Your daily dose of photovoltaic technology developments and solar news

Prolonged time frames for weathering testing services for PV modules due to capacity constraints could be easing with the announcement of a strategic alliance between Underwriters Laboratories and Atlas Material Testing Technology. UL currently operates Photovoltaic Centers of Excellence in San Jose, Calif., and Suzhou, China, and will open two new state-of-the-art testing facilities this year: one in Germany and one in Japan. Atlas Weathering Services Group has five laboratories and over 20 outdoor exposure sites around the world in a variety of climates, including desert, subtropical, high-altitude and corrosive.

Atlas Material Testing is introducing the latest technology for accelerated exposure testing of complete PV modules. The XR360 integrates the recent developments in environmental chamber and xenon solar simulation technology.

Atlas has developed a new fluorescent, UV testing device for accelerated weathering. The Atlas UVTes has been designed for economical weathering testing.

Atlas Material Testing Technology has formed a partnership with ACT Test Panels to distribute within the European market.

Atlas Material Testing Technology, in partnership with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the Institute of Laser Technology (ILOT), received the R&D 100 award for its work in developing the Ultra-Accelerated Weathering System (UAWS).

Atlas Material Testing Technology’s Solar/PV Center of Excellence in Phoenix, Arizona has added two further services to its portfolio. Services for solar simulator classification and I-V Curve tracing will aid solar companies to substantiate product warranty and efficiency claims.

April 15, 2009, Chicago, IL — Atlas Material Testing Technology is pleased to announce dates for its next Atlas Technical Conference on Ageing and Evaluation (ATCAE). This, the 4th ATCAE will focus on the durability of materials, components, and systems for the solar energy industry. It will take place December 8 - 9, 2009, at the Point Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in Phoenix, Arizona.

Atlas Consulting offers design and implementation of complete testing and durability solutions for the solar energy industry. This service includes needs assessment, management of test programs, and development of test methods, programs and strategies.

Atlas designs solar chambers for environmental testing of photovoltaic (PV) and solar thermal related products during development and production.

Atlas Testing Services offers durability and performance qualification testing through a network of global exposure sites, natural and accelerated test methods, I-V curve tracing and solar radiometric measurements for individual test specimens, modules and complete in situ systems.

Atlas is a global leader in manufacturing instruments for weathering testing with special emphasis on solar testing. These instruments allow accelerated weathering testing through controlled methodologies that closely simulate natural environments. The capabilities of the standard line of comprehensive instruments can be applied to a variety of testing needs for the photovoltaic industry, as indicated in the chart below. Atlas testing instruments help in the development and characterization of PV components/materials, cells and modules.

Product Briefing Outline: To help customers show objective evidence that they are in compliance with test specifications during ISO 17025 quality audits, Atlas now offers the ‘Atlas LS-200’ Full Spectrum Monitoring device. The LS-200 has been specifically designed for use in Ci Series ‘Weather-Ometers’ to precisely measure the SPD output of the xenon lamp. Validation tests have shown that this device has excellent correlation to the spectroradiometers used in the Atlas Calibration Laboratory.

Product Briefing Outline: Atlas Material Testing Technology has introduced its latest technology for ultra-accelerated exposure testing. This new outdoor testing device can provide approximately 63 years of south Florida UV radiation exposure in a single year. Atlas developed this new solar concentrator technology in partnership with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the Russian Institute of Laser Optical Technology (ILOT) under a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) program.