Solar module for east-west installations on flat rooftops

Netherlands-based module manufacturer Solarge B.V. has developed a 72-cell monocrystalline solar module for PV systems deployed on flat rooftops with limited weight-bearing capacity.

“The module configuration is the typical east-west configuration with 12 degrees tilt angle, which can basically be installed on the roof in any desired orientation,” CCO Huib Van der Heuvel told pv magazine. “The mounting system is fixed to the roof by means of roofing anchors, eliminating the need for ballast.”

The product measures 2,327 mm x 1,137 mm x 14 mm and weighs in at 14.5 kg, or 5.5 kg/m2. It features a power output of 500 W, an open-circuit voltage of 49 V, a short-circuit current of 12.4 A, and a fill factor of 0.78%. Its temperature coefficient is -0.39% per degree Celsius and the maximum system voltage is 1,000 V. The operating ambient temperature ranges from -40 to 85 C.

Solarge offers a 10-year product warranty and a 20-year power output guarantee. Annual linear degradation over 20 years is guaranteed at a maximum of 0.5 %.

The manufacturer is currently producing the modules through a pilot line at its manufacturing facility in Eindhoven, in the Netherlands. It is now completing the financing of a high-volume manufacturing plant, which is scheduled to open by mid-2022 in the Netherlands. Commercial operations are scheduled to start in the second half of next year.

“Next to the low weight, the sustainability performance of this innovative solar panels are remarkable,” Van der Heuve said. “The product will have a CO2 footprint which is 80% lower than conventional solar panels and the panel is completely circular in design and uses no Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) materials, unlike all other solar panels that use a polymeric film instead of glass.”