Thin Film Technology Breakthrough to Cut the Cost of Solar Power

For a long time it has seemed that affordable solar panels were not going to happen in the foreseeable future; however, a breakthrough from the HelioVolt Corporation has raised the possibility that we just might. HelioVolt has managed to produce thin film solar panels with a 12.2% conversion rate.

12.2% seems highly unremarkable, especially when compared to Sanyo’s recent 22% effort; however it is worth remembering that this is thin-film solar and that the panels are being printed with a proprietary FASST reactive transfer printing process that produces solar cells 10 to 100 times faster than their competition. The potential is that this could lead to solar power at less than $1 per watt, the magical number where solar really starts to compete with fossil fuel power.


http://www.uberreview.com/2008/05/t...eakthrough-to-cut-the-cost-of-solar-power.htm

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http://www.gizmag.com/thin-film-solar-cell-efficiency/9323/</B>

May 15, 2008 Advancing a viable market for photovoltaic solar energy involves a balancing act between creating efficient solar cells and at the same time reducing the cost of the manufacturing process. Solar efficiency has been demonstrated to levels as high as 22% (a record set by SANYO last year), and although HelioVolt Corporation's latest announcements concern technology that is only delivering 12.2% conversion, the company has made great strides on the other side of the equation. Its proprietary FASST reactive transfer printing process has produced solar cells in a record setting six minutes, according to HelioVolt that's 10 to 100 times faster than current production of thin-film photovoltaics and could lead to manufacturing costs of less than $1 per watt.

Unlike the Sanyo crystalline silicon-style cells, the HelioVolt cells uses thin film technology based on Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS). It's worth noting that the solar conversion comparison - basically a ratio of the energy produced and the amount of sunlight hitting the surface of the cell - isn't exactly "apples and apples", and the 12.2% achieved by HelioVolt’s device is very efficient for thin film technology.

CIGS which offers significant cost savings for solar electricity installations by reducing the amount of material required to produce electricity from the sun, along with durability, a life-span equivalent to silicon and the ability to be manufactured in a printing process.

This last attribute means the FASST process can be used to print high efficiency, low-cost thin film material directly on glass substrates for solar modules OR onto an array of building products including steel, metal, glass and roofing tiles where it can be integrated into architecture as a type of "solar skin".

The company says the cost of less than $1 per watt that it is targeting with its thin film technology is, according to a study conducted by the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the price point at which the photovoltaic market can compete with fossil fuels.

Dr. BJ Stanbery, CEO and founder of HelioVolt said that CIGS was already achieving the highest efficiencies of any thin film solar material in the lab. “The challenge of course is transferring that efficiency to a high throughput, high yield, low cost process capable of delivering gigawatts worth of quality commercial product,” he said.

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Pray hurry! Who wouldn't like to setup a huge solar array going on the house roof or mobile??

Is this thin film stuff something that will be applied to roofing? Or how will it be mounted? I'd like to get some solar going, too, at least a bare minimum -- probably never be able to afford to power a whole house, but a well pump, some lights, a couple of fans, stuff like that would be great.

Kathleen

I'd like to get a combination of solar and wind going to reduce dependency on the grid, so am paying attention to articles in this area.

Have a creek on my plot and would love to do hydropower, but the current isn't strong enough...

That would mean that a 10 kW photocell panel would only cost $10,000, well within the budget for most people. I hope this happens soon!

Dennis Olson said:

That would mean that a 10 kW photocell panel would only cost $10,000, well within the budget for most people. I hope this happens soon!

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If they don't selll out to the government, like Nanosolar did.

n7ekg said:

If they don't selll out to the government, like Nanosolar did.

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That's kind of what I thought too. The oil companies would hate for technology like that to get into the wrong hands.