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Featured in Factory floor – 09-2026

Peeling back the layers

As part of a PV module’s construction, front and rear encapsulants are used to bond solar cells to the front (typically glass) and rear (glass or polymer backsheet) surfaces. When these components degrade, delamination or bubbles can occur, opening new channels for moisture and oxygen ingress, drastically accelerating other failure mechanisms such as cell metallization corrosion.
Tristan Erion-Lorico,Hao Song
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Tristan Erion-Lorico, Hao Song
Delamination, corner | Image: Kiwa PVEL

Poor material choices, reduced usage of encapsulants (thinner and/or slimmer), inadequate lamination methods, and process controls can all play a role, leading to rising failure rates. The proportion of delamination failures has climbed from a low of just 1.3% for PQP tested bills of materials (BOMs) produced in 2022 to 44.7% and 38.3% for BOMs …

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