Permeation impact on metallization degradation

The degradation of the inorganic components in a PV module is, besides polymer degradation, one of the most important aspects of PV module aging. Especially the corrosion of the cell metallization may lead to significant decreases in PV module performance. But in which way the metallization corrosion is affected by the permeation of atmospheric gases is not understood, yet. In order to investigate this permeation impact, laminates with a systematic variation of back-sheet and encapsulation materials as well as different laminate set-ups were made. Two different kinds of encapsulation (EVA and PVB) and four different back-sheet materials (TAPT, PA and two different TPT foils) were used. Standard cells with a two and three bus bar set-up were used. The laminates were subjected to damp-heat aging tests with a relative humidity of 80% at 80°C and 90°C, respectively. The degradation was investigated by means of electroluminescence imaging, Raman spectroscopy and microscopy. Special attention was paid to the spatial distribution of corrosion effects on the cell. Furthermore, the occurrence of a typical damp-heat induced damage, apparent as a shaded area in the electroluminescence images, should be investigated. A corrosion of the grid and the ribbons could be observed. EDX measurements revealed the grid corrosion to go along with the formation of needles of lead compounds from the silver paste.