Patterned glass fiber prepreg as well as preparation method and application thereof

Abstract

The invention provides a patterned glass fiber prepreg as well as a preparation method and application thereof, and the preparation method comprises the following steps: carrying out silk-screen printing and curing on at least one surface of the glass fiber prepreg to obtain the patterned glass fiber prepreg, the curing method comprises gradient heating curing. According to the preparation method, various patterned glass fiber prepregs can be prepared, the preparation efficiency is high, silk-screen printing is smooth, ink is not prone to falling off, the thickness is uniform, and the interface bonding force is high; the obtained patterned glass fiber prepreg is applied to a photovoltaic module, and can meet the requirements of specific application scenes on the photovoltaic module.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of photovoltaic materials technology, specifically relating to a patterned glass fiber prepreg, its preparation method, and its application. Background Technology

[0002] With societal progress and technological advancements, the application fields of photovoltaic (PV) modules are becoming increasingly broad, including ground-mounted power stations, building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), off-grid communication base stations, and flexible wearable devices. A PV module comprises solar cells, encapsulation materials, and electrical connection and protection components (including busbars). The busbar, a metal strip connecting the solar cells within the PV module, serves to collect current, conduct energy, and provide structural support. However, for some specialized applications, such as BIPV and flexible PV, the busbars need to be shaded due to aesthetic or other performance requirements. Existing ordinary PV modules allow the busbars to be directly visible through the glass, making them unsuitable for specific application scenarios and limiting their application.

[0003] Currently, existing technologies typically involve adding colored or black-and-white plastic material to the front or back of the busbar for shielding. However, this method increases costs, makes the laminated structure more complex, and the shielding material is prone to wrinkles and shifts during the lamination process, affecting the aesthetics and power generation efficiency of the module, and also results in low production efficiency.

[0004] Therefore, developing a method for preparing fiberglass prepreg that is highly efficient, meets the requirements of photovoltaic modules for specific application scenarios, and improves the aesthetics and power generation of photovoltaic modules is an urgent problem to be solved in this field. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, the present invention aims to provide a patterned glass fiber prepreg, its preparation method, and its application. The preparation method can produce various patterned glass fiber prepregs with high efficiency, smooth screen printing, minimal ink detachment, uniform thickness, and high interfacial adhesion. Applying the obtained patterned glass fiber prepreg to photovoltaic modules can meet the requirements of specific application scenarios.

[0006] To achieve this objective, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0007] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a method for preparing a patterned glass fiber prepreg, the method comprising the following steps: screen printing on at least one surface of the glass fiber prepreg, followed by curing to obtain the patterned glass fiber prepreg; the curing method comprising gradient temperature curing.

[0008] In this invention, the preparation method involves screen printing on the surface of a glass fiber prepreg and employing a specific curing process. This results in a glass fiber prepreg with high interfacial bonding strength and high peel strength to materials such as ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA). The obtained patterned glass fiber prepreg has uniform thickness, high preparation efficiency, and clear and complete patterns. Various patterned glass fiber prepregs can be prepared. Using the patterned glass fiber prepreg in photovoltaic modules can meet the requirements of photovoltaic modules in specific application scenarios, such as for use in shading busbars. This simplifies the lamination structure and improves the aesthetics and power generation of the module.

[0009] Preferably, the surface roughness Ra of the glass fiber prepreg is ≤1.6μm, for example, it can be 0.1μm, 0.2μm, 0.5μm, 0.8μm, 1μm, 1.2μm, 1.5μm, 1.6μm, etc.

[0010] Preferably, the glass fiber prepreg comprises a surface-treated glass fiber prepreg.

[0011] Preferably, the surface treatment includes plasma treatment and / or treatment with a silane coupling agent.

[0012] In this invention, surface treatment of the glass fiber prepreg enhances the adhesion between the ink and the glass fiber prepreg.

[0013] In this invention, the glass fiber prepreg is further further included in the step of surface cleaning with isopropanol or ethanol before use.

[0014] Preferably, the screen printing template has a mesh size of 200-600, such as 200 mesh, 220 mesh, 240 mesh, 260 mesh, 280 mesh, 300 mesh, 305 mesh, 310 mesh, 315 mesh, 320 mesh, 325 mesh, 330 mesh, 335 mesh, 340 mesh, 350 mesh, 360 mesh, 380 mesh, 400 mesh, 420 mesh, 440 mesh, 460 mesh, 480 mesh, 500 mesh, 520 mesh, 540 mesh, 560 mesh, 580 mesh, 600 mesh, etc.; preferably 300-500 mesh.

[0015] In this invention, the template includes a stainless steel mesh plate; if the template precision is too small, it will result in inconsistent deposition uniformity and affect thickness consistency; if the template precision is too large, it will hinder the resin from fully penetrating the glass fiber, resulting in local dry spots in the prepreg and a decrease in bonding strength.

[0016] In this invention, a corresponding template can be selected according to the customized pattern. For fine patterns, a high mesh count template can be selected, while for large areas of color blocks, a low mesh count template can be selected.

[0017] Preferably, the squeegee pressure for screen printing is 0.2–0.6 MPa, for example, it can be 0.2 MPa, 0.22 MPa, 0.24 MPa, 0.26 MPa, 0.28 MPa, 0.3 MPa, 0.32 MPa, 0.34 MPa, 0.36 MPa, 0.38 MPa, 0.4 MPa, 0.42 MPa, 0.44 MPa, 0.46 MPa, 0.48 MPa, 0.5 MPa, 0.52 MPa, 0.54 MPa, 0.56 MPa, 0.58 MPa, 0.6 MPa, etc.

[0018] In this invention, if the pressure of the doctor blade is too high, it will cause ink seepage or stencil wear; if the pressure is too low, it will cause uneven ink thickness and reduced adhesion.

[0019] Preferably, the screen printing speed is 80-150 mm / s, for example, it can be 80 mm / s, 85 mm / s, 90 mm / s, 95 mm / s, 100 mm / s, 105 mm / s, 110 mm / s, 115 mm / s, 120 mm / s, 125 mm / s, 130 mm / s, 135 mm / s, 140 mm / s, 145 mm / s, 150 mm / s, etc.

[0020] In this invention, the printing speed is within the above-mentioned range, which helps to avoid line breakage or ink bleeding; too fast a speed will cause line breakage; too slow a speed will cause ink bleeding.

[0021] Preferably, the squeegee angle for screen printing is 60-75°, for example, it can be 60°, 62°, 64°, 66°, 68°, 70°, 72°, 74°, 75°, etc.

[0022] Preferably, the curing process includes curing through a first heat preservation, a heating process, and a second heat preservation.

[0023] Preferably, the temperature of the first heat preservation is 80-100℃, for example, it can be 80℃, 82℃, 84℃, 85℃, 86℃, 88℃, 90℃, 92℃, 94℃, 95℃, 96℃, 98℃, 100℃, etc.; the time is 30-60min, for example, it can be 30min, 35min, 40min, 45min, 50min, 55min, 60min, etc.

[0024] Preferably, the heating rate is 1.5 to 3℃ / min, for example, it can be 1.5℃ / min, 1.6℃ / min, 1.7℃ / min, 1.8℃ / min, 1.9℃ / min, 2℃ / min, 2.1℃ / min, 2.2℃ / min, 2.3℃ / min, 2.4℃ / min, 2.5℃ / min, 2.6℃ / min, 2.7℃ / min, 2.8℃ / min, 2.9℃ / min, 3℃ / min, etc.

[0025] Preferably, the temperature of the second heat preservation is 140-150℃, for example, it can be 140℃, 141℃, 142℃, 143℃, 144℃, 145℃, 146℃, 147℃, 148℃, 149℃, 150℃, etc.; the time is 60-120min, for example, it can be 60min, 65min, 70min, 75min, 80min, 85min, 90min, 95min, 100min, 105min, 110min, 115min, 120min, etc.

