Risks and Errors in PV systems Quality Survey of PV Plants, Findings and Recommendations Project related Quality Assurance of Module Manufacturing and Plant Realization Vítor Rodrigues Regional Business Field Manager SAM Solar Energy E-mail: vitor.rodrigues@es.tuv.com Web: www.tuv.com/solarenergy Selected reference cases: www.tuv-e3.com/solar
1970 1997 2005 1872 1900 1960 Introduction of TÜV Rheinland Milestones. Founded to ensure the safety of manufacturing plants First Vehicle Inspection First Product Certification First Foreign Subsidiary Merger with TÜV Berlin-Brandenburg Integration of LGA! Our goal is to be the world s best independent provider of technical services for testing, inspection, certification, consultation and training. 2 Intersolar Brasil 2016
Introduction of TÜV Rheinland Figures 2013 2014 Sales in Mio. 1,601 1,731 - abroad in % 48,4 48.7 EBIT in % 7,3 6.4 Employees 17,947 19,320 - abroad in % 59 60 Locations: more than 500 in 66 countries 3
Introduction of TÜV Rheinland Sales by Business streams. Systems Training and Consulting 13 Life Care 8 3 Industrial Services 29 Products 23 24 Mobility 4
Introduction of Photovoltaic business TÜV Rheinland: PV business More than 20 GWp World wide Global competence Since 1990 PV plants PV since 1982 5
Global Market Leader Power Plant Qualification and Testing & Certification of Solar Products More than 30 years experience in the field of solar energy Global network of more than 200 solar experts More than 20 GW inspected PV plants Research and development in the area of power plant optimization and module qualification (characterization and life time assessment) Active participation in the important standardization committees TÜV Rheinland operates accredited solar laboratories and test sites around the globe (Germany, Italy, India, P.R. China, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, USA, Saudi-Arabia) 6
Introduction of Solar business PV Module PV Power Plants PV Electronic Solar Thermal PV Components 7
Introduction of Photovoltaic business TÜV Rheinland s know-how for client s benefit Utility scale PV power plants Distributed PV power plants Clients Investors & Owners Lenders & Banks Module & Inverter Manufactures Vendors Project Developers EPC & O&M Companies 8
Quality Weaknesses in the PV Market Product quality is often not given due to the market situation (high competition, low financial recourses, personnel fluctuation, change of suppliers, lack of quality assurance, differences among certifiers and labs) Project assumptions and feasibility are imprecise energy yield prediction too optimistic, cleaning concept missing or insufficient, lack of fixed contract requirements, lack of experience How to solve these problems? Low quality of planning and installation use of sub- and sub-subcontractors, high competition, lack of knowledge and experience, tight commissioning deadlines, weak quality assurance during construction Bankability of involved parties often not given unstable market situation, choose of Tier-1 manufacturers is not only a criteria for bankability, warranties are often not reliable 9
Test plants and equipment for PV-module qualification 10
Product certification Laboratory tests on test samples of a type family ISO 17025 accredited testing laboratory Factory inspection Performed by a PV expert certificate Issued by the certification body Regular factory inspecitons annual performance to keep certification valid 11
Type approval testing for PV modules acc. IEC 61215/61646 Preconditioning (5 kwh m -2 ) Visual inspection Determination of max. power Insulation test Wet leakage current test test Electrical characteristics UV preconditioning 200temperature cycles Damp heat test Outdoor exposure 50 temperature cycles Wet leakage current test test Bypass diode test Humidityfreeze test Hot-Spot test Robustness terminations Mechanical load test Hail impact test Wet Wet leakage leakage current test test Light soaking (thin-film technologies) 12
Qualification of PV-Modules according to different application situations This applies to the installation of PV-modules - on pigsties and henhouses > ammonia pollution - in coastal areas > salt contamination - in regions with heavy snow > particular snow loads and shear stress - in certain climates (tropical > higher humidity temperature and conditions) UV-radiation - at higher system voltages > new design specifications, higher (initially 1500 V DC ) dielectric strength - integrated in building facades, roofs > structural analysis, fire, rain. - in deserts > extreme thermal stress and sandstorm exposure 13
