SUNKEAN Obtains TÜV Rheinland B2ca CPR Certification for H1Z2Z2-K Solar Cables
Recently, SUNKEAN officially received the CPR certification certificate from TÜV Rheinland for its B2ca flame-retardant photovoltaic (PV) cables. This milestone marks yet another breakthrough for SUNKEAN's PV DC cable products in terms of flame-retardant safety ratings, regulatory compliance capabilities, and adaptability to high-standard engineering applications within Europe.
The Context Behind the Demand for CPR Flame-Retardant Cables
As Europe's energy structure continues its transition toward cleaner and more distributed sources, the application scenarios for PV systems are undergoing significant changes. An increasing number of projects are shifting away from traditional ground-mounted power stations toward urban distributed PV systems, rooftop power stations on commercial buildings, indoor deployments within energy storage facilities, and integrated solar-plus-storage energy systems. These evolving application environments impose higher safety requirements on cable products. Against this backdrop, flame-retardant cables that comply with the requirements of the CPR (Construction Products Regulation) have gradually become a critical technical barrier to entry for the European market. Specifically, the B2ca rating represents one of the highest-tier flame-retardant standards available—ranking just below the absolute highest rating, Aca.
According to the European CPR fire performance classification system, B2ca falls into the category of high-grade flame-retardant cables. Compared to the widely used Cca rating, the B2ca rating demonstrates superior performance across various parameters, including flame propagation, heat release rate, smoke density, burning droplets, and acidic gas emission. In a fire scenario, these cables exhibit a lower capacity for flame propagation and offer superior control over smoke density, thereby effectively enhancing the safety of personnel evacuation and the overall fire safety rating of the building structure. Consequently, in typical application scenarios—such as PV systems in public buildings, large-scale commercial rooftop power stations, energy storage equipment rooms, and underground energy facilities—an increasing number of projects now explicitly mandate that PV cables must meet the B2ca standard; failure to do so makes it difficult to gain entry into the project's supply chain.
Characteristics of B2ca Flame-Retardant Cables
SUNKEAN's B2ca certification covers a comprehensive range of specifications for its H1Z2Z2-K (62930 IEC131) cable model, spanning cross-sections from 1×4 mm² up to 240 mm², as well as 1×300 mm² up to 400 mm². This certification ensures full coverage of the cross-sectional requirements for PV DC systems, enabling their deployment in critical connection points such as string connections, combiner box connections, array-side connections, and inverter input-side connections. Of particular note is that this certification simultaneously covers large-cross-section PV cables ranging from 300 mm² to 400 mm², demonstrating SUNKEAN's mature capabilities and stable process standards in the manufacturing of large-cross-section cables.
Compared to products with standard cross-sectional areas, large-cross-section PV cables face significantly greater challenges when undergoing B2ca flame retardancy testing. As the conductor cross-sectional area increases, the overall volume of the cable's insulation material increases proportionally; this results in a higher potential heat release rate in a fire environment, while simultaneously making the control of smoke density significantly more difficult. Consequently, this imposes more stringent requirements on the design of flame-retardant material systems. Furthermore, the B2ca rating typically necessitates the use of low-smoke, halogen-free flame-retardant material systems. Such materials possess a narrow processing window, demanding higher manufacturing precision regarding extrusion temperature control, material flow stability, and structural uniformity. Therefore, only manufacturers equipped with advanced extrusion platforms and mature process control capabilities can reliably achieve large-scale production.
Amidst the growing trend of integrating PV systems into building structures, high-level flame retardancy is emerging as a critical metric for assessing the reliability of connectivity solutions. In the future—as market demands for building fire safety standards continue to rise—high-grade flame-retardant PV cables are likely to transition from being an optional feature to a standard requirement for projects. Sanjun Zhilian will continue to drive the advancement of high-grade flame-retardant cables and refine its suite of connectivity solutions for PV system infrastructure, thereby providing global new energy clients with high-quality cables that are safer, more reliable, and fully compliant with international standards.