[0026] This invention employs a staged curing method, specifically gradient temperature curing, while controlling the temperature, time, and heating rate of each stage within a specific range. This prevents direct high temperatures from causing rapid cross-linking of the cured resin, which can lead to internal stress due to the different thermal expansion coefficients of glass fiber and resin, resulting in warping or delamination. Staged curing significantly improves the reliability, consistency, and yield of glass fiber prepreg.

[0027] As a preferred technical solution of the present invention, the preparation method includes the following steps:

[0028] Surface treatment of glass fiber prepreg with plasma and / or silane coupling agent is performed to obtain glass fiber prepreg with a surface roughness Ra≤1.6μm; then, screen printing is performed on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg with a stencil precision of 200-600 mesh, a squeegee pressure of 0.2-0.6MPa, a printing speed of 80-150mm / s, and a squeegee angle of 60-75° to obtain glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface; the glass fiber prepreg is cured at 80-100℃ for 30-60min, and then heated to 140-150℃ at a heating rate of 1.5-3℃ / min and cured for 60-120min to obtain the patterned glass fiber prepreg.

[0029] In a second aspect, the present invention provides a patterned glass fiber prepreg, which is prepared by the preparation method described in the first aspect.

[0030] Preferably, the patterned glass fiber prepreg includes glass fiber prepreg and an ink layer screen-printed on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg.

[0031] Preferably, the thickness of the ink layer is 15 to 30 μm, for example, it can be 15 μm, 16 μm, 18 μm, 20 μm, 22 μm, 24 μm, 26 μm, 28 μm, 30 μm, etc.

[0032] Thirdly, the present invention provides a photovoltaic module, the photovoltaic module comprising the patterned glass fiber prepreg described in the second aspect.

[0033] The numerical range described in this invention includes not only the point values ​​listed above, but also any point values ​​within the numerical ranges not listed above. Due to space limitations and for the sake of brevity, this invention will not exhaustively list all the specific point values ​​included in the range.

[0034] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0035] The method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg provided by the present invention involves screen printing on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg and simultaneously employing a specific curing process. The resulting glass fiber prepreg exhibits high interfacial bonding strength and uniform thickness. When the patterned glass fiber prepreg is used in photovoltaic modules, it can meet the requirements of photovoltaic modules for specific application scenarios, such as for use in shading busbars. This simplifies the lamination structure and improves the aesthetics and power generation of the modules. Attached Figure Description

[0036] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the patterned glass fiber prepreg obtained by the preparation method provided in Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0037] Among them, 1-glass fiber prepreg; 2-screen printing grid ink layer. Detailed Implementation

[0038] The technical solution of the present invention will be further illustrated below through specific embodiments. Those skilled in the art should understand that the embodiments described are merely illustrative of the present invention and should not be construed as limiting the invention in any way.

[0039] All materials used in this invention are commercially available or prepared using conventional methods. Unless otherwise specified, the materials used in this invention are as follows:

[0040] Fiberglass prepreg: Guangwei Fiberglass Prepreg GE21B type, thickness is 0.3mm.

[0041] Ink: Sun Ink PSR400.

[0042] Example 1

[0043] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, specifically including the following steps:

[0044] The surface of the glass fiber prepreg was cleaned with alcohol, and then surface-treated with plasma to obtain a glass fiber prepreg with a surface roughness Ra of 1.0 μm. Screen printing was then performed on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg using a 325-mesh stencil made of stainless steel, with a squeegee pressure of 0.4 MPa, a printing speed of 110 mm / s, and a squeegee angle of 70°, resulting in a glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface. The glass fiber prepreg was then cured at 90°C for 45 min, followed by a heating rate of 2.2°C / min to 145°C, and cured for another 90 min to obtain the patterned glass fiber prepreg.

