Strategy for simple, on-site failure analysis: investigating bubbles and burn marks in backsheets of PV modules

Special Issue on ‘EU PVSEC 2025: State of the Art and Developments in Photovoltaics', edited by Robert Kenny and Carlos del Cañizo

Open Access

Table 2

Correlating backsheet materials (PVDF–PET–PVDF (PVDF), FC–PET–FC (FC), PVF-PET-PVF (PVF), and PET–PE–PET or PET–PET–PE (PET)), carbonyl index (CI), water index (WI), and operation time with failure percentages.

Power plant	Backsheet materials (percentage of modules)	CI	WI	Operation time	Percentage of faults in top and bottom cell rows	Percentage of faults in inner cell rows	Systemconfiguration
Brazil 1	PVDF (89.3%)PET (8.3%)FC (2.4%)	0.525	0.142	4 yr	3.4%0%0%	0%0%0%	Single axis tracking
Brazil 2	PVDF (31.7%)PET (33.6%)FC (34.7%)	0.485	0.132	3 yr	3.08%0%0%	0%0%0%	Single axis tracking
Germany	PVF (100%)	0.518	0.021	2 yr	4.0%	0%	Fixed tilt angle

Note: CI and WI are aggregated by site because both indices were measured at the front-side busbar and are dominated by encapsulant ageing under local climate/exposure.

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