Twitter + Solar Energy = #SolarEnergyChat
Twitter may not be as popular as Facebook, but for solar energy users and businesses Twitter is an indispensable tool. With over 200 million users generating over 100 million tweets a day one cannot ignore the networking benefits that Twitter offers.
For the uninitiated, Twitter is a social networking and microblogging service enabling users to send and receive messages called tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters that are displayed on the user’s profile page.
Recently, real-time chat among Twitter users has become a popular way for followers of a particular topic to meet, exchange ideas, and make new friends.
On Wednesday April 6th, at 6:00PM PST, and every Wednesday thereafter, Solar Energy Directory (@solarenergy_dir) and PSEO, Professional Search Engine Optimization (@PSEO_Inc) will be hosting a 1-hour solar energy chat on Twitter. We invite each and every one of you to attend.
This week our special guest will be Patricia Agudow, VP, OPEL Solar Inc.
To access you will need to do the following:
1) Become a member of Twitter if you are not already. Membership is free. For support help, see Twitter basics.
2) At the specified time, enter #solarenergychat (with hashtag #) in the search window and voila, the conversation will unfold before you. If you’re not familiar with the use of hashtags see Twitter Support: What are Hashtags?
3) When posting remember to include #solarenergychat at the end of your post to insure it appears in the chat queue, otherwise we won’t see it.
4) We recommend using Tweetchat.com. Login with your Twitter account and enter solarenergychat in the hashtag box. Once you’re in you will no longer need to enter #solarenergychat into every post, Tweetchat does it for you automatically.
Join the conversation. Join us for #solarenergychat
ZenithSolar, a Combined Heat and Power Provider Signs Landmark Agreement with Chinese Government
KIRYAT GAT, Israel / LANZHOU, China – February 22, 2011- ZenithSolar Ltd., provider of the world’s most efficient combined heat and power solar system, announced today that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Energy Bureau of Gansu Provincial Development and Reform Commission of the People’s Republic of China for cooperation in the development of combined heat and power (CHP) solar stations in the Gansu province. The MOU was signed at a ceremony in the provincial capital Lanzhou.Zenith Panel
Under the agreement, ZenithSolar will provide the technology for the installation of two 10 megawatt (MW) cogeneration plants based on ZenithSolar’s Z20 CHP system. The Gansu province of China has a population of near 30 million and is located in northwestern China approximately 1,200 kilometers from Beijing. The Gansu Province lies at the edge of the Gobi desert and has the best solar energy conditions in China and among the best anywhere in the world.
The agreement is focused on two planned facilities which are to be located in the cities of Jiayuguan and Jinchang and to commence their installation during 2011. One of the installations will be used to provide electricity and process heat for an industrial plant and the other for a large neighborhood.
Under the terms of the MOU, the Energy Bureau of Gansu will recommend the use of ZenithSolar’s CHP system for other locations in the Gansu Province after the successful operation of the two pilot plants. The Energy Bureau also announced that in concert with the introduction of the CHP technology a scientific research center will be established to provide training for government institutions, enterprises and individuals to focus on the development of new solar energy technology.
“ZenithSolar is honored to initiate the Gansu project in a province of China that is demonstrating leadership, vision and a long term commitment to renewable energy, said Roy Segev the CEO of ZenithSolar Ltd. We look forward to the collaboration in order to turn the Gansu project into a reality and thereby contribute to China’s ambitious renewable energy goals.”
“We are very pleased to be partnering with ZenithSolar, a leader in solar CHP technology, in developing the first significant solar project to adopt advanced CPV technology in China,” said Mr. Wang Yongqian, Chairman of Gansu Foreign Affair Office.
The Gansu project represents the first large-scale solar collaboration between China and the Israeli company ZenithSolar in the field of CHP solar energy. “ZenithSolar’s system has proven its reliability and effectiveness in providing electric power and heat for over a year in an existing facility in Israel and we view the Gansu project as a tremendous opportunity to demonstrate the technology on a global scale,” said Roy Segev, CEO of Zenith Solar Ltd.
