Hail Impact Test: hail and solar panels

The hail impact test is a mechanical test that verifies that a solar panel is capable of withstanding the impact of hailstones at a temperature of ~ 4°C.

About the hail impact test

The hail impact test is an important solar panel quality and safety test as in many parts of the world, hail can cause major damage to solar panels. Therefore it's important to purchase solar panels that have been tested on the impact of hail and have successfully passed the hail impact test for solar panels. The hail impact test is in general a qualification test that is applied when certifying new solar panel types and products, during internal quality testing or research. Quality control during solar panel mass production hardly involve hail impact test.

hail impact testHail impact test. Source: PSE AG

Hail test procedure

Typically test labs use a pneumatic ice ball launcher, which is capable of launching ice balls at specified speeds and various weights. The PV module will be hit with ice balls at over 10 specified spots. After the test, there should be no visible damage at the front of the solar panels caused by the hailstones. Possible effects and problems that can be identified after the hail impact test are:

  1. Broken cells
  2. Broken glass
  3. Micro cracks
  4. Dysfunctional cells
  5. (Slight) structural deformation/ mechanical data nonconformity
Arun Joglekar
By

Arun Joglekar

on 10 Nov 2017

Who supplies this hail impact tester?

chris crocker
By

chris crocker

on 20 Jun 2016

Hello, I have a question about cell damage from hail. Could you please contact me

BRamani
By

BRamani

on 05 Dec 2023

Do you sell hail test machine in India?

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