14 Bad module quality
General Weaknesses of Global Certification Systems In most cases the manufacturer takes test specimens for certification from production, which are then sent to the test institutes It is not ensured that the produced test specimens correspond to the audited production process (e.g. material selection) or Components used are different to those of the certified module (different foils, cells, connectors, junction-boxes, etc.) Product counterfeit: - type labels of a known manufacturer are used for products from an unknown manufacturer - The same type labels as used for the original certified product from qualified production are used for products from third (not qualified) production; original information is not communicated transparently 15
Different ways to reach (technical) bankability of PV-modules Weaknesses of the global certification systems leads to the discussion of product (module) bankabilty There are different ways of banks and investors to indicate module bankability (e.g. reference plants or different requirements, white and black lists ) Source: Workshop Quality of Photovoltaics, Berlin 9.2011 DKB requirement: The PV Modules has to be certified by TÜV Rheinland or VDE/Fraunhofer 16
Contents of Bankability Tests (Benchmark) which can be initiated by investors or banks Intensified Damp Heat Test e.g 1500 hour intensified Termal Cycling Test e.g. 300 Cycles Potential induced Degradation (PID) Test Light induced Degradation (LID) Mechanical Load Test (5400 Pascal) Hot Spot Test Gel Content Test Low Irradiance Temperatur Coefficient Electroluminescense images / Infrared images Wet Leakage Test I/V curve measurements 17
Photovoltaic Modules: Fault Statistics from Module Certification Percentage of certification projects with test failures 2,000 certification projects in Germany from 2002 to 2013 (from 2007 c-si and TF are presented separately) 67% From 2008: primarily European products shown (opening of TÜV Rheinland laboratories in Japan, China, USA, Taiwan, India, Korea) 54% 53% From 2007: separate presentation of thin-film and crystalline modules 27% 30% 40% 39% 29% 30% 26% 21% 22% 19% 17% 2004 2007: high percentage of new Chinese manufacturers From 2007/2008: many thin-film technology start-ups 10% 10% 7% 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 Crystalline technologies Thin-film technologies Both technologies! Today, modules are being constructed that fulfill the standard. This is not the real picture of PV module quality available on the market!!!! 18
Cause of Defects in PV Power Plants Results of TÜV Rheinland internal Study Data (2014/ Q1. 2015) Basis of the study: > 100 plants (100 kwp - 30 MWp) (Main regions: Germany, Europe, RoW) Installation faults 2014/ Q1.2015 Main findings: 30 % of power plants show serious and particularly serious defects (incl. safety issues) or large number of issues > 50 % of defects are caused by installation errors Miscellaneous Environmental influence 1% 5% 5% 9% 55% 25%! Systematic quality assurance is required Plant inspections and maintenance are important Maintenance Product defects Documentation & planning faults 19
Particularly serious Defects in PV Power Plants Immediate Action to prevent Plant breakdown is needed 2012 / 2013 2014 / Q1. 2015 Cabling Modules Modules 33% 48% 19% Infrastructure & environmental 7% 8% Potential equalization & grounding 13% Inverter Connection & distribution boxes 9% 11% Mounting structure Inverter 4% 4% Mounting structure 16% Connection & distribution boxes 28% Cabling 20
Failure Examples in PV Systems (O&M, Installation, Foundation, Planning) 21
Loss of Revenue Risks On-Site Risks Technical Risks Safety Risks Logistical Risks Political Risks Wind Lightning Snow, hail and ice Pollution Dust Rock fall Land slide Earthquake Flood Shading Animals Performance and yield Malfunction Degradation Aging Maintenance cost Repair Replacement Statics Appearance Accessibility Electric shock Electric arc Fire Statics Mechanical integrity Ergonomics Theft Vandalism Production delays Shipping Supply Raw materials Transport damages Change in legal situation (laws) Application procedures Social aspects Permissions Financial market risks Financial Risk 22
