Solar cell grading (A, B, C, D)

With solar cells accounting for 60%+ of the solar panel manufacturing costs, solar cells are the number one component used to cut overall costs of a solar panel.

No need to say, it’s important to ensure that a pv manufacturer isn’t cutting costs on this precious part of your pv module.

From our experience, in the current market situation it’s extremely difficult to source grade B solar cells.

Those cells are often used by quality pv manufacturers to run tests OR by louzy pv manufacturers to cut costs of the pv module.

The worrying question here is: where do all these grade B cells go?

How are grade (A, B, C, D) cells classified?

There’s a lot of confusion between different grade solar cells. Any deviation is often graded as B, however a correct classification is complicated because there are dozens of different solar cell defects that can occur.

This post is a first attempt to design a classification (A, B, C, D)  of solar cells, and is a summary of a more in-depth report.

1. Grade A solar cells

Grade A cells are simply without any visible defects, and the electrical data are in spec.

The specifications of the cells can be measured with cell testing equipment.

The perfect grade A cell may still have a slight bend of tiny color deviation is permitted.

Below a grade A solar cell. Due to the light the color seems to deviate, but in fact, this is a flawless solar cell:

Grade A - solar cell

Grade A – solar cell

2. Grade B solar cells

Grade B cells have visible but tiny defects, and the electrical data are in spec.
The following visible defects are common:

  1. Slight bend of 2.0mm – 2.5mm
  2. Color deviation, Visible yellow area takes more than 1/4 area of total on the Surface
  3. Missing prints
  4. Part of front Busbar missing, missing area ≤ W:0.5mm×L: 5mm
  5. Paste leakage, for a single area: 0.3mm – ≤2.0mm2
  6. Scratch, length 15-50mm
  7. Water marks, L

Here a couple of examples of Grade B solar cells:

Grade B solar cell – Color Deviation

Grade B solar cell – Paste Leakage

Grade B solar cell – Large Bend

3. Grade C solar cells

A Grade C solar cell has visible defects, and the electrical data are off-spec.
All solar cells with defects worse than Grade B can be classified as Grade C.

Or

A solar cell can be graded as C when the partly broken cell which could be cut into smaller pieces and re-used.

Here are a number of Grade C solar cell examples:

Grade C solar cell – chipped cell

Grade C solar cell – corner breakage

Grade C solar cell – Busbar Missing

Grade C solar cell – Missing Print

Grade C solar cell – Water mark

4. Grade D solar cells

A Grade D solar cell is broken and can not be cut in smaller cells. There’s not much you can do with these..

Grade D solar cell

About the author
Dricus is Managing Director at Sinovoltaics Group.Sinovoltaics Group assists PV developers, EPCs, utilities, financiers and insurance companies worldwide with the execution of ZERO RISK SOLAR projects - implemented by our multinational team of solar PV-specialized quality engineers and auditors on-site in Asia.Dricus is based in Hong Kong and has been working in the PV industry in China for 10+ years. Connect with Dricus on LinkedIn
Reinier
By

Reinier

on 08 Oct 2013

Thank you for the post on solar cells grading. There's a lot of confusion about this topic, as for instance Grade B solar panels can mean a lot of different things..When I purchase solar panels that look perfect but are somehow off-spec in terms of performance, how can I find out?

Dricus
By

Dricus

on 10 Oct 2013

Hi Reinier,The first thing that you can is request the flash test from the manufacturer where you bought your solar panels. The flash test results.More info here about the flash test: https://sinovoltaics.com/topics/solar-panel-flash-test/If you're based in Europe and you don't fully trust your manufacturer, you can first request the flash test, and then send a random solar panel from this batch to a third part testing lab.There are a dozen of companies that can perform such a test, some large ones are TUV Rheinland, TUV Sud, VDE, SGS and Intertek.If you're buying solar panels in China, it's cheapest and efficient to perform this flash test in China.. Quality testing in China is relatively cheap and in case they're cheating you on the specs, you can always go back to the factory and solve it before your goods are shipped out.A good third part inspection company in China is http://www.kisunsolar.com

Neeraj Thakur
By

Neeraj Thakur

on 27 Sep 2016

Dear Dicrus, Your comments are valuable for me, thanks for sharing.

Abhishek Jain
By

Abhishek Jain

on 12 Oct 2016

We are buyer of Solar cells broken wafers

Hicham L.
By

Hicham L.

on 23 Jan 2014

Does anyone sell broken solar cells? We have a small pv manufacturing line in Northern Africa and can re-use cells for smaller panels.If you have these cells available, please let me know. Also Grade B or C as described in the article above is suitable. Grade D solar cells seem to be too small..

salman akram
By

salman akram

on 08 May 2017

contact with me

Dricus
By

Dricus

on 23 Jan 2014

Hi Hicham,Every cell and pv module manufacturer has a certain percentage of solar cell breakage. Why don't you contact those manufacturers directly? This will likely give you the best price..

Irvin M.
By

Irvin M.

on 15 Jun 2015

I'm worried that the panel manufacturer I'm buying from is using grade B solar cells while I'm paying for a Grade A product. Sometimes I spot small imperfections on the solar cells, even though it's hard to say if the panels classify as Grade A, B or C. This post helps even though i'm still worried :(

John Theo
By

John Theo

on 25 Jun 2015

Hi Irvin, I'm noticing the same: small imperfections on the solar cells of my panels. The power seems to be fine, but the cell color sometimes differs from one cell to the other, and there are some silver spots here and there. Would that mean it's Grade B? Grade C should be quite obvious and would also mean the power of your panel is below the rating.. J.T.

