Investigation of the photodegradation behaviors of an ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer solar cell encapsulant and effects of antioxidants on the photostability of the material

Journal article

Authors/Editors

JATUPHORN WOOTHIKANAKKHAN

Strategic Research Themes

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Publication Details

Author list: Ayutthaya S.I.N., Wootthikanokkhan J.

Publisher: Wiley

Publication year: 2008

Journal: Journal of Applied Polymer Science (0021-8995)

Volume number: 107

Issue number: 6

Start page: 3853

End page: 3863

Number of pages: 11

ISSN: 0021-8995

eISSN: 1097-4628

URL: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-40749153108&doi=10.1002%2fapp.27428&partnerID=40&md5=73c6a0ebc10c807c59496c5ad10dae75

Languages: English-Great Britain (EN-GB)

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Abstract

This study concerns the photodegradation and stabilization of a solar cell encapsulating material made from ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA). EVA was compounded with various additives in a twin-screw extruder. After that, the extruded film was cured in a hydraulic compression mold before being exposed to ultraviolet (UV) radiation at an ambient temperature for 800 h. The thermal stability of the material was also studied through the aging of the sample at 90ฐC for 2000 h. The tensile strength of the unstabilized EVA decreased only slightly after the thermal aging. On the other hand, the strength of the material decreased noticeably after the UV irradiation. Fourier transform infrared spectra of various EVA films revealed that there was no deacetylation occurring after the UV irradiation. However, results from the swelling test and swollen-state NMR suggested that the polymer degraded via a chain-scission mechanism. After compounding with some antioxidants, most of the EVA films scarcely degraded after the UV irradiation, with the exception of the EVA compounded with a combination of the aromatic phosphate compound (0.1 phr) and hindered amine light stabilizer (0.1 phr). The results are discussed in light of an antagonism effect that occurred because of the aforementioned combination. ฉ 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Keywords

Antioxidants, Stabilization, Swelling