Solar Photovoltaic Energy Systems

IEC TS 63157:2019 lays out recommendations for best practices for product realization, safety, customer satisfaction, and stakeholders' relationship used in the manufacture of power conversion equipment (PCE). This document captures key requirements customers would like to see completed to ensure high-quality products, specifically, that the products have the documented properties, including properties needed to give customer satisfaction with regard to the warranty. The object of this document is to provide more confidence in the ongoing consistency of performance and reliability of certified power conversion equipment. The requirements of this document are defined with the assumption that the quality management system of the organization has already fulfilled the requirements of ISO 9001 or equivalent quality management system. These guidelines also form the basis for factory audit criteria of such sites by various certifying and auditory bodies. This document covers manufacture of electronic power conversion equipment intended for use in terrestrial PV applications. The term PCE refers to equipment and components for electronic power conversion of electric power into another kind of electric power with respect to voltage, current and frequency. This document applies to PCE in both indoor and outdoor open-air climates as defined in IEC 60721-2-1 and IEC 60721-3-3. Such equipment may include, but is not limited to, DC-to-AC inverters, DC-to-DC converters and battery charge converters.

IEC TS 63156:2021 describes the procedure for evaluating the energy conversion performance of stand-alone or grid-connected power conversion equipment (PCE) used in PV systems. This procedure includes the calculation of inverter performance to anticipate the energy yield of PV systems. This evaluation method is based on standard power efficiency calculation procedures for PCE found in IEC 61683 and IEC 62891, but provides additional methods for evaluating the expected overall energy efficiency for a particular location given solar load profiles. This document can be used as the energy evaluation method for PCE in IEC TS 61724-3, which defines a procedure for evaluating a PV system’s actual energy production relative to its modeled or expected performance.

IEC TS 63126:2020 defines additional testing requirements for modules deployed under conditions leading to higher module temperature which are beyond the scope of IEC 61215-1 and IEC 61730-1 and the relevant component standards, IEC 62790 and IEC 62852. The testing conditions specified in IEC 61215-2 and IEC 61730-2 (and the relevant component standards IEC 62790 and IEC 62852) assumed that these standards are applicable for module deployment where the 98th percentile temperature (T98th), that is the temperature that a module would be expected to equal or exceed for 175,2 h per year, is less than 70 °C. This document defines two temperature regimes, temperature level 1 and temperature level 2, which were designed considering deployment in environments with mounting configurations such that the T98th is less than or equal to 80 °C for temperature level 1, and less than or equal to 90 °C for temperature level 2.

The purpose of this part of IEC 63106 is to provide recommendations for Low Voltage (LV) AC
power simulators used for testing utility interactive photovoltaic power conversion equipment
(PCE).
NOTE Low Voltage refers to 1 000 Va.c. and less.
The AC power simulators connect to the AC output power port of a PCE under test and simulate
the utility grid by generating comparable AC voltage.
The AC power simulators can be used to test a PCE’s utility interaction characteristics, including
protection, ride through, immunity and power quality. The requirements and procedures are
specified in IEC standards and local utility grid requirements, selected by the network operator,
utility, or authority having jurisdiction.

IEC TS 63049:2017(E) provides the minimum activities deemed necessary to implement an effective quality assurance program for the managing and reducing of risk in the installation and operation of photovoltaic (PV) systems. This document defines requirements for certifying that an entity has and uses a quality assurance program to prevent, or reduce errors and learns from any new errors in installation, operation and maintenance of a PV system. The object of this document is to provide more confidence in the performance and reliability of certified PV systems. By being installed and operated under a Quality Assurance program in accordance with this document, PV systems are expected to operate as designed and as expected based on product warranties.

IEC TS 63019:2019 provides a framework from which the availability metrics of a PVPS can be derived and reported. It describes how data are categorized and defines generic information categories to which time can be assigned for a PVPS considering internal and external conditions based on fraction of time, system health, and condition by specifying the following: - generic information categories of a PVPS considering availability and production. - information category priority to discriminate between concurrent categories. - entry and exit point for each information category to allocate designation of time. The PVPS comprises all photovoltaic (PV) modules, inverters, DC and AC collection systems, grid interconnection equipment, the site, its infrastructure, and all functional service elements. Formulas in this document provide normative guidance for standardization. Beyond that, it is not the intention of this document to specify exactly how other undefined, time-based availability metrics shall be calculated. The annexes are examples and guiding principles for developing methods for calculation and estimation of availability metrics, subject to the knowledge and concurrence for use by the involved stakeholders. Estimates and calculations also have recommendations on how they are to be used as part of the informative function.

IEC 62994:2019 specifies definitions of terms and introduces evaluation methods for EH&S risk assessment for the PV module over the product life cycle. Environmental health and safety (EH&S) risk assessment is a method to characterize and evaluate potential adverse impacts to human health or environment and make it possible to take measures to reduce them. EH&S risk assessment of PV modules is very important for the safe and sustainable manufacture, use, and end of life treatment of PV modules. The definition of terms can be applied to the EH&S risk assessment through the life cycle of PV modules. Generally, evaluation methods for the EH&S risk assessment can be divided in two cases: - ordinary foreseen routine operation, in which life cycle assessment method is applied; - abnormal non-routine operation, in which risk assessment method is applied

IEC TS 62989:2018(E) encompasses key characteristics of primary optical elements (lenses and mirrors) and lens or mirror parquets for concentrator photovoltaics including: optical performance, mechanical geometry, mechanical strength, materials, and surface morphology. The document identifies the essential characteristics, the corresponding quantities of interest, and provides a method for measurement of each quantity.

IEC TS 62916:2017(E) describes a discrete component bypass diode electrostatic discharge (ESD) immunity test and data analysis method. The test method described subjects a bypass diode to a progressive ESD stress test and the analysis method provides a means for analyzing and extrapolating the resulting failures using the two-parameter Weibull distribution function. It is the object of this document to establish a common and reproducible test method for determining diode surge voltage tolerance consistent with an ESD event during the manufacturing, packaging, transportation or installation processes of PV modules.

IEC TS 62915:2018(E) sets forth a uniform approach to maintain type approval, design and safety qualification of terrestrial PV modules that have undergone, or will undergo modification from their originally assessed design. Changes in material selection, components and manufacturing process can impact electrical performance, reliability and safety of the modified product. This document lists typical modifications and the resulting requirements for retesting based on the different test standards. This document is closely related to the IEC 61215 and IEC 61730 series of standards.