Hello, maybe this is a stupid question. I'm looking at the specifications of a solar panel (https://cdn.autosolar.es/pdf/ficha-tecnica-1002329.pdf) and it seems that every manufacturer uses STC conditions to rate the solar panel, 550W in this case for 1000W/m2 and 25C degrees. My question is, in the case you have even higher conditions (ie 1200W/m2 at X degrees), could you have even more than 550W with this panel?

This question is in general for every solar panel, thanks

 

23 minutes ago, ed47 said:

Hello, maybe this is a stupid question. I'm looking at the specifications of a solar panel (https://cdn.autosolar.es/pdf/ficha-tecnica-1002329.pdf) and it seems that every manufacturer uses STC conditions to rate the solar panel, 550W in this case for 1000W/m2 and 25C degrees. My question is, in the case you have even higher conditions (ie 1200W/m2 at X degrees), could you have even more than 550W with this panel?

This question is in general for every solar panel, thanks

 

Yes, this is possible. A good example is during the "cloud edge effect," although this phenomenon is temporary. It's not a stupid question.

Hello. I stand to be corrected but generally the panels don't perform better at higher temperatures so it's likely to drop from the max watts as the temperature goes higher than 25' Celsius 

7 hours ago, ed47 said:

Hello, maybe this is a stupid question. I'm looking at the specifications of a solar panel (https://cdn.autosolar.es/pdf/ficha-tecnica-1002329.pdf) and it seems that every manufacturer uses STC conditions to rate the solar panel, 550W in this case for 1000W/m2 and 25C degrees. My question is, in the case you have even higher conditions (ie 1200W/m2 at X degrees), could you have even more than 550W with this panel?

This question is in general for every solar panel, thanks

 

Indeed, in South Africa we get far more radiation than STC, my weather station often reports over 1200W/m2. And it is related to temperature too, the lower the temperature of the panels, the higher voltage output they produce, and this is seen in the panels' "Temperature Coefficient of VoC" specification. The inverse is true for amperage. In reality though, the panel heats up when it produces electricity, so higher radiation does not always mean higher output.

This is why it is so important to size strings correctly, especially in places with cooler temperature conditions, or where there are cooling factors such as winds present, in order to prevent damage to the MPPT controller due to overvoltage.

4 hours ago, Yellow Measure said:

Indeed, in South Africa we get far more radiation than STC, my weather station often reports over 1200W/m2. And it is related to temperature too, the lower the temperature of the panels, the higher voltage output they produce, and this is seen in the panels' "Temperature Coefficient of VoC" specification. The inverse is true for amperage. In reality though, the panel heats up when it produces electricity, so higher radiation does not always mean higher output.

This is why it is so important to size strings correctly, especially in places with cooler temperature conditions, or where there are cooling factors such as winds present, in order to prevent damage to the MPPT controller due to overvoltage.

Although we know to take Voc to get the possible maximum voltage to the MPPT panels are normally not at Voc as they are connected to the MPPT which brings the voltage down about 7% under load. Also the excess voltage due to over 1000W/m² is of short duration and does not provide a higher voltage but mostly higher current which can be clipped by the MPPT within a range during these short periods like during the 1min of cloud edge.