EPFL and Fraunhofer ISE offer free webinar on module reliability

The École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne EPFL (Switzerland) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE (Germany) are organizing a free webinar as compensation the SOPHIA workshop on PV Module Reliability, which was to be held this year yet was postponed due to the Corona pandemic. The presentations on May 28th and 29th will highlight expert results and experiences on the topics of reliability and degradation as well as testing innovative PV applications. Additionally a comprehensive overview of the results from the EU MSCA project Solar-Train will be given.

© Fraunhofer ISE
For certification, modules are tested regarding reliability, quality and safety. ©Fraunhofer ISE

“The current situation unfortunately makes it impossible to hold the 10th SOPHIA Workshop PV Module Reliability in Neuchâtel as planned. We decided to organize two webinars on the topics as foreseen on the scheduled days in order to offer the PV reliability community the occasion to meet virtually, get an update on scientific issues and discuss various topics,” says Dr. Karl-Anders Weiß, Head of Service Life Analysis at Fraunhofer ISE and one of the organizers of the webinar. The next “real” workshop with personal meetings is scheduled for the beginning of 2021 in Neuchâtel, Switzerland.

The first webinar session starts on May 28th at 2pm and will focus on the financial issues of reliability, degradation patterns and bifacial modules. Topics addressed will be the role of module reliability in the underwriting process for Insurance and Financing (Debt & Equity) decisions; degradation patterns of module packaging materials across length scales und the performance testing of bifacial PV modules according to IEC TS 60904-1-2.

On the second day of the webinar, 10 PhD students from eight institutions who are working on climate, materials and performance aspects of PV in the EU MSCA project Solar-Train will present the results of their work. The project covers the complete value chain from solar module materials up to PV fleets. Based on identified climate stressors, experiments and tests have been developed, and an in-depth study of PV module encapsulants and back-sheets has been carried out. Furthermore, the complexity of PV module and system degradation in different climate zones has been investigated. This was done to better understand past behavioral patterns and also  enable more efficient O&M strategies.

For more information and access to the webinar please visit the website:

https://www.pv-reliability.com/webinar-2020

For questions please contact: karine.frossard@epfl.ch or kerstin.koerner-ruf@ise.fraunhofer.de

 

 

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