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Photovoltaic fleet degradation insights

Journal Article · · Progress in Photovoltaics
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/pip.3566· OSTI ID:1864619
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [1]
  1. National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
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In the PV Fleet Performance Data Initiative, high-frequency data from commercial and utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) systems have been collected to examine performance loss rates (PLRs) at a fleet scale. To date, performance data from more than 7.2-gigawatt (GW) capacity, 1700 sites and 19,000 inverters—approximately equivalent to 6% to 7% of the entire US PV market—have been collected. An overall PLR of -0.75%/year was found, which is in line with historical and recent findings. Tracked silicon (Si) and cadmium telluride (CdTe) performed comparably with all fixed-tilt systems. Higher PLRs were found for hotter temperature zones; cooler climates exhibit a median -0.48%/year loss, which increases to -0.88%/year in hotter climates. High-efficiency module technologies showed median PLRs in line with conventional Si technologies but demonstrated markedly different PLR behavior when filtered only for low-light conditions <600 W/m2. Causes for this technology-dependent behavior are under investigation.

Research Organization:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Office of Renewable Energy. Solar Energy Technologies Office; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
AC36-08GO28308; DE‐AC36‐08GO28308
OSTI ID:
1864619
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1865882; OSTI ID: 1996459
Report Number(s):
NREL/JA-5K00-81314; MainId:82087; UUID:785fd6f2-311b-4e47-9734-3cd3c9577c2b; MainAdminID:64408
Journal Information:
Progress in Photovoltaics, Vol. 30, Issue 10; ISSN 1062-7995
Publisher:
WileyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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