For the assembly stage of photovoltaic panels (also called modules), several trends focus the attention of the actors. The market is currently making several shifts. One trend is to move towards high-efficiency cells like heterojunction technology.
Photovoltaic panels also incorporate cells of larger formats, with an increase in surface area that induces an increase in power, cut into half-cells, thirds of cells, 1/6th of cells that reduce electrical losses in production.
These developments, which are accompanied by ever higher rates of processing, require significant and constant innovation in assembly processes and equipment, particularly for interconnection.
© Mondragon Assembly
Mondragon Assembly (located in Orange in France and Aretxabaleta in Spain), a leading European player, specialized in the design, manufacture of equipment and production lines for the assembly and characterization of photovoltaic panels, and the CEA carrying the ITE INES.2S, have just forged a new partnership to address these challenges.
For Jean-Philippe AGUERRE, R&D Director at Mondragon Assembly: "This agreement is of strategic importance for our group. We want to strengthen ourselves on new technologies of high-efficiency photovoltaic modules, in particular on heterojunction technology, to offer the latest generation of production equipment and assembly lines. The work carried out in Orange by Rui de Almeida and his team has made it possible to improve significantly the precision of interconnexion processes and to transfer the research work of the CEA teams to industry. The continuation of this work will allow them to maintain competitive costs, in particular due to a significant reduction in certain costly materials while increasing the efficiency of the modules".
The new partnership agreement that brings together Mondragon Assembly and CEA research and development teams at INES, for a period of three years, will make it possible to continue and amplify developments around issues related to the assembly of photovoltaic panels and in particular the interconnection of photovoltaic cells.