Examples of Loss of Revenue Factors, Risks >30% Max. Min. 5% 4% 3% 2% 1% 0% 23
Loss Factor: Potential Induced Degradation (PID) Performance killer number one: potential induced degradation (PID) (occurs in cases of high voltage, sensitive module/material combinations and damp environments e.g. caused by condensation, high humidity) Reversible process through grounding or counter-potential (investments required) Test results of a PID test of PV modules from large-scale PV systems -15% -75% -95%! Knowledge of PID sensitivity of PV modules is necessary All material combinations of a module must be considered in order to declare it PID-resistant! 24
PID- Reference Case by TÜV Rheinland Solutions a) b) Replace all modules Reduce Voltage per string c) C Earthling the JB. d) D Earthling the negative pole of the inverter. 25
Loss Factor: Influence of Soiling Daily cleaning of one system, no cleaning of the other Section 1: both systems cleaned Section 2,3,4: both systems not cleaned from D on: rainfall and no manual cleaning Cleaning period [d] Power degradation [%] 0 0 2-5 5 13 10 18 15 25 20 35 25 45 30! Yield losses > 5 % within 1 week are possible Site specific cleaning concept is required 26
Loss Factor: Choice of Technology Influencing Energy yield: Mild mid latitude Marine West Coast Tropical Humid, Savanna Mild mid latitude Mediterranean - Temperature - Angular dependency - Low irradiance - Spectral dependency - etc (subtropical) Desert, potential sandstorm impact 27
0 Label Normalized Energy Yield [Wh/Wp] 796 863 863 864 852 853 851 831 876 887 881 863 910 959 920 1.081 1.040 1.167 1.119 1.134 1.176 1.096 1.186 1.082 1.174 1.109 1.173 1.099 1.184 1.138 1.156 1.151 1.190 1.171 1.192 1.182 1.216 1.152 1.230 1.210 1.191 1.251 1.221 1.163 1.309 1.431 1.457 1.470 1.477 1.483 1.483 1.532 1.537 1.554 1.558 1.560 1.604 1.644 1.653 Loss Factor: Choice of technology 1800 1600 1400 1200 1000 Label Normalized Energy Yield (1 year data) Arizona Italy India Indien Germany Köln Italy 12 % Germany 13 % India 23 % Arizona 21 % Variation between technologies 800 600 Saudi Arabia Not available yet 400 200 0! Choice of technology is crucial for high energy yield and return of investment. 28
Loss Factor: Deviation from Rated Power Results of Performance Measurements (2010-2013) relative number of modules in % relative number of modules in % Following doubt about system performance (new modules or modules that are as good as new, operation < one year) Contractually agreed measurements prior to installation in large-scale systems Deviation from the nominal value (large-scale projects used; 51 module types) Deviation from the nominal value (large-scale projects new; 16 module types) 30 30 25 25 20 20 15 15 10 10 5 5 0-8 -7-6 -5-4 -3-2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 deviation from the nominal value in % 0-8 -7-6 -5-4 -3-2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 deviation from the nominal value in %! Critical performance evaluation (measurement) necessary in projects High level of measurement precision required for use in court 29
Strategy to improve Quality on the PV Market = Risk Management 30
Strategy to improve Quality on the PV Market The quality improvement must be initiated by investors, banks, insurers and owners Project related product testing and characterization, (pretesting and batch related testing) factory inspection Experienced third party project feasibility study, energy yield prediction on the basis of full product characterization and site influences Quality assurance and risk management is the key! Quality assurance of installation, installer education and qualification, inspections during installation, comissioning test, periodic inspection, monitoring Ensure high product quality with the prevention of later claims (power, yield, safety, reliability, durability), risk assessment 31
EXAMPLES 32
Cables and Modules 33
Cables 34
Fire! 35
谢谢! Vítor Rodrigues Regional Business Field Manager South America Local Field Manager Spain Solar Energy E-mail: vvitor.rodrigues@es.tuv.com Web: www.tuv.com/solarenergy Selected reference cases: www.tuv-e3.com/solar Shanghai, 2017.04.19 - PV SNEC Willi Vaassen Business Field Manager - Solar Energy Global Director of Competence Center PV Power Plants Web: www.tuv.com/solarenergy Selected reference cases: www.tuv-e3.com/solar 36 Intersolar Brasil 2016