RESEARCH PAPER
Study on Reliability of Field-Aged Photovoltaic
Connectors
1
Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, Jammu and Kashmir, India
2
Hi Physix Laboratory India Pvt. Ltd, India
3
National Institute of Solar Energy, Gurugram, New Delhi,, India
Submission date: 2024-08-24
Final revision date: 2024-11-18
Acceptance date: 2024-12-23
Online publication date: 2024-12-26
Publication date: 2024-12-26
Eksploatacja i Niezawodność – Maintenance and Reliability 2025;27(3):199496
HIGHLIGHTS
- Testing 75 connectors life ranging from 2 to 10 years from varied climatic regions.
- Weaknesses in insulation resistance of connector especially in cold arid and desert region.
- Connector failure observed after contact resistance increased 200 % from its initial value
- SEM analysis reveals evidence of material degradation in connector casings.
- Need for Region-Specific Material Selection and Enhanced Workmanship.
KEYWORDS
ReliabilityDegradationScanning Electron MicroscopyContact ResistancePhotovoltaic ConnectorThermal Cycling
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
The paper presents the reliability study on field-aged photovoltaic connectors of different makes characterized by diverse climatic conditions with 2 to 10 years of operational life. A series of tests conforming to IEC 62852 conducted on field-aged connectors and control samples. The objective is to elucidate the mechanisms of aging and evaluate reliability of connectors, identify failure modes, potential hazards, changes in electrical and mechanical performance because of longstanding exposure to environmental and operational stresses. Field survey and testing reveal lack of awareness of workmanship and maintenance. Laboratory testing reveals connector less than 6 years of life shows low contact resistance and remain stable or have marginal linear increase after thermal and damp heat testing. Samples with life of 6 years or more from extreme climatic regions show high contact resistance with nonlinear pattern increasing to 300% in the thermal cycle and up to 600% in damp heat test. In SEM fretting was observed with high contact resistance with marginal polymer deterioration
REFERENCES (36)
1.
L. Fiorentini and V. Puccia, “PV fires experiences in Italy: from forensic activities to fire risk assessment of existing and new PV plants,” in Proc. PV Rel. Work., 2019, pp. 192–233.
2.
N. G. Dhere, B. Kumar, V. V Hadagali, S. A. Pethe, J. Wohlgemuth, and D. Amin, “PV Connector Performance in a Hot and Humid Environment,” in 2006 IEEE 4th World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conference, 2006, pp. 2199–2201. doi: 10.1109/WCPEC.2006.279944.
3.
J. Swingler and J. W. McBride, “Fretting corrosion and the reliability of multicontact connector terminals,” IEEE Transactions on Components and Packaging Technologies, vol. 25, no. 4, pp. 670–676, 2002, doi: 10.1109/TCAPT.2002.808007.
4.
Caroline Tjengdrawira, David Moser, Ulrike Jahn, Matthias v. Armansperg, Ioannis-Thomas Theologitis, and Máté Heisz, “Best Practice Guidelines for Risk Identification, Assessment and Mitigation,” Feb. 2017.
5.
U. Muntwyler and E. Schüpbach, “New Findings on the PV Fire Prevention - Firefighter Strategy for in-Roof PV Installations,” 38th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition, pp. 1275–1277, 2021.
6.
Magnus Herz, Gabi Friesen, Ulrike Jahn, Marc Köntges, and David Moser, “Task 13 Performance, Operation and Reliability of Photovoltaic Systems – Quantification of Technical Risks in PV Power Systems,” Feb. 2022.
7.
Photon International, “, "Good connections: market survey on PV connectors,” Photon International. Accessed: Feb. 03, 2024. https://www.photon.info/en/pho....
8.
A. S. Bahaj, P. A. B. James, and J. W. McBride, “Predicting photovoltaic connector lifetime,” in 3rd World Conference on Photovoltaic Energy Conversion, 2003. Proceedings of, 2003, pp. 2833-2836 Vol.3. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-....
9.
A. B. Bahaj, P. James, and J. McBride, “Photovoltaic connector behaviour under accelerated fretting testing regimes,” in Proceedings of the Forth-Seventh IEEE Holm Conference on Electrical Contacts (IEEE Cat. No.01CH37192), 2001, pp. 203–208. doi: 10.1109/HOLM.2001.953212.
10.
Olga Lavrova et al., “PV Systems Reliability: Final Technical Report,” CA, USA, Dec. 2015. https://doi.org/10.2172/134249....
11.
