Innovative Melt-Encapsulating Thermal Back Sheet and PVDF Fluorinated Transparent Melt-Encapsulating Front Sheet to Reduce Solar Panel Costs and Enhances their Performance

With the combination of melt-encapsulating front sheet, melt-encapsulating thermally conductive insulated metal back sheet and melt-bonding tabbing solution, roll-to-roll lamination process or dramatically reduced time for vacuum lamination process at 140-160°C are now achievable goals. Much lower costs in both capital investment and solar panels is one of the end results besides the performance in conversion efficiency and long-term reliability.

With over 30 years of experience in formulating and manufacturing of specialty materials and adhesives for electronic applications, AIT will be showing the industry's first combination of PVDF fluorinated front and back sheet that also encapsulate the solar module of cells in a single melt-encapsulating process.

• SOLARGRIP™ uses polymer crystallites for strength in place of cross-linking in EVA encapsulant offers the capability to reduce the vacuum thermal forming cycle time by a factor of 5-10.
• The reduced cycle times directly contribute to reduced costs in manufacturing solar panels.
• The low moisture ingression afforded by the fluorinated PVDF and modified polyethylene enables self-sealing edges and possibility of frameless panels.
• Outstanding compatible bonding with standard EVA encapsulant and cross-linkable polyolefin encapsulant.

By embedding in the PVDF fluorinated and thermally conductive melt-flow back sheets, the efficiency of conversion is improved in the hot summer sun:

• SOLAR-IMB™ is the industry's first insulated thermally conductive back sheet and encapsulant single ply laminate that helps to dissipate heat and lower the cell temperature.
• UV and moisture protection encapsulating thermally conductive back sheet with PVDF back sheet layer protection.
• The effect of lowering the cell temperature from 70°C to 50°C will increase the efficiency from the already depressed value to 13-14% from the 10% at 70°C for typical mono-crystalline solar under summer sun.

AIT solar solution for photovoltaic panel manufacturing also include many enabling complementary solutions:

• Melt-encapsulating transparent front sheet (SOLAR-THRU™) from 5-15 mils for thin film to mono-crystalline solar.
• PVDF front sheet for ultimate UV and moisture protection.
• Melt bonding fluorinated conductive tabs to reduce the tabbing temperature and the thickness from 8 mils to 3 mils.
• UV resistant fluorinated PVDF transparent coating reduces glare on glass front sheet.

All materials are RoHS, REACH and WEEE compliant that meets UL94V-0 rating offered by AIT US manufacturing facilities located in Princeton Junction, New Jersey.

Other complementary material solutions from AIT includes thermal management and anti-glare coating for concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) applications: