Featured in Battling the elements – 09-2025

The sky is the limit for EL drone testing

Infrared drone inspections are now routine for solar projects, but post-installation electroluminescence (EL) testing remains misunderstood and underutilized, argue Jörg Althaus of Clean Energy Associates (CEA) and Andreas Fladung of Aerial PV Inspection. The pair examine EL’s ability to detect microcracks, early-stage degradation, and installation-induced damage, revealing how good planning and execution can lead to meaningful results.

By

pv magazine

08 Sep 2025

Image: Aerial PV Inspection

EL testing by drone can be surprisingly cost effective with the right planning. Infrared inspections, another option that can be carried out by drone, rely on thermal imaging to identify hot spots or signature patterns related to defective modules.While efficient, infrared cannot reveal a wide range of problems that don’t generate heat, or that exist …

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