500 W and beyond – How a higher power rating can reduce system cost and LCOE

What does it mean for future projects when the output of modules continuously increases, even exceeding the threshold of 500 watts per module? The latest module from Trina Solar has a nominal output of up to 505 watts, from a module measuring 2.19 x 1.10 meters. The active area is significantly larger than before, thanks to the large wafer format that the company uses.

In this pv magazine webinar, we will examine what this larger format means for the installation process, and how the higher power rating can have a positive impact on overall system cost and levelized cost of energy (LCOE).

Max Mittag, head of module simulation at Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy, examines the effects of larger wafers and how it improves the performance if they are cut not in two, but into three parts before assembly in the module.

Klaus Hofmeister, Product Marketing Manager at Trina Solar in Europe, will introduce the company’s new Vertex module series. They are offered both as bifacial glass-glass modules and as monofacial glass-backsheet modules. Hofmeister will explain which modules are best suited to different applications and show how more powerful modules reduce system costs through savings in handling and in cases where space is limited.

Content

• Larger active module area due to third cut cells and smaller spacing
• Taking advantage of the 210mm wafer, the largest currently on the market
• Analysis at cell-to-module and cell-to-system levels, and why the advantage won’t always show under standard test conditions.
• Third cut cell modules bifacial (glass-glass) and monofacial (glass-backsheet)
• How much can the new power class reduce the balance of systems cost and the LCOE?