Codes and Standards
Solar America Board for Codes and Standards
Solar ABCs is a DOE-funded collaborative organization to advance solar PV codes and standards. Solar ABCs was founded in 2007 to produce studies and reports on issues critical to the solar industry, to facilitate dialogue among solar stakeholders, and to catalyze the development of codes and standards that foster the safe use of PV systems. The Solar ABCs website provides a centralized resource for regulations, technical resources, and best practices for education and raising industry and public awareness of ongoing progress in these areas.
A primary objective of DOE's technology validation efforts is developing testing, monitoring, and analysis protocols for validating the performance, reliability, and safety of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules and systems. These test protocols are shared with industry through codes and standards-making bodies.
Codes and standards work within the SunShot Systems Integration activities includes support and leadership on numerous codes- and standards-making panels and committees, coordination of code-making resources and expertise, and ensuring that code updates keep pace with technology.
Codes and standards activities are being performed by DOE national laboratories and the Solar America Board for Codes and Standards (Solar ABCs).
National Laboratory Activities
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), with funding from DOE, supports the development of standards for PV performance, measurements, qualification testing, and safety certification, as well as standards for PV materials, components, and systems through the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC).
Approach
The objective of this program is to turn the best technical work available in PV measurements and testing into international consensus standards, while continuing to facilitate the growth of PV in the United States.
This effort continues DOE support for the Secretariat, the U.S. Technical Advisor, and three U.S.-based working group convenors for IEC Technical Committee 82: Solar Photovoltaic Energy Systems, which is responsible for all IEC PV standards.
Significance
This project maintains U.S. participation and leadership in international PV standards, ensuring that U.S. concerns are taken into account in each and every PV standard published by IEC.
Additional information on codes and standards related to grid integration of solar energy is available in the Codes and Standards section of the High Penetration Solar Portal.