The British Standards Institution (BSI) has been an integral part of the UK’s solar energy journey by providing technical standards for a wide range of products and services and also provides certification and standards-related services to businesses.
Specifically, the BSI Standards Committees GEL/82 for Photovoltaic Energy Systems are responsible for standardizing photovoltaic systems for converting solar energy into electrical energy and for all elements in the entire system. GEL/82 represents the British input into European (EN) and international (IEC) standards.
The committee is chaired by KT Tan, chief technology officer at Viridian Solar. Solar energy portal spoke to Tan to find out more about the organization and some of the ongoing developments in the UK solar market.
‘Waves of innovation’
Perhaps one of the biggest changes in the UK solar industry and the world is the level of innovation that is happening so regularly. Tan believes the “waves of new innovation” have delivered incremental improvements in overall technological progress.
“While the principle of how solar energy generates energy has remained the same over the decades, waves of new innovations have entered the sector, each bringing a small incremental improvement to overall technological progress. Today, the latest development in cell technology is barely recognizable compared to ten years ago,” says Tan.
“For example, polycrystalline technology has been displaced in favor of a more efficient bi-facial N-type technology, which is not only more efficient in performance, but also in terms of power density and cost-effectiveness. With the advent of this technology, trackers have miraculously come back into fashion.”
In addition, Tan believes there is noticeable excitement in the air as the industry expects a breakthrough in perovskite tandem cell production. Tan explains that these new developments offer exciting opportunities, but also bring unforeseen challenges in the areas of performance measurement, quality assurance and reliability. This is where the BSI becomes integral to the wider adoption of these solar PV technologies.
Furthermore, Sebastiaan Van Dort, director of sustainability and energy at the BSI, says one of the organization’s core activities is creating more sustainable work through the standards introduced.
“We aim to support and guide industries towards greener practices and contribute to achieving a sustainable, net-zero future,” says Van Dort. “One committee central to these goals is GEL/82, which plays an important role in setting standards for the PV energy sector.”
It is worth noting that BSI standards are often used by regulatory bodies to maintain the quality of products and installations.
“The standards bodies, which have a rigorous methodology, want to ensure that the industry can enjoy all these new toys without taking their toll. The unpleasant experience of Potential Induced Degradation (PID) in the early Passivated Emitter Rear Cell (PERC) still left a bad taste in our mouths. Our job is to ensure that these risks are managed appropriately,” Tan explains.
“For example, Britain’s leading warranty scheme, Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS), relies on product standards, for example IEC 61215, to validate the performance and quality of solar panels marketed.
“On the other hand, conformity schemes such as CE or UKCA markings use IEC 61730 testing standards to meet consumer protection safety requirements. Another influential standard, IEC 60364 together with IEC62548, is in fact the de facto blueprint for the UK Wiring Regulations BS7671, which dictates virtually all installation requirements in the country.”
Rules of thumb do not apply to new-age technology
As Tan explains, BSI’s work often impacts the entire UK solar industry by creating blueprints that lay the foundation for a thriving market for the country. However, this is also not without difficulties.
Due to the introduction of new technologies, many of these are innovative because they are unlike any other existing technologies on the market. Therefore, Tan believes that traditional and established rules of thumb often do not work in the same way when applied to solar energy.
“The examples given above demonstrate the impact of these standards on the PV industry. For a fast-growing industry, it is more relevant to rely on standardization as a guide,” says Tan.
“Unfortunately, as new-age tech, we don’t have the luxury of relying on traditions or established rules of thumb. Therefore, the development of these standards will shape the landscape of new products, installation practices, operations and maintenance.”
But with the UK solar industry going from strength to strength, the question on many lips in the market is what to look for in the future. This is something Tan would like to talk about, in a light-hearted way.
“Everything under the sun, pardon the pun, is practically covered by an existing or emerging standard,” says Tan. “Agrivoltaic energy, floating solar energy, prosumer codes, you name it. The elephant in the room, however, is a standard (or lack thereof) for universal DC connectors, and the industry has evaded this for far too long. An international project team has been set up to define the requirements for universal DC connectors as a prerequisite for formulating a robust standard.
“DC connectors are a modest component that rarely takes center stage; they will definitely put you in the spotlight if something goes wrong. So watch this space! In terms of emerging technologies, I think it is realistic to expect that some form of super-performance tandem cells, for example the long-awaited perovskite tandem cells, will come to market by the turn of the century.”
Tan concludes: “The challenge is to understand the long-term reliability issues and design relevant tests accordingly. This is a tough nut to crack, but if you succeed, it will be extremely rewarding!”
The last point Tan imagines Solar energy portal is one that resonates across all corners of the energy transition: much of the work being done in the energy market has not been done before and therefore new, innovative and creative ways to overcome barriers will be crucial. Collaboration will be crucial for this.
“The committee always welcomes expert input into the standard-setting process. These can be innovative solutions to overcome existing problems, or to approach the problems from a completely different angle. If you find anything ineffective, illogical or counterproductive in the existing standards, please provide constructive suggestions to the committee,” Tan said.
“The committee’s work in creating standards may seem to happen in the background, but it has a profound impact on shaping every dimension of our daily experience in the industry.”
