Classifications

• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08K—Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients
  • C08K5/00—Use of organic ingredients
  • C08K5/04—Oxygen-containing compounds
  • C08K5/14—Peroxides
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08K—Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients
  • C08K5/00—Use of organic ingredients
  • C08K5/04—Oxygen-containing compounds
  • C08K5/10—Esters; Ether-esters
  • C08K5/109—Esters; Ether-esters of carbonic acid, e.g. R-O-C(=O)-O-R
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08L—COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
  • C08L23/00—Compositions of homopolymers or copolymers of unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons having only one carbon-to-carbon double bond; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
  • C08L23/02—Compositions of homopolymers or copolymers of unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons having only one carbon-to-carbon double bond; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers not modified by chemical after-treatment
  • C08L23/04—Homopolymers or copolymers of ethene
  • C08L23/06—Polyethene
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08L—COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
  • C08L23/00—Compositions of homopolymers or copolymers of unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons having only one carbon-to-carbon double bond; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
  • C08L23/02—Compositions of homopolymers or copolymers of unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons having only one carbon-to-carbon double bond; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers not modified by chemical after-treatment
  • C08L23/04—Homopolymers or copolymers of ethene
  • C08L23/08—Copolymers of ethene
  • C08L23/0846—Copolymers of ethene with unsaturated hydrocarbons containing atoms other than carbon or hydrogen
  • C08L23/0853—Ethene vinyl acetate copolymers
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H10—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • H10F—INORGANIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES SENSITIVE TO INFRARED RADIATION, LIGHT, ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION OF SHORTER WAVELENGTH OR CORPUSCULAR RADIATION
  • H10F19/00—Integrated devices, or assemblies of multiple devices, comprising at least one photovoltaic cell covered by group H10F10/00, e.g. photovoltaic modules
  • H10F19/80—Encapsulations or containers for integrated devices, or assemblies of multiple devices, having photovoltaic cells
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H10—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • H10F—INORGANIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES SENSITIVE TO INFRARED RADIATION, LIGHT, ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION OF SHORTER WAVELENGTH OR CORPUSCULAR RADIATION
  • H10F19/00—Integrated devices, or assemblies of multiple devices, comprising at least one photovoltaic cell covered by group H10F10/00, e.g. photovoltaic modules
  • H10F19/80—Encapsulations or containers for integrated devices, or assemblies of multiple devices, having photovoltaic cells
  • H10F19/804—Materials of encapsulations
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08K—Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients
  • C08K2201/00—Specific properties of additives
  • C08K2201/014—Additives containing two or more different additives of the same subgroup in C08K
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08K—Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients
  • C08K5/00—Use of organic ingredients
  • C08K5/04—Oxygen-containing compounds
  • C08K5/10—Esters; Ether-esters
  • C08K5/11—Esters; Ether-esters of acyclic polycarboxylic acids
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08K—Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients
  • C08K5/00—Use of organic ingredients
  • C08K5/04—Oxygen-containing compounds
  • C08K5/10—Esters; Ether-esters
  • C08K5/12—Esters; Ether-esters of cyclic polycarboxylic acids
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08K—Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients
  • C08K5/00—Use of organic ingredients
  • C08K5/16—Nitrogen-containing compounds
  • C08K5/34—Heterocyclic compounds having nitrogen in the ring
  • C08K5/3412—Heterocyclic compounds having nitrogen in the ring having one nitrogen atom in the ring
  • C08K5/3415—Five-membered rings
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08K—Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients
  • C08K5/00—Use of organic ingredients
  • C08K5/16—Nitrogen-containing compounds
  • C08K5/34—Heterocyclic compounds having nitrogen in the ring
  • C08K5/3467—Heterocyclic compounds having nitrogen in the ring having more than two nitrogen atoms in the ring
  • C08K5/3477—Six-membered rings
  • C08K5/3492—Triazines
  • C08K5/34924—Triazines containing cyanurate groups; Tautomers thereof
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08L—COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
  • C08L2201/00—Properties
  • C08L2201/02—Flame or fire retardant/resistant
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08L—COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
  • C08L2203/00—Applications
  • C08L2203/20—Applications use in electrical or conductive gadgets
  • C08L2203/204—Applications use in electrical or conductive gadgets use in solar cells
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08L—COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
  • C08L2203/00—Applications
  • C08L2203/20—Applications use in electrical or conductive gadgets
  • C08L2203/206—Applications use in electrical or conductive gadgets use in coating or encapsulating of electronic parts
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
  • C08L—COMPOSITIONS OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS
  • C08L2207/00—Properties characterising the ingredient of the composition
  • C08L2207/04—Thermoplastic elastomer
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
  • Y02E10/00—Energy generation through renewable energy sources
  • Y02E10/50—Photovoltaic [PV] energy