ZenithSolar Fast Facts
* Combined heat and power generation with 72% efficiency
* zero emissions environment
* one field (of 220 Z20s) at sunny climates can:
* generate 2,000MWh of electricity and 4,000MWh of thermal energy per year
* replace 1,900 tons of fossil fuel per year
* prevent pollution of 3,200 tons of C02 pollution per year
* offset the pollution of 1,200 vehicles per year
About ZenithSolar
ZenithSolar has developed a modular and easily scalable combined heat and power (CHP) high concentration photovoltaic system (HCPV). The core technology is based on a unique, proprietary optical design to extract maximum energy with minimal land usage. The highly efficient system provides high electricity output combined with heat at temperatures well suited for domestic hot water use. In addition the heat can be used for industrial process applications as well as other cogeneration applications. Zenith Solar has a unique, cost effective mass production capability based o the use of readily available materials and a vertically integrated supply chain.
For more information please visit: http://www.zenithsolar.com/
DOE Pursues SunShot Initiative to Achieve Cost Competitive Solar Energy by 2020
Announces $27 Million in Projects to Advance Solar Development and Manufacturing
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced additional details of the Department of Energy’s “SunShot” initiative to reduce the total costs of photovoltaic solar energy systems by about 75 percent so that they are cost competitive at large scale with other forms of energy without subsidies before the end of the decade. By reducing the cost for utility scale installations by about 75 percent to roughly $1 a watt – which would correspond to roughly 6 cents per kilowatt-hour – solar energy systems could be broadly deployed across the country.
This will increase American economic competitiveness and help the U.S. regain leadership in the global market for solar photovoltaics. As part of the SunShot initiative, Secretary Chu announced today that the Department of Energy is awarding $27 million in projects to support the development, commercialization, and manufacturing of advanced solar energy technologies.
“America is in a world race to produce cost-effective, quality photovoltaics. The SunShot initiative will spur American innovations to reduce the costs of solar energy and re-establish U.S. global leadership in this growing industry,” said Secretary Chu. “These efforts will boost our economic competitiveness, rebuild our manufacturing industry and help reach the President’s goal of doubling our clean energy in the next 25 years.”
The SunShot program builds on the legacy of President Kennedy’s 1960s “moon shot” goal, which laid out a plan to regain the country’s lead in the space race and land a man on the moon. The program will aggressively drive innovations in the ways that solar systems are conceived, designed, manufactured and installed.
In addition to investing in improvements in cell technologies and manufacturing, the SunShot initiative will also focus on steps to streamline and digitize local permitting processes that will reduce installation and permitting costs. To achieve the SunShot goal of reducing the total installed cost of large scale solar electricity by about 75 percent, DOE will be working closely with partners in government, industry, research laboratories and academic institutions across the country.
SunShot will work to bring down the full cost of solar – including the costs of the solar cells and installation – by focusing on four main pillars:
* Technologies for solar cells and arrays that convert sunlight to energy;
* Electronics that optimize the performance of the installation;
* Improvements in the efficiency of solar manufacturing processes;
* Installation, design and permitting for solar energy systems.
For more information and to follow the initiative’s progress, visit: www.energy.gov/sunshot
As part of the launch of the SunShot initiative, DOE is also announcing $27 million in awards to nine new projects. This funding includes support for five projects that are receiving $20 million to further develop U.S. supply chains for PV manufacturing. This includes support for companies across the solar energy supply chain, including U.S. material and tool suppliers and companies that are developing technologies that can be adopted directly into current manufacturing processes. More information and a list of awardees is available HERE.
Additionally, DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory is investing $7 million to fund the latest round of the successful PV Incubator program, which helps to shorten the commercialization timeline for promising emerging solar technologies. The companies work closely with DOE national laboratories to scale their technologies and manufacturing processes and move the products from pre-commercial and prototype stage to pilot and full-scale manufacturing operations. More information and a list of awardees is available HERE.
The SunShot initiative builds on the Department’s significant research and development (R&D) efforts in solar energy over the past decade, conducted in partnership with American universities, national laboratories and the private sector. In the last ten years, DOE has invested more than $1 billion in solar energy research that has been leveraged with significant private industry funding to support more than $2 billion in total solar R&D projects. This includes investments by DOE’s Office of Science, Solar Energy Technologies Program, and ARPA-E, the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy. Innovations in both science and technology have driven the cost of solar down 60 percent since 1995, and have yielded a number of critical breakthroughs in solar PV performance and cost. A fact sheet detailing some of the Department’s past and current work in solar energy is available HERE.
