– 6 –
IEC 60904-9:2020 © IEC 2020
PHOTOVOLTAIC DEVICES –
Part 9: Classification of solar simulator characteristics
1 Scope
IEC standards for photovoltaic devices require the use of specific classes of solar simulators
deemed appropriate for specific tests. Solar simulators can be
either used for performance
measurements of PV devices or endurance irradiation tests. This part of IEC 60904 provides
the definitions of and means for determining simulator classifications at the required
irradiance levels used for electrical stabilization and characterisation of PV devices.
This document is applicable for solar simulators used in PV test and
calibration laboratories
and in manufacturing lines of solar cells and PV modules. The A+ category is primarily
intended for calibration laboratories and is not considered necessary for power measurements
in PV manufacturing and in qualification testing. Class A+ has been introduced because it
allows for reduction in the uncertainty of secondary reference device calibration, which is
usually performed in a calibration laboratory. Measurement uncertainty in PV production lines
will directly benefit from a lower uncertainty of calibration, because production line
measurements are performed using secondary reference devices.
In the case of PV performance
measurements, using a solar simulator of a particular class
does not eliminate the need to quantify the influence of the simulator on the measurement by
making spectral mismatch corrections and analysing the influences of spatial non-uniformity
of irradiance in the test plane and temporal stability of irradiance on that measurement. Test
reports for PV devices tested with the simulator report the class of simulator used for the
measurement and the method used to quantify the simulator’s effect on the results.
The purpose of this document is to define classifications of solar simulators for use in indoor
measurements of terrestrial photovoltaic devices. Solar simulators are classified as A+, A, B
or C based on criteria
of spectral distribution match, irradiance non-uniformity in the test
plane and temporal instability of irradiance. This document
provides the required
methodologies for determining the classification of solar simulators in each of the categories.
A solar simulator which does not meet the minimum requirements of class C cannot be
classified according to this document.
For spectral match classification a new procedure has been added. This procedure addresses
the actual need for an extended wavelength range, which is arising from advances in solar
cell technology (such as increased spectral responsivity below 400 nm) as well as solar
simulator technology (use of component LEDs). The procedure of the second
edition of this
standard is still valid, but is only applied if backward compatibility of classification for solar
simulators already in use and for solar simulators in production/sale is required. This
document is referred to by other IEC standards, in which class requirements are laid down for
the use of solar simulators. The solar simulator characteristics described in this document
are not used in isolation to imply any level of measurement confidence or measurement
uncertainty for a solar simulator application (for example, PV module power measurement).
Measurement uncertainties in each application depend on many factors, several of which are
outside the scope of this document:
•
Characteristics of the solar simulator, possibly including characteristics not covered by this
document;
•
Methods used to calibrate and
operate the solar simulator;
•
Characteristics of the device(s) under test (for example, size and spectral responsivity);
•
Quantities measured from the device(s) under test, including equipment and methods
used for measurement;
Copyrighted material licensed to University of Toronto by Clarivate Analytics (US) LLC, subscriptions.techstreet.com, downloaded on 2020-09-26 08:51:03 +0000 by University of Toronto User.
No further reproduction or distribution is permitted.
IEC 60904-9:2020 © IEC 2020
– 7 –
•
Possible corrections applied to measured quantities.
When applications require a certain solar simulator characteristic, it is preferable to specify a
numerical value rather than a letter classification (for example,
“≤
5 % non-uniformity of
irradiance” rather than “Class B non-uniformity of irradiance”). If not obvious from the
application, it should also be indicated how the required simulator characteristic correlates to
relevant measured quantities. Since PV module power measurement is one of the most
common applications for solar simulators, brief guidance on this application is given in
informative notes for each solar simulator characteristic described in this document. This
document is used in combination with IEC TR 60904-14, which deals with best practice
recommendations for production line measurements of single-junction PV module maximum
power output and reporting at standard test conditions. For output power characterization of
PV devices, IEC TR 60904-14 addresses the relevance of the letter grades (A+, A, B, C) for
measurement uncertainty.
Dostları ilə paylaş: