of CIGS thin film PV modules

As is well known, building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) technology is becoming more commonly used in residential and commercial buildings. Fire assessment of photovoltaic (PV) modules as a whole is still insufficient. This work focuses on the thermal properties and combustion behavior of CIGS (copper, indium, gallium and selenium) thin-film modules. Cone calorimeter experiments were conducted at different external heat flux of 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45 kW m−2. Several parameters are discussed, including surface temperature, ignition time, heat release rate (HRR), mass loss rate, carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations. The results show that CIGS thin-film solar modules are inflammable at intermediate or high flashover risk. A correction calculation for the gas toxicity index has been used to reduce the well-ventilation condition effect. Compared with the uncorrected calculation, peak fractional effective dose (FED) and lethal concentration for 50% of the population (LC50) are almost double. This work will help to determine a more stringent fire safety provision for PV modules.

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Long-term performance analysis of CIGS thin film PV modules

10.1117/12.893864 ◽

2011 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Neelkanth G. Dhere ◽

Ashwani Kaul ◽

Shirish A. Pethe

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Performance Analysis ◽

Cigs Thin Film ◽

Pv Modules ◽

Long Term Performance ◽

Term Performance

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Review on Substrate and Molybdenum Back Contact in CIGS Thin Film Solar Cell

International Journal of Photoenergy ◽

10.1155/2018/9106269 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2018 ◽

pp. 1-14 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Kam Hoe Ong ◽

Ramasamy Agileswari ◽

Biancamaria Maniscalco ◽

Panagiota Arnou ◽

Chakrabarty Chandan Kumar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Solar Cells ◽

Large Scale ◽

Production Efficiency ◽

Crystalline Silicon ◽

Scale Up ◽

Deposition Condition ◽

Back Contact ◽

Cigs Thin Film ◽

Cigs Solar Cells

Copper Indium Gallium Selenide- (CIGS-) based solar cells have become one of the most promising candidates among the thin film technologies for solar power generation. The current record efficiency of CIGS has reached 22.6% which is comparable to the crystalline silicon- (c-Si-) based solar cells. However, material properties and efficiency on small area devices are crucial aspects to be considered before manufacturing into large scale. The process for each layer of the CIGS solar cells, including the type of substrate used and deposition condition for the molybdenum back contact, will give a direct impact to the efficiency of the fabricated device. In this paper, brief introduction on the production, efficiency, etc. of a-Si, CdTe, and CIGS thin film solar cells and c-Si solar cells are first reviewed, followed by the recent progress of substrates. Different deposition techniques’ influence on the properties of molybdenum back contact for CIGS are discussed. Then, the formation and thickness influence factors of the interfacial MoSe2 layer are reviewed; its role in forming ohmic contact, possible detrimental effects, and characterization of the barrier layers are specified. Scale-up challenges/issues of CIGS module production are also presented to give an insight into commercializing CIGS solar cells.

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Failure Mode and Effects Analysis of CIGS Thin Film PV Modules Using Thermography Analysis and IV Measurements

International Journal on Energy Conversion (IRECON) ◽

10.15866/irecon.v9i1.19350 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 17

Author(s):

Khaled H. Ibrahim ◽

Reham Ahmed Eltuhamy ◽

Mohamed Rady ◽

Haitham A. Mahmoud

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Failure Mode ◽

Cigs Thin Film ◽

Pv Modules

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In-field monitoring of eight photovoltaic plants: degradation rate along seven years of continuous operation

ACTA IMEKO ◽

10.21014/acta_imeko.v7i4.599 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 (4) ◽

pp. 75 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Alessio Carullo ◽

Antonella Castellana ◽

Alberto Vallan ◽

Alessandro Ciocia ◽

Filippo Spertino

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Degradation Rate ◽

Crystalline Silicon ◽

Electrical Characterization ◽

Cigs Thin Film ◽

Copper Indium ◽

Degradation Rates ◽

Pv Modules ◽

Photovoltaic Plants ◽

Silicon Based

<p class="Abstract">The results of more than seven years (October 2010-December 2017) of continuous monitoring are presented in this paper. Eight outdoor photovoltaic (PV) plants were monitored. The monitored plants use different technologies: mono-crystalline silicon (m-Si), poli-crystalline silicon (p-Si), string ribbon silicon, copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS), thin film, and cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin film. The thin-film and m-Si modules are used both in fixed installations and on x-y tracking systems. The results are expressed in terms of the degradation rate of the efficiency of each PV plant, which is estimated using the measurements provided by a multi-channel data acquisition system that senses both electrical and environmental quantities. A comparison with the electrical characterization of each plant obtained by means of the transient charge of a capacitive load is also made. In addition, three of the monitored plants are characterized at module level, and the estimated degradation rates are compared to the values obtained with the monitoring system. The main outcome of this work can be summarized as the higher degradation rate of thin-film based PV modules with respect to silicon-based PV modules.</p>

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Novel Features Extraction for Fault Detection Using Thermography Characteristics and IV Measurements of CIGS Thin-Film Module

Instrumentation Mesure Métrologie ◽

10.18280/i2m.190501 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 19 (5) ◽

pp. 311-325

Author(s):

Reham A. Eltuhamy ◽

Mohamed Rady ◽

Khaled H. Ibrahim ◽

Haitham A. Mahmoud

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Fault Detection ◽

Fault Detection And Diagnosis ◽

Pv Module ◽

Cigs Thin Film ◽

Copper Indium ◽

Pv Modules ◽

Detection And Diagnosis ◽

Types Of Faults ◽

Copper Indium Gallium

Regarding the fault diagnosis of Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS) PV modules, previously published articles focused on employing statistical analysis of thermography images. This approach failed in many cases to distinguish among fault types. This article presents a novel methodology to diagnose and predict faults of thin-film CIGS PV modules using infrared thermography analysis combined with measurements of I-V characteristics. The proposed methodology encompasses a comprehensive site work to capture images that cover many fault types of the PV module under study. The novelty of the technique depends on utilizing processing and analysis of the captured images using new proposed mathematical parameters to extract different faults’ features. Using I-V measurements combined with thermography analysis, the differences between different types of faults are detected. Then, a general classification matrix of CIGS fault detection and diagnosis, using features based on mathematical parameters and IV measurements has been established. Results show that the analysis of the temperature distribution is proved to be insufficient to identify specific modes of different faults. In addition, the proposed procedure for fault detection and classification, which depends on the pattern of faults, can be used for any type of PV module. This results in more reliance on the proposed technique to increase the confidence level of fault detection.

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