Rondine (R) PV Concentrators: Field Results and Developments

In this work the experimental results of a new PV concentrator (named Rondine1) are presented. This concentrating module has a medium concentration level (25T) and employs silicon solar cells. The tests have been carried out in Italy and the energy production of a prototype module is compared with that produced from a tracking flat plate crystalline PV panel. The non-imaging optics of the concentrator allows for larger angular acceptance with respect to many solar concentrators, giving us the possibility to employ trackers for standard PV modules. The first results of complete systems of 39 and 48 kW of peak power installed in summer 2008 are presented here.