EN 
PT_BR 
O first photovoltaic system integrated into a building and connected to the public electricity grid from Brazil completed 25 years of uninterrupted operation at the UFSC Photovoltaic Solar Energy Laboratory (Federal University of Santa Catarina).
The system is installed since September 1997 on top of the Mechanical Engineering Department building, in the CTC (Technological Center) of the Florianópolis campus – the original headquarters of the laboratory, which built and monitors this and other photovoltaic systems in the country.
The photovoltaic generator, composed in the form of subsystems through the use of 68 modules (54 opaque and 14 semi-transparent) and four inverters, has a installed power of 2 kWp.
The technology was fixed in a total area of 40 m² It is it operated in this way from September 1997 until the end of 2008, when the four inverters were replaced by just one 2.5 kW.
According to UFSC, after two decades of operation, it was necessary to disconnect some of the modules, which reduced the generation capacity to 1.28 kWp.
However, the problems that caused the reduction in the number of modules are associated with components and not the technology itself.
“The longevity of the first photovoltaic generator connected to the grid and still in operation represents a consistent contribution to the knowledge of the long-term performance of solar generation, which is clean and low-cost”, assesses the university.
3 Responses
25 years installed and generating! A great achievement for the photovoltaic solar energy sector in Brazil.
Congratulations to the staff at the Photovoltaic Solar Energy Laboratory at UFSC (Federal University of Santa Catarina) for reaching this great milestone.
Excellent Article.
I have been working in this Photovoltaic sector for a few years, I knew that there were older systems installed in Brazil, but not exactly where. I believe there are others even experimental with longer time!!!. From what I heard, but never with data to prove it. 99.99% of installed Photovoltaic Systems are very new, a growing market and we are very concerned about the brief future of these being installed by professionals without any TRAINING!.
Congratulations on the report. I am an Occupational Safety Engineer and an Electrical Engineer as well, and I currently provide training in this area. This information was very important to me. Thanks.