Thin-film module TF Multi Professional now also available for roofs

Elevated thin-film cells for roofs with trapezoidal covering: In response to huge demand, Centrosolar AG has developed a new installation option for the thin-film solar module TF Multi Professional. This means the large-surface module can be installed on roofs covered with trapezoidal sheet metal. Up to now, installation has been possible only on plastic foil roofs.

“Our customers have increasingly been asking for installation options on trapezoidal roofs,” explains Dr Josef Wrobel, Sales and Marketing director of Centrosolar AG. “Given the module’s size and low weight of only six kilogrammes per square metre, it is ideal for large industrial rooftops, which are often covered with trapezoidal sheet metal. We have developed a suitable photovoltaic system for these kinds of rooftops.”

Installation is incredibly simple. TF Multi Professional can be mounted on trapezoidal roofs in two ways: parallel or perpendicular to the direction of the recesses in the trapezoidal sheet metal, which are known as beads. Installing the module parallel to the direction of the beads requires a substructure. For this purpose, Centrosolar uses top-hat rails. They are screwed onto the elevations (or ‘raised beads’) in the trapezoidal sheet metal at a right angle. If the modules are to be installed perpendicular to the beads, no such substructure is necessary. The modules can then be screwed directly onto the raised beads. The modules are fastened by means of drilling screws and a special sealing tape (butyl tape). Centrosolar supplies all components necessary to install the system.

As a specialist in photovoltaic systems, Centrosolar developed TF Multi Professional in spring 2010. The system for generating clean electricity is not only used in Germany but all over Europe. The module consists of thin-film cells made by the American manufacturer United Solar Ovonic. The cells are installed on aluminium sheeting at an eleven-degree angle. Each unit consists of five elements. The nominal output per element is 144 Watt peak. As a result of the triple junction technology used, TF Multi Professional can produce very good yields even with unfavourable roof alignments – for example, facing east or west – or during cloudy weather with diffuse sun rays. The new trapezoidal roof version of the solar module, which measures over five metres in length, is available now.