[0045] A schematic diagram of the patterned glass fiber prepreg is shown below. Figure 1 As shown, it includes a glass fiber prepreg 1 and a grid ink layer 2 screen-printed on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg.

[0046] Example 2

[0047] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, specifically including the following steps:

[0048] The surface of the glass fiber prepreg was cleaned with alcohol, and then surface-treated with plasma to obtain a glass fiber prepreg with a surface roughness Ra of 1.0 μm. Screen printing was then performed on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg using a 325-mesh stencil made of stainless steel, with a squeegee pressure of 0.3 MPa, a printing speed of 85 mm / s, and a squeegee angle of 60°, resulting in a glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface. The glass fiber prepreg was then cured at 80°C for 60 min, followed by a heating rate of 1.6°C / min to 148°C, and cured for 90 min to obtain the patterned glass fiber prepreg.

[0049] Example 3

[0050] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, specifically including the following steps:

[0051] The surface of the glass fiber prepreg was cleaned with alcohol, and then surface-treated with plasma to obtain a glass fiber prepreg with a surface roughness Ra of 1.0 μm. Screen printing was then performed on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg using a 325-mesh stencil made of stainless steel, with a squeegee pressure of 0.5 MPa, a printing speed of 140 mm / s, and a squeegee angle of 75°, resulting in a glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface. The glass fiber prepreg was then cured at 100°C for 30 min, followed by a heating rate of 2.8°C / min to 142°C, and cured for 120 min to obtain the patterned glass fiber prepreg.

[0052] Example 4

[0053] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the doctor blade pressure is 0.1 MPa, while the other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0054] Example 5

[0055] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the doctor blade pressure is 0.8 MPa, while the other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0056] Example 6

[0057] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the printing speed is 70 mm / s, while the other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0058] Example 7

[0059] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the printing speed is 160 mm / s, while the other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0060] Example 8

[0061] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the template precision is 300 mesh, while the other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0062] Example 9

[0063] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the template precision is 500 mesh, while the other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0064] Example 10

[0065] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the heating rate during the curing process is 1℃ / min, while the other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0066] Example 11

[0067] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the heating rate during the curing process is 5℃ / min, while the other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0068] Example 12

[0069] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the curing process includes: curing the glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface at 70°C for 80 min, then raising the temperature to 160°C at a heating rate of 2.2°C / min and curing for 10 min. All other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0070] Example 13

[0071] This embodiment provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Embodiment 1 only in that the curing process includes: curing the glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface at 110°C for 10 min, then raising the temperature to 130°C at a heating rate of 2.2°C / min and curing for 150 min. All other steps and parameters are the same as in Embodiment 1.

[0072] Comparative Example 1

[0073] This comparative example provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Example 1 only in that the curing does not use gradient temperature curing. Specifically, the glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface is cured at 90°C for 135 minutes, and the other steps and parameters are the same as in Example 1.

[0074] Comparative Example 2

[0075] This comparative example provides a method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, which differs from Example 1 only in that the curing does not use gradient temperature curing. Specifically, the glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface is cured at 145°C for 135 minutes, and the other steps and parameters are the same as in Example 1.

[0076] Performance testing

[0077] (1) Ink thickness: The ink thickness is calculated by measuring the difference in thickness of the glass fiber prepreg before and after printing with a micrometer.

[0078] (2) Thickness standard deviation: Visually inspect whether the printed surface is uniform and use a three-dimensional contour scanner to scan the printed area. Randomly select 100 sampling points and calculate the thickness standard deviation (σ) based on their thickness. The thickness standard deviation is ≤ 5% of the ink thickness.

[0079] (3) Ink penetration depth: The ink penetration depth is observed by CT scan. The ink penetration depth should be ≤ 10% of the thickness of the glass fiber prepreg to avoid affecting the bonding strength.

