Adhesion and reliability of solar module materials
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Delamination of solar module laminates (encapsulations, backsheets and frontsheets) is the least understood failure mode in the PV industry. It is well known, however, that long-term exposure to environmental stressors, including moisture, temperature and UV light, often leads to laminate degradation and ensuing loss of adhesion. Low levels of mechanical stress (thermal, wind, or handling) can then lead to module debonding, component corrosion and loss of function. Although adhesive failure of module laminates is frequently reported, it has yet to be characterized, understood or quantified. In this dissertation, I present a series of mechanics-based techniques to quantify adhesion in encapsulations, backsheets and frontsheets. Cantilever-beam and cantilever--plate techniques were developed for small specimens and full-size modules. Up to 90% loss of laminate adhesion was measured after small increases of operating temperature (T), relative humidity (RH) and UV light. These metrologies allow the use of an absolute scale (J/m2) to quantify adhesive stability after field or simulated exposures. To estimate module lifetime, the kinetics of debonding of the module laminates were characterized in the presence of environmental stressors. Debonding rates as low as 10-8 m/s were studied as a function of mechanical stress, T, RH and UV light. The debond growth rates of the laminates increased up to 1000-fold with small increases of T (10°C) and RH (15%). To elucidate the mechanisms of environmental debonding, fracture and bond-rupture kinetics models were developed. In these models, the viscoelastic relaxation and reaction-kinetics processes at the debonding-tip are used to predict debond growth. The adhesion metrologies and kinetics models we developed constitute a fundamental basis for developing accelerated aging tests and long-term reliability predictions for solar module materials.
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Form | electronic; electronic resource; remote |
| Extent | 1 online resource. |
| Publication date | 2015 |
| Issuance | monographic |
| Language | English |
Creators/Contributors
| Associated with | Novoa, Fernando | |
|---|---|---|
| Associated with | Stanford University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering. | |
| Primary advisor | Dauskardt, R. H. (Reinhold H.) | |
| Thesis advisor | Dauskardt, R. H. (Reinhold H.) | |
| Thesis advisor | McGehee, Michael | |
| Thesis advisor | Salleo, Alberto | |
| Advisor | McGehee, Michael | |
| Advisor | Salleo, Alberto |
Subjects
| Genre | Theses |
|---|
Bibliographic information
| Statement of responsibility | Fernando Novoa. |
|---|---|
| Note | Submitted to the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. |
| Thesis | Thesis (Ph.D.)--Stanford University, 2015. |
| Location | electronic resource |
Access conditions
- Copyright
- © 2015 by Fernando Daniel Novoa Perez
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
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