Degradations of silicon photovoltaic modules: A literature review

• Published in: Solar energy Vol. 96; pp. 140 - 151
• Main Authors: Ndiaye, Ababacar, Charki, Abdérafi, Kobi, Abdessamad, Kébé, Cheikh M.F., Ndiaye, Pape A., Sambou, Vincent
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.10.2013; Elsevier; Pergamon Press Inc
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Biodegradation; Degradation; Degradation models; Direct energy conversion and energy accumulation; Electrical engineering. Electrical power engineering; Electrical power engineering; Energy; Engineering Sciences; Equipments, installations and applications; Exact sciences and technology; Feedback; Humidity; Natural energy; Performance evaluation; Photoelectric conversion; Photovoltaic cells; Photovoltaic conversion; Photovoltaic module; Silicon; Solar cells. Photoelectrochemical cells; Solar energy; Temperature; Degradation; Degradation models; Photovoltaic module; Energy analysis; Photovoltaic system; Feedback regulation; Durability; Review; Experimental study; Failures; Long term; Corrosion; Humidity; Photovoltaic array; Silicon; Reliability; Damaging
• ISSN: 0038-092X; 1471-1257
• DOI: 10.1016/j.solener.2013.07.005

•Corrosion, discoloration, delamination and breakage are the main modes PV modules degradation.•Corrosion and discoloration are the predominant modes of silicon PV module degradation.•Temperature, humidity and UV radiation are the main factors of silicon PV module degradation.•Modeling of PV module degradation is still poorly studied in literature.•Accelerated tests are an alternative for investigating PV module degradation. PV modules are often considered to be the most reliable component of a photovoltaic system. The alleged reliability has led to the long warranty period for modules up to 25years. Currently, failures resulting in module degradation are generally not considered because of the difficulty of measuring the power of a single module in a PV system and the lack of feedback on the various degradation modes of PV modules. It should be noted that consumers are becoming more and more interested in the reliability and lifetime of their PV system considering economic issues. Reliability and lifetime of a PV system depend mainly on the energy performance of modules and their different degradation modes. Accordingly, research must more and more focus on photovoltaic modules degradation. This paper presents a review of different types of degradation found in literature in recent years. Thus, according to literature, corrosion and discoloration of PV modules encapsulant are predominant degradation modes. Temperature and humidity are factors of PV modules degradation in almost all identified degradation modes. However, despite the identification of PV modules degradation modes, it is still difficult to study them in real conditions. Indeed, there must be long periods feedback experiences to study the frequency, speed of evolution and impacts of various PV modules degradation modes on energy output. In this paper, models associated with the PV modules degradation are presented. These models can help to overcome the long-term experiments obstacle in order to study PV modules degradation under real conditions.