Seniors Band Together To Enjoy Discounted Solar Installations
RUMSON, N.J. (Jan. 11, 2010) – GeoGenix, an established industry leader in residential and commercial solar installations in the Mid-Atlantic region, today announced that the company will host an event at Somerset Run in Franklin Township, N.J., to celebrate the successful completion of a 10-home “community solar” project in the Somerset County 55+ adult development.
The ceremony, which will also honor the residents who have participated in the initiative, will be held on Jan. 19 at 10:30 a.m. in the development’s clubhouse at 101 Stone Manor Drive.
Franklin Township Mayor Levine’s office will present the families who have elected to invest in the roof-mounted solar installations with commendations for their dedication to the environment and to the state’s progressive renewable energy goals.
Originating in California, and now being pioneered in New Jersey by GeoGenix, “community solar” is a strategy that allows residents of a community to band together to purchase solar for their individual homes at a discounted price. The discount is made possible by operational efficiencies such as the streamlining of the permitting process and the deployment of installation crews.
The community solar discounts, along with generous state and federal incentives, make solar a very attractive investment, especially for seniors whose retirement nest eggs are typically invested in “safe” investment vehicles, such as certificates of deposit (CDs), which are now yielding low returns.
“While helping the environment was a major consideration in deciding to go solar, the return on our investment was really the deciding factor,” said Allen Delevett who, with his wife Celia Hills, was the first homeowner in Somerset Run to go solar. “The systems installed in our community will each have a simple payback of less than five years, and, frankly, we see solar as a far more attractive, and safer, investment than the stock market or CDs.
The systems will generate free electricity for at least 25 years and will also generate valuable SREC (Solar Renewable Energy Certificate) income. An SREC, which is a state renewable energy incentive based on the amount of electricity generated by the solar system, is earned each time a system generates 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity. SRECs, which represent an environmental benefit, are tradable certificates.
New Jersey Assemblyman Upendra J. Chivukula, who is the chairman of the Assembly’s Energy Committee and the originator of many of the state’s robust renewable energy initiatives, will also be in attendance at the event in support of the community solar project.
“It is intensely satisfying to see these grassroots solar initiatives in which, in this case, seniors join together to reap the financial and environmental rewards that solar brings to a household and a neighborhood,” said Chivukula. “Community solar projects are a great complement to my work in the statehouse. I hope to see this trend continue as it brings great efficiencies to the solar installation process, essentially making a green practice even greener.”
“Between generous state and federal incentives and the volume discounts we offer through our community solar program, installing a solar system in your home is an excellent investment,” said Gaurav Naik, managing member of GeoGenix. “We make it as easy as possible for the homeowner every step of the way, from design and installation to setting up the SREC account.”
The 10 homes that comprise this project total 80 kilowatts (kW) of generating capacity and are expected to produce nearly 100,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually. This carbon footprint reduction eliminates the production of more than 150,000 pounds of CO2, which is the equivalent of reducing the amount of miles driven in a car by 189,000. CO2 is among the harmful greenhouse gases that contribute to air pollution and to global warming.
About GeoGenix
GeoGenix is an industry leader with a proven track record in residential and commercial solar installations. The firm’s many achievements include the first “Net Zero” electric commercial building in the nation. While there are many new entrants in the solar business, GeoGenix has been installing solar since 2001 and has the experience, expertise and track record that have made it the state’s most trusted solar installer. For more information, visit the GeoGenix website at www.geogenix.com
Solar3D Inc developing new three-dimensional solar cell technology to maximize conversion of sunlight into electricity
Solar3D Inc. (OTCBB:SLTD), based in Santa Barbara, Calif., is developing a breakthrough new three-dimensional solar cell technology to maximize the conversion of sunlight into electricity. Solar3D’s technology is expected to increase the efficiency of solar cells by 50 to 100 percent.
The sun floods the earth with enough solar energy in one hour to power the entire world. But despite the dramatic growth of the solar industry, solar electricity accounts for less than 1 percent of global electricity generation. The reason is that solar cells still cost too much to produce. The practical efficiency of crystalline silicon solar cells ranges from 15 to 19 percent, meaning that such cells harvest only a fraction of the sun’s energy. In order to power the world, solar cells must be able to convert more sunlight into electricity at a lower cost.
