DocumentCode :
3519789
Title :
Simulation guided design of flexible photovoltaic laminates
Author :
Athreya, Siddharth Ram ; Sharma, Rahul ; Kauffmann, Keith ; López, Leonardo ; Feng, Jie
Author_Institution :
Dow Chem. Co., Midland, MI, USA
fYear :
2012
fDate :
3-8 June 2012
Abstract :
Photovoltaic (PV) modules are manufactured using various PV cell technologies. The packaging requirements vary for each of the PV technologies and depend on their inherent thermo-mechanical properties and environmental stability of the cell. Thin film PV has the relative advantage of flexibility vis-à-vis their rigid and brittle competitors. This paper discusses the use of Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to develop a framework for guiding the design of flexible Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) shingles utilizing thin film PV cells. Microglass (0.2-0.3 mm thick glass) was chosen as the top barrier layer to exploit the flexibility of the thin film PV material. However, microglass alone does not provide sufficient protection to the shingle to meet regulatory impact resistance requirements. This paper discusses the use of FEA to guide the selection of reinforcing polymer layers and their placement around the microglass to enable microglass-based flexible laminates to sustain hail impact. FEA was used to guide the selection of reinforcing polymers and their placement in the laminate structure. Hail impact was modeled as static indentation and stresses were calculated in all layers of the laminate. This model was used to compare around 50 laminates generated through systematic variation of the polymer mechanical properties and laminate designs. Based on the analysis of the stresses generated in the microglass and other layers in these laminates, it is found that the optimal laminate design would consist of an elastomeric reinforcing layer above the microglass and a rigid polymer layer below it. An additional layer of a rigid polymer above the elastomeric layer can further reduce stresses in the laminate; however, relatively large thickness of this layer might be needed to get any significant stress reduction. The ideal location for the rigid reinforcing layer has been identified to be between the cell and the bottom barrier layer. The model predictions have- been partially validated through hail impact testing.
Keywords :
building integrated photovoltaics; elastomers; finite element analysis; glass; impact testing; indentation; laminates; polymers; semiconductor thin films; solar cells; stress analysis; BIPV shingle design; FEA; PV cell technology; PV module; elastomeric layer; environmental stability; finite element analysis; flexible building integrated photovoltaic shingle design; flexible photovoltaic laminates; hail impact testing; impact resistance; laminate structure; microglass-based flexible laminates; optimal laminate design; photovoltaic modules; polymer mechanical properties; reinforcing polymer layer selection; simulation guided design; size 0.2 nm to 0.3 nm; static indentation; stress modelling; stress reduction; thermo-mechanical properties; thin film PV cells; thin film PV material; top barrier layer; Glass; Polymers; Stress; Testing; design methodology; finite element methods; materials testing; photovoltaic systems; thin films;
fLanguage :
English
Publisher :
ieee
Conference_Titel :
Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC), 2012 38th IEEE
Conference_Location :
Austin, TX
ISSN :
0160-8371
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4673-0064-3
Type :
conf
DOI :
10.1109/PVSC.2012.6317978
Filename :
6317978
Link To Document :
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