Intersolar Europe: The premiere of ICOSOLAR® CPO 3G backsheet

ICOSOLAR® CPO 3G in black

ISOVOLTAIC AG, a global development and production leader in backsheets, a critical component of photovoltaic units, announces a premiere: the state-of-the-art ICOSOLAR® CPO 3G, a coextruded PP solar backsheet. The new product was on display at the Intersolar Europe trade fair in Munich, Germany.

The company partnered with Borealis, a top supplier of advanced polyolefin solutions for the worldwide power industry. By creating synergies based on each specialist's expertise, the partners ended up with innovative and ground-breaking products for the photovoltaic.

ICOSOLAR® CPO 3G, created for high-performance units

ICOSOLAR® CPO 3G backsheet is produced near Graz, Austria with the use of Borealis QuentysTM solar polypropylene grades supplied by Schwechat, also based in Austria. These PP materials form both the core and the outer layers of the backsheet. The final product boasts high performance increasing PV units' service life and overall operational reliability. The particular benefits of the new technology include:

• Higher unit output due to outstanding reflectivity
• Higher WVTR (water vapour transmission rate)
• Increased acetic acid permeability
• Excellent hydrolytic stability and insulation

As no adhesive layer is used, inner-layer delamination is totally improbable. Additionally, polypropylene coextrusion is a one-step technology resulting in maximised product quality and homogeneity, and simplified process. The innovative technology is thus more appealing than the traditional PET-based backsheet one and is easily seen as its future replacement.