Kyocera Corporation announced that its solar modules are the first in the world to have passed all “Long-Term Sequential Tests” performed by TUV Rheinland Japan Ltd, who independently evaluates quality and reliability of solar modules. The company had announced interim results last October, but now announces the full certification of the testing.
The company’s conventional 210-watt solar module was the test subject, and has proven to maintain a constant level of power output throughout the rigorous testing — which compared to standard industry testing methodology evaluates modules over a longer time period.
“Data collected from three large-scale solar power plants in Spain and Thailand show that our modules are performing at an approximately 16% higher power output level than the installers’ own original estimates,” stated Tetsuo Kuba, president of Kyocera Corporation. “TUV Rheinland’s test results further prove the high quality of Kyocera modules, and we will continue to ensure the long-term reliability of our products through both internal and external evaluations in the future.”
The Long-Term Sequential Test evaluates modules with four sub-tests: Damp Heat, Thermal Cycling, Humidity Freeze, and Bypass Diode. These test the module’s overall performance and quality by putting it under harsher conditions than those standardized by the International Electrotechnical Commission(IEC). Furthermore, while conventional testing dictates that a separate individual module be used per sub-test, the Long-Term Sequential Test carries out all four sub-tests on the same module, thereby evaluating it under conditions closer to those a product faces over its actual lifetime.