Chemical Bonding Technology: Direct Investigation of Interfacial Bonds.

摘要

This is the third Flat-Plate Solar Array (FSA) Project document reporting on chemical bonding technology for terrestrial photovoltaic (PV) modules. The impetus for this work originated in the late 1970s when PV modules employing silicone encapsulation materials were undergoing delamination during outdoor exposure. At that time, manufacturers were not employing adhesion promoters and, hence, module interfaces in common with the silicone materials were only in physical contact and therefore easily prone to separation if, for example, water were to penetrate to the interfaces. Delamination with silicone materials virtually vanished when adhesion promoters, recommended by silicone manufacturers, were used. With the decrease in use of silicone encapsulates, and the increase in use of hydrocarbon encapsulates such as ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), the need developed for adhesion promoters specifically developed for these new materials. The adhesion promoters being developed for EVA-type materials are based on organosilanes, which generate primary chemical bonds at the interface, that is, chemical bonding. These adhesion promoters are commonly referred to as ''primers''. This report describes the activities related to the direct investigation of chemically bonded interfaces. (ERA citation 12:015604)