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Title: PV Field Reliability Status--Analysis of 100,000 Solar Systems

Journal Article · · Progress in Photovoltaics. Research and Applications
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/pip.3262 · OSTI ID:1659924
ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1];  [1];  [2]
  1. National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
  2. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
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In this paper, we analyzed annual production data from 100 000 photovoltaic systems as well as comments relating to their performance and maintenance. Our analysis revealed that 80% to 90% of all systems performed within 10% of the predicted production or better. Also, 56% of the systems were still performing above P50 or the median at 5 years. However, a small but significant tail of about 7000 systems perform below P90 expectations. In general, residential systems have a lower rate of failure than utility or commercial systems. Despite higher rates of component failures, utility systems lose less power than residential or commercial systems. This outcome is likely due to closer monitoring and better operations and maintenance practices. Inverters are still the components that reportedly fail most often (4%-6%), but other failures such as unspecified repair and meters cause more production loss. Reported module failures are relatively rare (0.2%) and are within the range of historical values. Installation quality affects performance and safety as indicated by data showing connector, wiring, breaker, and fuse failures due to undersizing, electrical design, and improper connection. Lastly, early detection of degradation and proactive response resulted in less impact on production than reactive, unplanned repairs.

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
Grant/Contract Number:
AC36-08GO28308
OSTI ID:
1659924
Report Number(s):
NREL/JA-5K00-75023; MainId:6196; UUID:45837904-a4e0-e911-9c26-ac162d87dfe5; MainAdminID:13649
Journal Information:
Progress in Photovoltaics. Research and Applications, Vol. 28, Issue 8; ISSN 1099-159X
Publisher:
WileyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (9)

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PV System Reliability: An Operator's Perspective journal January 2013
Overirradiance (Cloud Enhancement) Events at High Latitudes journal January 2013
Photovoltaic failure and degradation modes: PV failure and degradation modes
  • Jordan, Dirk C.; Silverman, Timothy J.; Wohlgemuth, John H.
  • Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications, Vol. 25, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1002/pip.2866
journal January 2017
Compendium of photovoltaic degradation rates: Photovoltaic degradation rates journal February 2016

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14 SOLAR ENERGY
field failure
field performance
photovoltaics
reliability