Peter
By

Peter

on 10 Aug 2015

What would be the typical price difference between a Grade A and a Grade B solar cell?

Dricus
By

Dricus

on 13 Aug 2015

The price difference between Grade A and Grade B solar cells can easily be USD 0.05 - 0.10/W.. That's why it's so appealing for PV manufacturers to squeeze in Grade B cells..in a price competitive market, it's often the only profit they take.

Niclas
By

Niclas

on 21 Aug 2015

Hi Peter, it can be as big as 0.05-0.15USD/W, typically at least 0.1USD/W. However, Grade B solar cells are a bit more difficult to come by as many manufacturers want them ;)

Sachin Tiwari
By

Sachin Tiwari

on 21 Sep 2015

We purchased 280 Wp Solar Panels 3 years back for Grid Tie system with Voc of 40 around, now the Voc is coming out to be 25-28 Volts. what could be the reason, Initially the cells were of same color and without any visible defects, now the color is faded to Orangish tone. What to Do, any advice

Dricus
By

Dricus

on 22 Sep 2015

Thanks for sharing the prob you have with your system. May I ask the brand of the module? And can you perhaps send over a photo? We'll have a look at it.

Raoul Hendrikx
By

Raoul Hendrikx

on 06 Jul 2018

Defect bypass diode.....

Amara
By

Amara

on 19 May 2016

Dear guys i have question about poly panel simply can be recognizance by looking but mono crystalline how can be find out

Niclas
By

Niclas

on 20 May 2016

Usually, the wafers of mono c-Si cells are cut from a rather roundish silicon ingot and thus up having a rather octagonal shape, while poly/ multi c-Si cells are cut in square.

Amara
By

Amara

on 20 May 2016

Dear guys i have question about poly crystalline cells simply can be recognizance B grade by looking but mono crystalline B grade almost cell is black, how can be find out whether B grademy other question i have seen poly crystalline some panel panels cells lot of color diffracts each other cells it means that can be conclude grade B cellsalso some poly panel cells are dark blue some panel cells light blue, why that color difference , by color cab be conclude cell grade ? some of the cell inside slightly can see design like this pic (https://www.google.lk/search?q=solar+cells&rlz=1C1CHWA_enLK648LK648&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=667&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj9y7e5x-fMAhXEg6YKHYf2BPAQ_AUIBigB#imgrc=J9o9atXfEmXcCM%3A ) if possibly explain me

Niclas
By

Niclas

on 23 May 2016

Dear Amara,recognizing the grading of a cell just by looking at it is not 100% sufficient: you can draw more certain conclusions by testing it, peering into that cell (EL). Note that the sample defects shown in this article at the example of poly cells can also be found with mono cells.The color differences you refer to stem from differences in coating thickness when adding anti-reflective coating during PECVD (see here: https://sinovoltaics.com/solar-basics/solar-cell-production-from-silicon-wafer-to-cell/), the color itself however does not tell a lot about a cell's grade.

Amara
By

Amara

on 20 May 2016

Dear guys how can trust solar panel behind specifications ? is there any legal aground ? there mention about efficiency percentage and current, voltage by those specification proximate can be check but but when panel working time those things can be change ?

Niclas
By

Niclas

on 23 May 2016

Amara,as with virtually any (electronic) product, there is the shiny marketing curtain. And sometimes (or even more often), there is the no-shiny reality behind that curtain...The datasheet values are usually indicative and geared to test conditions (STC, NOCT etc.) that you will normally not find in the real world. In the end, it comes down to how much you trust a manufacturer and its quality. There is however no perfect production output, and even products from premium manufacturers can have some (or even more) flaws, so if there are concerns, quality testing is generally the way to go.

Abhishek Jain
By

Abhishek Jain

on 12 Oct 2016

We are buyer of Solar cells broken wafers Scrap

Solarzelle-kaufen
By

Solarzelle-kaufen

on 28 Apr 2017

A very nice explanation, I like very well with the pictures

Prakash
By

Prakash

on 17 Feb 2018

Very useful information about the grading of the solar cells. I am looking for highly efficient single solar cell fabricated from monocrystalline silicon for making a sensor. Could you please let me know which solar cell is suitable for me? Also, could you kindly let me know where I can purchase such a solar cell? Your advice will be highly appreciated.

Dr Sudhir Kumar
By

Dr Sudhir Kumar

on 19 Mar 2018

Dear Dricus, Your 2013 article is still relevant. Thanks. I am still confused and request your reply. 1. Is there any standard for such grade classification? 2. The parameters for grading explained by you are your personal views/observations or are based on some code defined by any internationally recognised institution? 3. While demanding A grade solar cells what certificate I should ask from manufacturer? (Please note that IEC certifications do not certify A,B,C,D grades) Please enlighten me. I will be grateful.

Dricus
By

Dricus

on 07 Aug 2018

Dear Sudhir,1. No there's currently no standard for cell grade classification 2. These are based on our experience in the pv factories 3. The best way is to inspect the raw materials (solar cells) at the factory prior to manufacturing. The packaging and purchase invoices will indicate which Grade is being used.Hope that's helpful!

Ouiam
By

Ouiam

on 07 Aug 2018

Dear Dricus, Your articles on PV modules helped me a lot Can you please give me some informations about PV modules grading? And what is the relationship between grading a solar cell and grading a solar panel ? Thank you in advance

Ahsan aziz
By

Ahsan aziz

on 25 Apr 2019

Hi Sir...I am bit confused about A Garde and B grade solar panel...what is the main difference???

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