Solar panels are usually sold with 25 to 30 years of performance promises. But what happens after that, when the warranty language is long gone and you are
  • BarqsHasBite@lemmy.world
    31·
    2 days ago

    Looking at six solar arrays in Switzerland that have been running since the late 1980s and early 1990s, the team found most panels still produced more than 80% of their original power after three decades.

    Temperature turned out to be a major character in the story. The study reports that lower-altitude systems faced higher thermal stress, with module temperatures reaching about 20 degrees Celsius warmer than high-altitude sites, and those hotter panels tended to degrade faster.

    Some of the wear mechanisms were very specific but easy to picture. The encapsulant, the clear plastic layer that helps protect and hold the solar cells, showed more breakdown in hotter conditions, and the researchers linked that to chemical byproducts that can contribute to corrosion over time.

    • boonhet@sopuli.xyz
      4·
      2 days ago

      I wonder if new panels last even better, since there’s been more R&D done and manufacturers should have more experience now

      • Hanrahan@slrpnk.netEnglish
        11·
        2 days ago

        Or worse because how to make.money selliing more panels, aka the enshitifcation of solar.panels.

        That said I had some installed on my off grid solar cabin 20 yrs ago, 220w per panel, had some new panels installed on my small rural cottage late last uear, 370W per panel, same size panel, so that was sweet. I retired decades ago and run my home through the day on solar (hot wayer system only switches on to use solar thru the day, induction cooktop etc). and sell the excess solar to the grid, including charging my ecar off solar only.

        I am not sure how this is new though, i’ve always worked on a 1%-2% degredation per year for panels, not a cliff like degradation.