Photovoltaic Degradation Climate Zones

Abstract

A large body of previous research indicates that climate affects photovoltaic (PV) degradation both in terms of steady power loss and hazardous failures. However, the geographic distribution of climate stressors has not yet been characterized in a systematic way. Most typically the Köppen-Geiger classification scheme is used for comparing PV degradation across different climates. However, Köppen-Geiger uses temperature and rainfall to develop zones relevant for botany and lacks the ability to distinguish locations based on climate stressors more relevant to PV degradation. Prior work has shown that specific stressors (e.g. high temperature, temperature cycling, damp heat, wind stress and UV exposure) induce multiple PV degradation modes such as solder bond degradation, corrosion by moisture intrusion, wind-induced cell cracking, encapsulant discoloration and others. We introduce a climate zone classification system specific to PV, PhotoVoltaic Climate Zones (PVCZ-2019 or PVCZ) that defines zones based on the geographic distribution in PV stressor intensity. This climate zone scheme provides quantitative thresholds on the climate stress experienced in each zone which can provide a basis for future work on the impact of climate on PV degradation and failure.