With its advantages of light weight, high strength, corrosion resistance and durability, aluminum is widely used in building solar panel frames and photovoltaic supports. Research shows that aluminum is the most widely used material in solar photovoltaic (PV) applications, accounting for more than 85% of most solar PV modules.
Application of aluminum in solar energy
The solar energy system is mainly composed of solar frame and solar panel, and aluminum has been widely used in both parts.
Extruded aluminum profiles are usually used for solar panel frames and photovoltaic supports, because aluminum extrusions have high strength, light weight and strong corrosion resistance. And due to the high formability of aluminum, aluminum profiles also have the additional advantage of easy design. In addition, aluminum is 100% recyclable, which is an important consideration for many renewable energy companies.
Aluminum alloy material also plays an important role in solar cells. Moreover, aluminum has gradually replaced silver, copper and stainless steel in the field of solar cells due to its cooling speed, conductivity and corrosion resistance of aluminum alloy materials.
Extruded aluminum profiles for solar frame
In order to maximize efficiency, solar panels need to be positioned very accurately. Even a small position shift of several degrees will reduce the power output potential by several percentage points. The innovation of aluminum extrusion technology improves the stability of solar panels. The components of solar system can achieve precise positioning and stability, thus improving productivity.
- The aluminum truss has high strength and stability to resist the movement caused by wind and other stresses.
- Aluminum extrusion frame is light in weight, convenient for transportation and reduces the pressure on the roof of the buildings below.
- The corrosion resistant of aluminum increases the advantage of weather resistance. The frame does not need a lot of maintenance or additional protective measures.
- The ductility of aluminum makes its design more flexible. And improve the installation accuracy, so that the solar energy can obtain the maximum energy output.
The application of aluminum profiles in the solar frame is mainly concentrated on the CSP installation system frame and PV support.
Extruded aluminum profile for the solar panel frame
The aluminum frame around the solar panel is close to the glass cover at the top and the back plate at the bottom for sealing and fixing the solar cell module. They provide structural stability for the overall combination of glass, EVA package, battery and backplane. Strengthen the strong support of components and increase the service life of battery.
Specification parameters of Chalco aluminum solar panel frame profile
| Chalco aluminum solar panel frame profile specification | |
| Alloy and temper |
6005 T5 6060/6063/6063A/6463/6R63/6082 T5, T6 6061 T4, T6 |
| Deep processing | Drilling, bending, welding, precision cutting, punching, etc. |
| Surface treatment | mill finish, powder coating, anodizing, wooden grain, electrophoresis, PVDF painting, sanding blasting, polishing, etc. |
| Anodic oxidation |
Base material surface type: smooth, frosted Layer code: AA10, AA15, AA20, AA25 |
| Electrophoretic coating |
Type of paint film: glossy or dull transparent paint film Paint film code: EA21, EB16 |
| Standard | GB 5237-2008, JISH, AAMA, GB, BS, En |
| Certificate | CE, DNV, TUV, ISO9001 |
Tensile strength of Chalco aluminum solar panel frame profile
| Alloy | Temper | Wall thickness | Tensile strength Rm（MPa） |
| 6005 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥260 |
| 6060 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥160 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥190 | |
| T66 | ≤3.00 | ≥215 | |
| 6061 | T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥265 |
| 6063 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥160 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥205 | |
| T66 | ≤3.00 | ≥245 | |
| 6963A | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥200 |
| T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥230 | |
| 6463 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥150 |
| T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥195 | |
| 6R63 | T5 | ≤3.00 | ≥170 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥220 |
Yield strength of Chalco aluminum solar panel frame profile
Alloy Temper Wall thickness Yield strength
| Alloy | Temper | Wall thickness | Yield strength RP0.2（MPa） |
| 6005 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥240 |
| 6060 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥120 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥150 | |
| T66 | ≤3.00 | ≥160 | |
| 6061 | T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥245 |
| 6063 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥110 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥180 | |
| T66 | ≤3.00 | ≥200 | |
| 6963A | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥160 |
| T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥190 | |
| 6463 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥110 |
| T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥160 | |
| 6R63 | T5 | ≤3.00 | ≥120 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥180 |
Elongation of Chalco aluminum solar panel frame profile
| Alloy | Temper | Wall thickness | elongation % |
| 6005 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥8 |
| 6060 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥6 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥6 | |
| T66 | ≤3.00 | ≥8 | |
| 6061 | T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥8 |
| 6063 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥8 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥8 | |
| T66 | ≤3.00 | ≥6 | |
| 6963A | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥5 |
| T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥5 | |
| 6463 | T5 | ≤5.00 | ≥6 |
| T6 | ≤5.00 | ≥8 | |
| 6R63 | T5 | ≤3.00 | ≥8 |
| T6 | ≤3.00 | ≥8 |
Advantages of Chalco solar cell frame
- Anodized aluminum alloy with transparent coating, high corrosion resistance and oxidation resistance.
- High tensile strength performance, improving snow load resistance, rain resistance, wind impact resistance and so on.
- The excellent mold reduces the machining allowance to 0.02mm while ensuring the accuracy to ensure smooth installation.
Size of Chalco aluminum solar panel frame profile
- 30mm×25mm for 30-120W solar module;
- 35mm×35mm for 80-180 W solar module;
- 50mm×35mm for 160-220W solar module;
- Other sizes can be customized.
Chalco PV support aluminum profile
Aluminum alloy has the advantages of moderate price, moderate strength, processability and formability, strong corrosion resistance and weather resistance, and strong recyclability. So, it is a good material to replace steel to manufacture solar panel support of photovoltaic power station, and it doesn't not need any maintenance during the 25-years operation period of the power station.
Chalco is a leading enterprise in the field of extruded aluminum profiles, which can produce a series of aluminum materials required for solar photovoltaic power generation equipment.
Chalco aluminum solar photovoltaic support alloy material
The commonly used aluminum alloy materials for solar photovoltaic support are 6061, 6063, and 6082, with the good plasticity, moderate strength, easy processing and forming, and the density is only 1/3 of that of steel, the price is relatively cheap.
Mechanical properties of Chalco aluminum solar PV support
| Alloy | Tensile strength /( N·mm－2 ) | Yield strength /( N·mm－2 ) |
| 6005-T6 | 255 | 215 |
| 6063-T6 | 205 | 180 |
| 6061-T6 | 265 | 245 |
| 6082-T6 | 310 | 260 |
Advantages of Chalco aluminum solar PV support
The aluminum alloy photovoltaic support is generally in the form of long rod, and the stress is tensile stress and compressive stress, which is easy to buckle and deform, so the design wall thickness is generally not less than 1.5 mm.
The aluminum alloy series commonly used for solar PV supports are heat-treatable and can be strengthened. The strength of aluminum alloy will be reduced during welding. Therefore, the connection of aluminum alloy PV supports adopts hinged structure and is connected with fasteners.
The aluminum alloy series commonly used for solar PV supports can reach the required strength only after aging heat treatment. Chalco strictly controls the solution treatment and aging heat treatment process.
The thickness of oxide film is generally not less than AA15. Generally, AA20 or AA25 oxide film is used in areas with humid coastal and severe air pollution conditions. AA15 oxide film is generally used in dry or lightly polluted areas.
Other applications of aluminum profiles in the field of solar frame
Aluminum has become a feasible solution in the energy field due to its properties of light weight, efficient installation capacity and low price. In addition to the application of the above frame and battery panel in the solar energy field, aluminum is also applied to the following solar systems:
- Wind turbine structure and components
- Module framework and components
- Concentrated solar collector
- Thermal management solution
- Inverter housing and components
Aluminum for solar cells
The cooling speed of aluminum is fast compared to the traditional materials, which has a significant advantage in solar PV system because the increase of PV cell temperature will reduce the power generation efficiency. And with is good conductivity, aluminum has gradually replaced the position of silver, copper and stainless steel in the solar panels.
Compared with traditional materials, aluminum cooling speed is fast, which has a significant advantage in solar PV, because the increase of PV cell temperature will reduce the power generation efficiency. And because of its good conductivity, aluminum has gradually replaced silver, copper and stainless steel in the position of solar panels.
- Silver is very expensive compared with aluminum. The new solar cell needs twice as much aluminum, but its cost is only 0.6% of that of silver.
- Aluminum has better conductivity than copper. This is why aluminum is selected as the main raw material of solar cells.
- Aluminum is more flexible, easier to process and cheaper than stainless steel, and has better corrosion resistance.
Why choose Chalco solar energy aluminum products
Chalco stock various aluminum extruded solar panel frames and photovoltaic support aluminum alloys, with a variety of finishes to choose from. If the existing products are not suitable for your needs, we can also customize them according to customer requirements.
All extrusion parts can be cut, drilled or machined according to customer specifications. As a professional aluminum profile supplier, Chalco operates the latest CNC drilling and processing center, which can provide accurate processing and cost-effective parts in a short cycle time.
Because the panel frame is exposed to the natural environment, it has high requirements for corrosion resistance. Chalco provides anodized aluminum profiles to further enhance the corrosion resistance of solar aluminum alloy frames.
After the production of aluminum profiles, we will provide strict product quality inspection and precise product film pasting, packaging and transportation. Ensure product quality at any link of production and delivery.