Definitions

• the present invention pertains to a curable composition comprising an ethylene polymer, such as an ethylene / vinyl acetate copolymer. It is also directed to a method for preventing scorching of a curable composition comprising such an ethylene polymer.
• EVA Ethylene / vinyl acetate
• PV photovoltaic
• EVA copolymers it is common practice to crosslink these EVA copolymers in order to improve their thermal stability, especially their creep strength, their adhesion to the substrates and their weathering degradation resistance.
• various crosslinking agents have been used to date in the EVA formulation, which are typically peroxides such as dicumyl peroxide (DCP), peroxyesters, peroxyketals, peroxycarbonates and mixtures thereof.
• DCP dicumyl peroxide
• TBEC 2-ethylhexyl-monoperoxycarbonate
• the EVA composition is first deposited onto the frontsheet, then covered by the solar cells and deposited again thereon, before applying the backsheet, so as to obtain a PV module which is then heated at a certain high temperature for some time and pressed into place, whereby the EVA composition is cured.
• the EVA composition was susceptible to premature crosslinking in the barrel or die head of the extruder in which it is processed, prior to the formation of the above laminate. This phenomenon, which is called “scorching", results in irregularities in the EVA sheet thus formed, which in turn impairs the appearance and properties of the PV module. In some cases, pressure may also build up in the extruder, which requires discontinuing the extrusion process.
• JP2011-140588 Another solution has been provided in JP2011-140588, which is said to be appropriate for the manufacture of PV modules. It consists in adding from 4 to 50 parts by weight of a hydroperoxide, such as t-butyl hydroperoxide, to 100 parts by weight of an organic peroxide selected from a monoperoxycarbonate, a dialkyl peroxide, a peroxyketal and a peroxyester.
• a hydroperoxide such as t-butyl hydroperoxide
• an organic peroxide selected from a monoperoxycarbonate, a dialkyl peroxide, a peroxyketal and a peroxyester.
• the inventor has found that the crosslinking density of EVA or POE can be improved by a specific weight ratio of hydroperoxide to monoperoxycarbonate, i.e. from 0.4 to less than 4%. Moreover, he found a marked increase in the scorch preventing effect of the hydroperoxide at these low weight ratios, contrary to what was expected in JP2011-140588, without impairing the rate of the crosslinking reaction, even with low amount of the crosslinking agent. Furthermore, it was observed that the film homogeneity was satisfactory with substantially no bubbles.
• bubbles formed by the evaporation of water entrapped within the film at extrusion temperatures above 100°C are responsible for surface defects which negatively affect the resistivity of the film. This is particularly damaging in the case where the film is to be used as an encapsulating material in PV modules.
• compositions comprising an ethylene polymer such as EVA and the above peroxides may thus be processed in extruding devices at fast throughput rates without experiencing scorching.
• monoperoxycarbonates are also useful for crosslinking other ethylene polymers such as polyolefm elastomers, e.g. polydiene elastomers, including ethylene-propylene-diene (EPDM) elastomers and also polyethylene, including low density and high-density polyethylene, which are used, inter alia, in the manufacture of wire and cable insulation, pipes and hoses (including pipes for automobile radiators, drinkable water and under-floor heating, for instance), roller coverings, rotational moldings and foamed articles.
• the composition of this invention is thus also useful in these applications, e.g. to prevent scorching while extruding the composition as an insulation sheath onto an electrical conductor. More specifically, this invention is directed to a curable composition comprising:
• the ethylene polymer used as constituent (a) in this invention may be an ethylene homopolymer or preferably an ethylene copolymer.
• ethylene copolymers are those made from both ethylene monomers and at least one other monomer selected from hydrocarbons having at least one unsaturation such as methylene, propylene, butene, pentene, hexene, heptene, octene, butadiene, isoprene and styrene; acryl monomers such as acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, alkyl methacrylate and alkyl acrylate, wherein the alkyl group may be selected from methyl, ethyl, propyl or butyl, for instance; and vinyl monomers such as vinyl acetate.
• Polyolefm is a polymer derived from olefin, e.g., ethylene, propylene, butene, hexene, octene, etc. "Derived from” means, in the context of this definition, that the units in the polymer backbone and/or polymer branches are a result of the polymerization or copolymerization of the monomers from which the polymer is made.
• said polyolefm is a polyolefm elastomer.
• elastomer it is meant a polymer being able to be subjected to a uniaxial deformation at ambient temperature, preferably of at least 20% for 15 minutes, and of recovering, once this stress has been removed, its initial dimension, preferably with a remanent deformation of less than 5% of its initial dimension.
• substantially linear ethylene copolymers are especially preferred, and are more fully described in the American patents US 5,272,236, US 5,278,272 and US 5,986,028.
• Specific examples of homogeneously branched, linear ethylene/alpha-olefm copolymers one can cites TAFMER® from Mitsui Petrochemicals Company Limited, EXACT® from Exxon Chemical Company, AFFINITY® and ENGAGE® from The Dow Chemical Company.
• the polyolefm elastomers of this invention also include propylene, 1-butene and other alkene-based copolymers, e.g., copolymers comprising a majority of units derived from propylene and a minority of units derived from another alpha-olefm (including ethylene).
• alpha-olefm including ethylene
• Exemplary polypropylenes useful in the practice of this invention include the VERSIFY® polymers available from The Dow Chemical Company, and the VISTAMAXX® polymers available from ExxonMobil Chemical Company.
• the polyolefm elastomers of the invention have a glass transition temperature (Tg) of less than -35°C, preferably less than -40°C, more preferably less than -45°C and even more preferably less than -50°C as measured by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) using the procedure of ASTM D-3418-03.
• Tg glass transition temperature
• the polyolefm elastomers of the invention have a melt index (MI as measured by the procedure of ASTM D-1238 (190°C/2.16kg) of less than 100 g/10 minutes, preferably less than 75 g/10 minutes, more preferably less than 50 g/10 minutes and even more preferably less than 35 g/10 minutes.
• MI melt index
• the polyolefm elastomers of the invention have a density of less than 0.90 g/cc, preferably less than 0.89 g/cc, more preferably less than 0.885 g/cc, even more preferably less than 0.88 g/cc and even more preferably less than 0.875 g/cc.
• said ratio is around 50:50.
• the amount of constituent (b) in the composition of the invention may range from 0.1 to less than 2 parts by weight, preferably from 0.2 to 1.5, more preferably from 0.3 to 1, more preferably from 0.4 to 1, more preferably from 0.4 to 0.7 and even more preferably around 0.5 parts by weight, for 100 parts by weight of constituent (a).
• Said coagent may be represent from 0.05 % to 30 %, preferably from 0.1% to 10% by weight relative to the total weight of the composition.
• the main purpose of using a coagent in the composition of the present invention is to increase the level of crosslinking.
• This coagent also makes it possible to reduce residual gas emission during the decomposition of these same peroxides, and ultimately reduce the number of bubbles in the encapsulating film.
• the ratio by mass of organic peroxide and crosslinking coagent is within the range from 1 : 10 to 10: 1, most preferably from 1 : 3 to 3 : 1.
• the composition of this invention may further include additives such as coupling agents, UV stabilizers, UV absorbers, fillers, plasticizers, flame retardants, antioxidants, dyes and their mixtures.
• coupling agents are monoalkyl titanates, (vinyl)trichlorosilanes and (vinyl)trialkoxysilanes. They may represent from 0.01 to 5 wt. % relative to the weight of ethylene polymer.
• This invention is further directed to a method for preventing scorching of a curable composition comprising (a) at least one ethylene polymer, and (b) at least one monoperoxycarbonate, comprising the step of adding at least one t-alkyl hydroperoxide into the composition, in an amount of from 0.4 to less than 4 parts by weight for 100 parts by weight of constituent (b), preferably from 0.5 to 3.5, preferably from 0.5 to 3, more preferably from 0.5 to 2 and even more preferably approximately 1 part by weight of at least one t-alkyl hydroperoxide for 100 parts by weight of constituent (b).
• said curing step a) consists in a lamination step.
• step a) is carried out at a temperature from 130 to 180°C, more preferably from 140 to 165°C.
• the step a') may be performed in such a way as to obtain a sheet having a thickness of from 50 to 2000 ⁇ , preferably from 100 to 1000 ⁇ , for instance.
• the present invention pertains to a method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module, said method comprising the step of pressing a laminate comprising successively:

