Bifacial modules

The Duomax V and Tallmax V panels are equipped with glass-glass and glass-backsheet frames, respectively. Both offer a reported 21% efficiency and orders will be taken from the second quarter on. Trina plans to have a combined 5 GW of annual production capacity for the products this year.

The German start-up provides mounting structures for bifacial solar modules as well as PV systems which can be installed as a fence to enclose pastures. Next2Sun Mounting Systems is offering 5% annual interest over five years.

Solarwatt’s Vision glass-glass solar PV modules have pushed the technology’s resilience even further after passing cyclone testing in Darwin, Australia.

Back in June, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) granted Section 201 tariff exemptions to bifacial cells and modules, but reversed the decision on Oct. 28. Two weeks after the reversal, the U.S. Court of International Trade issued a temporary order against the withdrawal of the bifacial exemption. An investigation is now underway, with the first hearing taking place on Dec. 5.

The exercise, conducted on Longi PERC bifacial modules by Germany’s TÜV SÜD at a test field in China, showed surprisingly higher gains in panels getting light reflection from painted-surface and grassland albedo. It also showed, Longi claimed, bifacial panels operate at lower temperatures than single-sided alternatives.

Bifacial modules are here to stay. But even as manufacturers commit further capacities to two-sided module production spanning a whole range of technologies, there are still challenges to overcome, to fulfill predictions that bifacial will represent almost 40% of all modules produced inside the next decade. Flash testing conducted at the end of cell and module production presents one of these, and there is plenty of debate among equipment suppliers as to how this manufacturing stage should treat bifacial cells and modules.

The 1.8 GW supply deal is the largest in Canadian Solar’s history and includes the company’s new BiHiKu high-efficiency bifacial modules.

The Hi-MO 4 offers power ratings up to 430 watts, with module efficiencies as high as 19.2%, as the latest high-powered module to hit the floor at Intersolar Europe.

The Chinese monocrystalline panel maker said its 72-cell bifacial product has reached an ouput of more than 450 W on the front side. The result was confirmed by Germany’s TÜV-SÜD.

In preparation for the next pv magazine webinar “New approach for bifacial modules and yield expectations” on Monday 29 April, 2pm – 3pm (CEST), Andrea Viaro, head of technical service Europe, JinkoSolar and Lucie Garreau-iles, technical manager, EMEA, DuPont, in the following answer the questions by pv magazine on why create an alternative to the bifacial glass-glass-modules