PV Module Testing at RISE

Background

The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation (NEDO) of Japan was interested in gaining information on the performance of photovoltaic modules in harsh conditions such as those experienced in various parts of Australia. It had been undertaking such studies in collaboration with Telstra Research Laboratories in Melbourne for a number of years. That particular project concluded at the end of 1995. NEDO delegations had visited the Murdoch University regularly and Murdoch University was approached to see if it could participate in such a collaborative project. After several rounds of discussions a new collaborative project was developed.

The objectives of the collaborative project were:

to assess the performance of photovoltaic modules under the harsh environmental conditions found in Australia
to exchange information concerned with the design and utilisation of photovoltaic modules
to exchange information and determine the preferred procedures to be used to evaluate the performance of photovoltaic modules

The project was set up under an agreement between Murdoch University and NEDO, with the implementing agencies being MUERI and Japan Quality Assurance Organisation (JQA)

In practice, the project involved:

the installation of testing frames and monitoring systems at three sites - MUERI, the Northern Territory University (NTU) in Darwin and the Centre for Appropriate Technology (CAT) in Alice Springs.
the installation of a solar simulator at Murdoch University for the regular indoor testing of the photovoltaic modules under test
the automatic daily testing of the photovoltaic modules at the three sites, the continuous monitoring of meteorological variables at the test sites, and the regular return of the magnetic optical discs containing this data to MUERI
the retrieval of a number of the modules from the field test sites at six-monthly intervals for testing in the solar simulator followed by their redeployment in the field
regular detailed inspection of all the modules at the field sites during the visits to retrieve the modules for simulator testing and the documentation of any signs of degradation
the regular reporting of results
the regular review of results at meetings and workshops

As part of the agreement, NEDO provided all the funding for the installation of the equipment and the Japanese modules for testing. The development of the equipment and its installation was conducted by the Solar Energy Laboratory of the Japan Quality Assurance Organisation (JQA) in conjunction with MUERI. Staff at NTU in Darwin and the Centre for Appropriate Technology in Alice Springs provided in-kind support through their provision of sites and oversight of those sites.

The daily testing of the photovoltaic modules at the field test sites commenced in December 1996.

Current Status

This initial project was terminated in March 2001. However, a new project using this equipment was negotiated with another Japanese organization, PVTech. The project is currently continuing at the three sites.

Back