[0080] (4) Peel strength: The glass fiber prepregs provided in the above embodiments and comparative examples are laminated in the form of glass fiber prepreg\EVA (Foster EVA)\glass fiber prepreg, and vacuum laminated at 145°C, wherein the screen-printed surface (i.e. the ink layer) is close to the EVA. Then, a 10mm strip is cut and the peel strength between the screen-printed area and the EVA is tested using a tensile testing machine (180° peel, tensile speed of 200mm / min). The peel strength is required to be ≥60N / cm.

[0081] The specific test results are shown in Table 1:

[0082] Table 1

[0083]

[0084]

[0085] As shown in Table 1, the method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg provided by the present invention involves screen printing on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg and employing a specific curing process. The resulting glass fiber prepreg has uniform thickness, high interfacial bonding strength, high preparation efficiency, and clear and complete patterns. Various patterned glass fiber prepregs can be prepared. When the patterned glass fiber prepreg is used in photovoltaic modules, it can meet the requirements of photovoltaic modules in specific application scenarios. The standard deviation of the thickness of the patterned glass fiber prepreg is 0.8 to 3, the ink penetration depth is 8 to 25 μm, and the peel strength with EVA is 41 to 120 N / cm.

[0086] As can be seen from the comparison between Example 1 and Examples 4-13, the preparation method employs specific printing and curing processes, which can further improve the thickness uniformity and peel strength of the patterned glass fiber prepreg.

[0087] As can be seen from Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 and 2, the peel strength of the patterned glass fiber prepreg is significantly reduced when the gradient temperature curing method is not used.

[0088] The applicant declares that the above description is only a specific embodiment of the present invention, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Those skilled in the art should understand that any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present invention fall within the protection and disclosure scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for preparing patterned glass fiber prepreg, characterized in that, The preparation method includes the following steps: Screen printing is performed on at least one surface of the glass fiber prepreg, followed by curing to obtain the patterned glass fiber prepreg. The curing method includes gradient temperature curing.

2. The preparation method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The surface roughness Ra of the glass fiber prepreg is ≤1.6μm; Preferably, the glass fiber prepreg comprises a surface-treated glass fiber prepreg; Preferably, the surface treatment includes plasma treatment and / or treatment with a silane coupling agent.

3. The preparation method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The screen printing template has a precision of 200-600 mesh, preferably 300-500 mesh; Preferably, the squeegee pressure for screen printing is 0.2 to 0.6 MPa.

4. The preparation method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The printing speed of the screen printing is 80-150 mm / s; Preferably, the squeegee angle for screen printing is 60–75°.

5. The preparation method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The curing process includes curing through a first heat preservation, a temperature increase, and a second heat preservation. Preferably, the temperature of the first heat preservation is 80-100℃, and the time is 30-60 minutes.

6. The preparation method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The heating rate is 1.5–3 °C / min; Preferably, the second heat preservation temperature is 140-150°C and the time is 60-120 minutes.

7. The preparation method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The preparation method includes the following steps: Surface treatment of glass fiber prepreg with plasma and / or silane coupling agent is performed to obtain glass fiber prepreg with a surface roughness Ra≤1.6μm; then, screen printing is performed on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg with a stencil precision of 200-600 mesh, a squeegee pressure of 0.2-0.6MPa, a printing speed of 80-150mm / s, and a squeegee angle of 60-75° to obtain glass fiber prepreg with an ink layer on the surface; the glass fiber prepreg is cured at 80-100℃ for 30-60min, and then heated to 140-150℃ at a heating rate of 1.5-3℃ / min and cured for 60-120min to obtain the patterned glass fiber prepreg.

8. A patterned glass fiber prepreg, characterized in that, The patterned glass fiber prepreg is prepared using the preparation method described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. The patterned glass fiber prepreg according to claim 8, characterized in that, The patterned glass fiber prepreg includes glass fiber prepreg and an ink layer screen-printed on the surface of the glass fiber prepreg; Preferably, the thickness of the ink layer is 15–30 μm.

10. A photovoltaic module, characterized in that, The photovoltaic module includes the patterned glass fiber prepreg as described in claim 8 or 9.

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