Landscapes

• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
• Medicinal Chemistry (AREA)
• Polymers & Plastics (AREA)
• Organic Chemistry (AREA)
• Compositions Of Macromolecular Compounds (AREA)
• Addition Polymer Or Copolymer, Post-Treatments, Or Chemical Modifications (AREA)
• Photovoltaic Devices (AREA)

Priority Applications (11)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=57348917

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (9)

Cited By (3)

Families Citing this family (3)

Citations (9)

Family Cites Families (8)

• 2016
  • 2016-09-08 FR FR1658362A patent/FR3055629B1/fr not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 2017
  • 2017-09-08 MY MYPI2019001133A patent/MY191497A/en unknown
  • 2017-09-08 US US16/330,804 patent/US10597521B2/en active Active
  • 2017-09-08 KR KR1020197006735A patent/KR102453721B1/ko active Active
  • 2017-09-08 ES ES17761547T patent/ES2744082T3/es active Active
  • 2017-09-08 WO PCT/EP2017/072659 patent/WO2018046700A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 2017-09-08 CN CN202310301728.7A patent/CN116333408A/zh active Pending
  • 2017-09-08 EP EP19188377.6A patent/EP3587483A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 2017-09-08 JP JP2019513374A patent/JP7570810B2/ja active Active
  • 2017-09-08 EP EP17761547.3A patent/EP3448925B1/en active Active
  • 2017-09-08 CN CN201780054981.XA patent/CN109642064B/zh active Active
• 2022
  • 2022-11-14 JP JP2022181629A patent/JP2023039949A/ja not_active Withdrawn
• 2024
  • 2024-07-18 JP JP2024114754A patent/JP2024167181A/ja not_active Withdrawn

Patent Citations (9)

Non-Patent Citations (2)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events