Quantitative Comparison of Infrared Thermography, Visual Inspection, and Electrical Analysis Techniques on Photovoltaic Modules: A Case Study

Abstract

This paper compares multiple techniques to detect suboptimal conditions in the PV system. Detection of suboptimal conditions in the PV system is required to achieve optimal photovoltaic (PV) systems. Therefore, maintenance managers need to choose the most suitable techniques objectively. However, there is a lack of objective information comparing the effectiveness of the methods. This article calculates and compares the effectiveness of Infrared thermography (IRT), visual inspection (VI), and electrical analysis (EA) in detecting soiling, partial shadows, and electrical faults experimentally. The results showed that the VI was the best at detecting soiling and partial shading with 100% of effectiveness. IRT and EA had an effectiveness of 78% and 73%, respectively, detecting the three types of conditions under study. It was not possible to achieve maximum detection using only one of the techniques, but that VI must be combined with IR or EA. This research represents a significant contribution by achieving an objective comparison between techniques for detecting suboptimal conditions, being very useful to guide PV system maintainers and designers of fault detection techniques.