Double-glass exterior of photovoltaic modules

Preface To further extend the s rvice life of photovoltaic modules, double glass photovoltaic module has cently been develop d and st died in the PV community. Double lass module contains two sheets of glass, whereby the back sheet is made of heat strengthened (semi-tempered) glass to substitute the traditional polymer backsheet.

A double glass (Dual Glass) solar panel is a glass-glass module structure where a glass layer is used on the back of the modules instead of the traditional polymer backsheet. Double glass solar panels were originally heavy and expensive, but the lighter polymer backing panels gained most of the market share.

Double glass PV modules is an area of significant investigation by many companies and institutes in recent years, for example Dupont, Trina, Apollon, SERIS, MIT, Meyer Burger and Talesun. According to the literature, double glass also has some potential risks besides the abovementioned advantages.

Due to the high reflectance of white EVA, the power of white double glass module is higher than that of transparent double glass module by 2-4%. Double glass PV modules is an area of significant investigation by many companies and institutes in recent years, for example Dupont, Trina, Apollon, SERIS, MIT, Meyer Burger and Talesun.

Double-glass PV modules are emerging as a technology which can deliver excellent performance and excellent durability at a competitive cost. In this paper a glass–glass module technology that uses liquid silicone encapsulation is described. The combination of the glass–glass structure and silicone is shown to lead to exceptional durability.

Double glass module contains two sheets of glass, whereby the back sheet is made of heat strengthened (semi-tempered) glass to substitute the traditional polymer backsheet. With * Corresponding author. Tel.: +86 13776101913; fax: +86 51268961413.