Solar3D’s breakthrough technology uses low-cost processes to increase the efficiency of solar cells in order to decrease the overall cost per watt of electricity. Our revolutionary solar cell engineering approach tips the solar cost curve in the direction of massive scalability, thus allowing the global deployment of a non-polluting energy technology that produces electricity from an unlimited source of power. Moreover, unlike fossil fuels, whose supplies are limited, the sun is expected to continue to burn brightly for another five billion years or more.
Almost all conventional solar cells are two-dimensional. Up to 30 percent of incident sunlight is reflected off the surface, and more is lost inside the solar cell materials. By contrast, the Solar3D design uses an array of light-collecting elements that guide the sunlight into a corresponding array of three-dimensional, micro-photovoltaic structures. These have been described as resembling a collection of miniature towers in an urban street grid. The sunlight, in the form of photons, is trapped among these micro-structures, where it bounces around until it is converted into electricity.
The Solar3D technology also results in reduced loss of photons inside the solar cell. Solar cells generate electricity through the photovoltaic effect, in which sunlight triggers the release of electrons from their atoms, resulting in the creation of an electric current. Because the Solar3D technology absorbs more photons, the solar cell coating doesn’t need to be as thick, which means that the excited electrons spend less time in the semiconductor material, reducing the possibility that they will be reabsorbed — a major cause of poor performance in solar cells.
Finally, the Solar3D design’s network of contact wires runs below the light collectors instead of on top as in a conventional solar cell, where they block sunlight. Solar3D’s cells are thus able to trap and utilize nearly all of the incident light.
The solar industry grew at a compound annual rate of 35 percent between 2000 and 2009, despite the global recession. The industry generated $38.5 billion in revenues in 2009 and is expected to generate revenues of $100 billion in 2014. Despite this growth potential, however, the widespread deployment of solar is still limited by cost. Many industry experts thought thin-film technology would address this problem. But although thin film is cheaper, it is also less efficient, with more thin-film panels required to produce the same output of electricity.
Solar3D’s three-dimensional technology combines thin- and thick-film technologies to achieve the high efficiencies of crystalline at the lower cost per watt of thin film. The Solar3D technology is expected to improve the efficiency of solar cells by 50 to 100 percent, thus maximizing the efficiency of any solar material. Although Solar3D’s initial commercialization objective is focused on silicon solar cells, the technology is “material agnostic,” meaning that it can also be used with exotic materials such as gallium arsenide for high performance applications.
The development of Solar3D’s innovative technology will enable the solar industry to achieve or exceed the goal of grid parity, which is the price at which electricity produced from solar energy is competitive with that of electricity produced from traditional energy sources such as coal or gas. Solar3D expects to have a prototype ready by the end of 2011 and to be in production within a year of that. The technology is also production friendly, meaning that its manufacture will require no new fabrication techniques; it can be produced by existing manufacturing facilities.
The history of technological development is one in which the introduction of a new technology such as the automobile or the computer is followed by decades of improvements — many of them highly innovative in nature — that bring down the cost to the point that the technology enters the mainstream. The solar cell is no different: first invented in 1883, the solar cell is finally is poised to replace traditional energy sources on a large scale thanks to Solar3D’s new technology, which is reengineering the solar cell to make it more efficient and less costly.
Solar3D is proud to be at the forefront of a low-cost “next generation” solar technology that will bring convenience, prosperity and comfort to the world powered by an energy source that will never run out, as long as the sun continues to shine.
Largest solar project in Virginia implemented at Eastern Mennonite University
HARRISONBURG, Va. – Eastern Mennonite University dedicated and celebrated the largest solar photovoltaic (PV) project built so far in the state of Virginia in a public ceremony held Monday afternoon, Nov. 15, on EMU’s campus.
During the celebration in EMU’s Campus Center , about 150 members of the campus community, public officials and local neighbors saw the university’s president Loren Swartzendruber unveil the website dashboard with the flip of a switch, revealing live graphs showcasing the daily, weekly and monthly output of the solar system.
“Caring for God’s good creation is central to who we are as a Christian university,” Dr. Swartzendruber told the gathering. “Our planet does not have unlimited natural resources, and it is imperative that we utilize clean renewable energy such as solar as part of the university’s long-term commitment to creation care and environmental sustainability,” he added.
Secure Futures, LLC of Staunton, Va., developed the project and contracted with Southern Energy Management in North Carolina to design, install and maintain the solar PV system. The installation on the roof of EMU’s Sadie Hartzler Library includes 328 high-efficiency photovoltaic panels manufactured by SunPower Corporation. The project represents the largest deployment to date of solar power in the Commonwealth of Virginia .
