Optical test procedures for solar components

Optical characterization of solar concentrators is of crucial importance for main two reasons: to compare the measured values of optical features to the nominal values pertaining to the optical design; to verify the homogeneity of collector production, comparing the optical features among the different samples corresponding to the same design. Measurement configurations and standardized procedures were developed to optically characterize solar components of various shapes, dimensions and collection characteristics. This laboratory characterization involves collection efficiency assessment, image plane analysis, angle dependence studies and image size measurements. As example, the paper presents the optical characterization of prototypes of collectors designed to concentrate sunlight on photovoltaic cells.