IEC 61215/61646
The IEC 61215 and IEC 61646 are the only applicable standard today for the certification of crystalline silicon and thin film flat plate photovoltaic modules.
The IEC 61646 standard - "Thin film torrential photovoltaic (PV) modules - design qualification and type approval"; was developed in 1996. A new edition is now in the work, and issues regarding the CIS modules have been of great concerns lately, because the IEC 61646 was developed mostly with amorphous silicon technology in mind.
Test Flow Diagram for IEC61646-ed1 certification
The IEC 61215 standard - "Design qualification and type approval for crystalline silicon terrestrial photovoltaic modules"; was initially developed in 1993. The second edition was published in April 2005. Though modules are still being qualified per the first edition as of December 2005, the full implementation of the second edition is around the corner . The major changes from the first edition apply to the Thermal Cycling test and Ultra-violet tests. The Twist test was removed and the Diode test added.
The Test Flow Diagram for IEC61215-ed2 certification is shown below. Click on any test level for its brief description.
