Abstract
The continued exponential growth of photovoltaic technologies paves a path to a solar-powered world, but requires continued progress toward low-cost, high-reliability, and high-performance PV systems. High reliability is an essential element in achieving low-cost solar electricity by reducing operation and maintenance (O&M) costs and by extending system lifetime and availability, but these attributes are difficult to verify at the time of installation. Utilities, financiers, homeowners, and planners are demanding this information in order to evaluate their financial risk as a prerequisite to large investments. Reliability research and development (R&D) is needed to build market confidence by improving product reliability and by improving predictions of system availability, O&M cost, and system lifetime. Universities, industry, National Labs, and other research entities can be most effective by working together and in complementary ways. The Department of Energy supports a variety of research projects to improve PV-system reliability. These projects and current reliability issues for each PV technology are surveyed.
| Original language | American English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 12 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2009 |
| Event | Reliability of Photovoltaic Cells, Modules, Components, and Systems II - San Diego, CA, United States Duration: 3 Aug 2009 → 6 Aug 2009 |
Conference
| Conference | Reliability of Photovoltaic Cells, Modules, Components, and Systems II |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | United States |
| City | San Diego, CA |
| Period | 3/08/09 → 6/08/09 |
NREL Publication Number
- NREL/CP-520-47383
Keywords
- Accelerated testing
- Failure analysis
- Field-testing
- Lifetime prediction
- PV
- Reliability
