Solar America Board for Codes and Standards Publishes a Study Report on Angle of Incidence Effects on PV Modules

Las Cruces, NM – March 21, 2013 – The Solar America Board for Codes and Standards (Solar ABCs) has recently published a report that details a study that tested and validated the draft International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61853-2 standard's experimental procedures and related mathematical models for the measurement of angle of incidence effects on photovoltaic (PV) modules. This new Solar ABCs study report entitled "Validation of Draft International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61853-2 Standard: Angle of Incidence Effect on Photovoltaic Modules"written by Govindasamy (Mani) TamizhMani, Ph.D. presents findings based on two rounds of test results. A one-page summary and the full report can be found at: http://www.solarabcs.org/aoi

This study is a continuation of a previous Solar ABCs' project to test and validate the IEC 61853-1 standard. A report summarizing that project, entitled Photovoltaic Module Power Rating per IEC 61853-1 Standard: A Study Under Natural Sunlight, was published in March 2011 and can be downloaded from www.solarabcs.org/Ratingper61853.

These validation studies are important because PV modules are typically tested and rated only at three different test conditions—standard test conditions, low irradiance, and nominal operating cell temperature. In addition, all of these measurements are currently conducted at only a single spectral level of air mass 1.5 and at a single incidence angle of zero degree.

Installed modules, however, operate at a wide range of temperatures, irradiance levels, angles of incidence, and solar spectra. To accurately predict the energy production of the modules under various field conditions, it is necessary to characterize the modules at a wide range of temperatures, irradiances, angles of incidence, and spectra.

The IEC is currently developing the IEC 61853 standard titled "Photovoltaic Modules Performance Testing and Energy Rating."A working group of IEC Technical Group 82 has developed the procedures and mathematical models used in the first two parts of the standard (IEC 61853-1 and IEC 61853-2), and the accuracy of these procedures and models must be independently tested and validated. The IEC 61853-2 standard is in the IEC review and approval process and is expected to be released in 2015.

About Solar ABCs
The Solar ABCs is a collaborative effort among experts to formally gather and prioritize input from the broad spectrum of solar photovoltaic stakeholders including policy makers, manufacturers, installers, and consumers resulting in coordinated recommendations to codes and standards making bodies for existing and new solar technologies. The U.S. Department of Energy funds Solar ABCs as part of its commitment to facilitate widespread adoption of safe, reliable and cost-effective solar technologies. For more information, visit www.solarabcs.org.

For more information contact Larry Sherwood, 303-413-8028, larry@sherwoodassociates.com.

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