B. B. Yang et al., “Reliability model development for photovoltaic connector lifetime prediction capabilities,” in 2013 IEEE 39th Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC), 2013, pp. 139–144. doi: 10.1109/PVSC.2013.6744115.
12.
B. B. Yang et al., “Arc fault risk assessment and degradation model development for photovoltaic connectors,” in 2014 IEEE 40th Photovoltaic Specialist Conference (PVSC), 2014, pp. 3549–3555. doi: 10.1109/PVSC.2014.6924875.
13.
J. Kalejs, J. Gadomski, and Z. Nobel, “NREL PV Module Reliability Workshop: Connector issues in reliability,” Lowell, MA, Feb. 2013. Accessed: Feb. 03,2024.
14.
D. Miller et al., “Development of Fixtures and Methods to Assess the Durability of Balance of Systems Components,” IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics, vol. 12, no. 6, pp. 1341–1348, 2022, doi: 10.1109/JPHOTOV.2022.3205154.
15.
D. C. (ORCID:0000000246985277) Miller et al., “Photovoltaic Cable Connectors: A Comparative Assessment of the Present State of the Industry,” vol. 14, 2024, doi: 10.1109/JPHOTOV.2024.3414178.
16.
Renhesolar, “Renhesolar ZJRH 05-6 Connector.” Accessed: Feb. 03, 2024. www.renhesolar.com/products1-tid-43.html.
19.
Yukita, “Yukita Connector YS 254/255.” Accessed: Feb. 03, 2024. http://www.yukita.co.jp/main/w....
20.
Zhonghaun Sunter, “Sunter Connector PV-ZH202B.” Accessed: Feb. 03, 2024. http://www.pvzh.com/eProductVi....
21.
Xinhui, “Xinhui Connector PV HCA-30.” Accessed: Feb. 03, 2024. https://www.xh-pv.com/pv-hca30....
22.
JINKO Solar, “Jinko JK03Mxy-US Connector.” Accessed: Feb. 03, 2024. https://jinkosolarus.wpenginep....
27.
IEC, “IEC 62852-2014: Connectors for DC-application in photovoltaic systems - Safety requirements and tests,” Jun. 2014.
28.
UL 6703 and Underwriters’ Laboratories, “Connectors for Use in Photovoltaic Systems,” Northbrook, USA, 2021. Accessed: Feb. 03, 2024. https://standards.globalspec.c....
29.
Bureau of Indian Standards, “IS 16781-2018 : Connectors for d.c. Application in Photovoltaic Systems — Safety Requirements and Tests,” 2018.
30.
C. E. Packard, J. H. Wohlgemuth, and S. R. Kurtz, “Development of a Visual Inspection Data Collection Tool for Evaluation of Fielded PV Module Condition,” United States, 2012. doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.2172/105....
31.
F. Hong, J. Song, H. Meng, R. Wang, F. Fang, and G. Zhang, “A novel framework on intelligent detection for module defects of PV plant combining the visible and infrared images,” Solar Energy, vol. 236, pp. 406–416, Apr. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.solener.2022.03.018.
32.
G. Álvarez-Tey, R. Jiménez-Castañeda, and J. Carpio, “Analysis of the configuration and the location of thermographic equipment for the inspection in photovoltaic systems,” Infrared Phys Technol, vol. 87, pp. 40–46, Dec. 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.infrared.2017.09.022.
33.
H. Glavas, M. Vukobratovic, M. Primorac, and D. Mustran, “Infrared thermography in inspection of photovoltaic panels,” in 2017 International Conference on Smart Systems and Technologies (SST), IEEE, Oct. 2017, pp. 63–68. doi: 10.1109/SST.2017.8188671.
34.
International Electrotechnical Commission, “IEC 60512-1: Connectors for electrical and electronic equipment - Tests and measurements - Part 1: Generic specification,” 60512, Oct. 22, 2018.
35.
Todd Karin, David Penalva, and James Nagel, “The Ultimate Safety Guide for Solar PV Connectors,” Feb. 2022.
36.
B. J. Inkson, “Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) for materials characterization,” in Materials characterization using non destructive evaluation (NDE) methods, Elsevier, 2016, pp. 17–43.
Share
RELATED ARTICLE
| eISSN: | 2956-3860 |
| ISSN: | 1507-2711 |
We process personal data collected when visiting the website. The function of obtaining information about users and their behavior is carried out by voluntarily entered information in forms and saving cookies in end devices. Data, including cookies, are used to provide services, improve the user experience and to analyze the traffic in accordance with the Privacy policy. Data are also collected and processed by Google Analytics tool (more).
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
