Presentation on applied

photovoltaic
Impact of shading on PV module
Hot spot formation and mitigation measures
Durability issues
PV module testing
Modeling and simulation

Prepared by
Rabi Sapkota(BEL-66028)
 Effect of shading
• Performance of a series connected string of solar cells is
adversely affected if all its cells are not equally
illuminated (i.e. partially shaded)
• When part of a PV module is shaded, the shaded cell will
not be able to produce as much current as the unshaded
cells
• A shaded cell has reduced Isc
• Since all the cells are connected in series, the same
amount of current must flow through every cell
Figure 8.1:- Full I-V curve of a partially shaded cell. Current
continuity requires the shaded cell to operate in reverse bias to
pass the Imp current of the rest of the substring.
• In order to pass the string current Imp the cell will
operate in reverse bias i.e in the region of negetive
voltage
• The current times this negative voltage gives the
negative power produced by the shaded cells
I.e. the shaded cell acts as a load draining power
from fully illuminated cells.
• All of that power dissipated in the shaded cell is
converted to heat, which can cause a local hot spot
that may permanently damage the plastic laminates
enclosing the cell
 Effect on IV curves from the cells shaded in different level

Figure 8.2 : Effects of shading on the I-V curves for a PV module The dashed
line shows a typical voltage that the module would operate at when
charging a 12-V battery
• Figure 8.2 shows the I-V curves for various conditions
of shading with one cell 50% shaded, one cell
completely shaded, and two cells completely shaded
• A dashed vertical line at 13 V, which is a typical
operating voltage for a module charging a 12-V
battery
• The reduction in module output current with shaded
cell will result in less energy delivered to the battery
and perhaps eventually result in system failure due to
inadequate battery charging
 Hot spot formation
• Hot-spot heating occurs when a large number of
series connected cells cause a large reverse bias
across the shaded cell, leading to large dissipation of
power in the shaded cell.
• The enormous power dissipation occurring in a small
area results in local overheating, or "hot-spots",
which in turn leads to destructive effects, such as cell
or glass cracking, melting of solder or degradation of
the solar cell.
 Bypass Diodes for Shade Mitigation
• The destructive effects of hot-spot heating may be
circumvented through the use of a bypass diode.
• A bypass diode is connected in parallel, but with
opposite polarity, to a solar cell as shown below
• Under normal operation, each solar cell will be
forward biased and therefore the bypass diode will
be reverse biased and will effectively be an open
circuit
• If module current is greater than Imp’ of , then the
diode turns on and conducts difference current
Imp-Imp’ and hence no heating occurs
• In practice, however, one bypass diode per solar cell
is generally too expensive and instead bypass diodes
are usually placed across groups of solar cells
 Durability issues
• Durability of PV modules is a significant factor for
lowering the cost of PV generated electricity
• The lifetime and sustained performance of a module
directly impacts the number of kW-hrs it delivers
• PV module's operating life is largely determined by
the stability and resistance to corrosion of the
(usually caused by water vapor)
• Corrosion of the metallic components within a
module can reduce the power output by increasing
resistance at the electrical interconnects
• Manufacturer's guarantees of up to 20 years indicate the
quality of bulk silicon PV modules currently being produced
• Nevertheless, there are several failure modes and
degradation mechanisms which may reduce the power
output or cause the module to fail
• The life time of PV module is affected by the following factors:

Encapsulant Failure: UV absorbers and other encapsulant

stabilizers ensure a long life for module encapsulating
materials. Browning of the EVA layer, accompanied by a build-
up of acetic acid, has caused gradual reductions in the output.
weathering or phototharmal aging also has the same impact
 Module Glass Breakage : Shattering of the top glass
surface can occur due to vandalism, thermal stress,
wind or hail
 Hot-Spot Failures : Mismatched, cracked or shaded
cells can lead to hot-spot failures
 Short-Circuited Cells: Short circuiting can occur at
cell interconnections. In thin film cells since top and
rear contacts are much closer together and stand
more chance of being shorted together by pin-holes
or regions of corroded or damaged cell material.
 Testing of PV panel
The table below describes the nature of the PV tests
 IEC standard for PV panel testing are:
• Visual Inspection: typically a diagnostic check
The purpose is to detect any of the “major visual
defects” by checking the module in a well illuminated
area (1000 lux)
- broken, cracked, or torn external surfaces
- bent or misaligned external surfaces
• Hot- spot endurance: is a thermal/diagnostic test
The purpose is to determine the module’s ability to
withstand localized heating caused by cracked,
mismatched cells, interconnection failures, partial
shadowing or soiling
• STC power determination: typically a performance parameter
Test conditions include
- a solar irradiance of 1 kW/m2
- an air mass ratio of 1.5 (AM 1.5)
- standard cell temperature for testing purposes is 250 C (not
ambient temperature)
• Manufacturers always provide performance data under these
operating conditions
• The key parameter for a module are
-rated power
-short circuit current
-open circuit voltage
-voltage at maximum power
- current at rated power
• Normal Operating Cell temperature (NOCT)
The NOCT is cell temperature in a module when
-ambient temperature is 20 0C
- solar irradiation is 0.8 kW/m2 and
-
windspeed is 1 m/s
with the back side of the solar panel open to that
breeze
• NOCT can be used by the system designer as a guide
to the temperature at which a module will operate
in the field and it is therefore a useful parameter
when comparing the performance of different
module designs
• Insulation resistance: an electrical safety test
- The purpose is to determine whether a module has
a sufficient electrical insulation between its current-
carrying parts and the frame
- A dielectric strength tester is used to apply a DC
voltage source of up to 1000 V plus twice the
maximum system voltage
- For modules with an area larger than 0.1 m2 ,the
resistance shall not be less than 40 MΩ for every
square meter
• Wet leakage current test: an electrical safety test
- The purpose is to evaluate the insulation of the
module against moisture penetration under wet
operating conditions (rain, fog, dew, melted snow), to
avoid corrosion, ground fault and thus electric shock
hazard.
- The insulation resistance shall be not less than 40 MΩ
for every square meter for modules with an area
larger than 0.1 m2
• Bypass diode: is a thermal test
The test method requires attaching a thermocouple
to the diode (s) body, heating the module up to
75°C±5 °C and applying a current equal to the short
circuit current Isc measured at STC for 1h
• UV preconditioning: an irradiance test
The purpose is to identify materials that are
susceptible to ultra- violet (UV) degradation before
the thermal cycle and humidity freeze tests are
performed. Module is subjected to a total UV
irradiation of 15 kWh/m2 in the ( UVA + UVB) regions
( 280 nm – 400 nm) , with at least 5 kWh /m2, i.e. 33
% in the UVB region (280 nm – 320 nm), while
maintaini ng the module at 60 °C ±5 °C.
• Thermal cycling TC200 (200 cycles): an
environmental test
purpose to simulate thermal stresses on materials as
a result of changes of extreme temperatures. The
module is subjected to the cycling temperature limits
of –40°C ± 2°C and +85°C ± 2°C with the below profile
 PV cell modeling
A. Single diode model
- uses one diode
• The single-diode model is classified as:
- Two-element or three-parameter model
- Three-element or four-parameter model
- Four-element or five-parameter
• Fig.1(a) is PV lossless model (Ideal model without
resistance Rs=0 & Rp=∞)
• Fig.1(b) has three elements with series resistance
Rs
• Fig. 1(c) has four-elements circuit model with
leakage current to ground (shunt resistance Rp)
• the mathematical function for this model is

Where, Io=diode reverse saturation current

k = Boltzmann constant
q = elementary charge on an electron
α= ideality factor(quality factor)
V =terminal voltage
I = terminal current
T = ambient temperature in Kelvin
B. Two-diode PV Model
- consists of two diodes
- also known as seven parameter model
- This model is more accurate than the single
diode model especially in low irradiance level
• terminal current is:
I=Ipv-Id1-Id2-IRp
• Terminal output current is

where,
I01 and I02 =the diode saturation currents
Vt= the thermal voltage
α1 and α2 = quality factors (diode emission
coefficients) has typical value in the range of 1 to 2
Iph = solar-generated current.
 Simulation

• Simulation of PV cell single diode model/two

diode model/pv array in
-Matlab/simulink
- Pscad
- Pspice
Thank You