The solar project will cut EMU’s dependence on local utilities, helping to reduce the university’s reliance on energy from coal and other fossil fuels. The reduction will eliminate more than 6,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions over the projected 35-year life of the solar panels. In addition, EMU will adopt today’s electrical rates over the 20-year term of its agreement with Secure Futures, protecting the university from electricity rate increases.
“While developers have built larger solar installations in other states, EMU’s solar project represents a breakthrough in the commercial scale financing of solar power, as Virginia presents a uniquely challenging electricity and policy environment,” said Secure Futures CEO Anthony (Tony) Smith, who also co-directs EMU’s Steward-Leadership MBA Program. “ Virginia enjoys some of the lowest electricity rates in the country, and remains among a handful of states that rely exclusively on voluntary measures by utility companies to include renewable energy in their portfolio of electricity generation sources,” Dr. Smith added.
Secure Futures has formed a subsidiary Harrisonburg-based company, Community Solar, LLC, co-owned with local investors, to own and operate the project. Under a financing program embraced by colleges and universities in high solar states, EMU hosts the installation while Community Solar owns and manages the equipment, allowing EMU to gain access to on-site solar power without paying the capital cost of installing PV panels or the fees of ongoing maintenance. Community Bank, based in Staunton , Va. , provided construction financing for the project.
“Any student I’ve talked to values this sign of commitment to sustainability and creation care on campus,” said Benjamin P. (Ben) Bergey, EMU senior from Perkasie , Pa. , and co-president of the Student Government Association. “It is an outward example of how our Anabaptist values affect our behavior and decisions, in the case to find alternative forms of energy. So we as students are grateful to be at a school of integrity, with consistency between words and actions,” he added.
“We believe that with the right support in place, Virginia will be in a strong position to join the ranks as a leader in sustainable energy,” said Blair Kendall, strategic business development director with Southern Energy Management based in Morrisville, N.C., which conducted the engineering and installation of the panels and will maintain them for the 20-year term of the project agreement.
Using economic stimulus funds provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, DMME awarded an incentive grant for the project. ARRA funds through the US Treasury 1603 Investment Tax Credit grant will also help finance the solar installation.
“With a deep commitment to clean energy, I hope that this project represents just the beginning of EMU’s work to develop solar power,” said Swartzendruber, who also announced that the university hopes to host a second, larger solar system – to be financed and operated by Community Solar – in the first half of 2011. The president invited potential investors to contact his office or Secure Futures for more information on the upcoming solar project.
Ceramic materials help manufacturers of thin film photovoltaic cells achieve greater efficiency
The earth benefits from an impressive 125,000 terawatts (TW) of solar energy. While the future energy needs of the planet will undoubtedly be met with a combination of technologies, many believe that solar – in the form of photovoltaic (PV) cells – is the only renewable energy source with the capacity to make a significant impact on global energy production.
As a result, the race is on to push the performance of PV cells to a level where the total cost of the electricity generated is as cheap (if not cheaper) than that from carbon-based sources. Some predict that grid parity, as it is called, could be achieved in some locations within as little as a few years.
Most of the effort in this direction is now centered on thin film deposition, rather than wafer-based modules, although there is still discussion around the relative merits of both. The main arguments in favor of thin film are that it uses less material, and is much faster and simpler than the complex and delicate process of slicing, dicing and placing of silicon wafers. This means that if the cost of deposition can be reduced, and the efficiency of the resulting PV cells increased sufficiently, the goal of grid parity will be achieved.
What most commentators and manufacturers do agree on is that, for significant increases in efficiency, all components of the equipment and all steps of the process must be considered; there is no one panacea that will achieve the goal in a single step.
Thin film deposition process
Thin film deposition has been used for some years for a variety of applications, including semiconductor and optical components, decorative and low-emissivity architectural glass, and most recently in the manufacture of flat screens for TVs and computers. In solar cell production, the process offers a simpler and cheaper alternative to using silicon wafers.
Manufacturers continue to experiment with various materials and refinements of the thin film deposition process for solar cells based on silicon and other materials. The direct band-gap semiconductors cadmium telluride (CdTe), copper indium diselenide alloy (CuInSe2) and copper indium gallium diselenide alloy Cu(InGa)Se2, have high optical absorption coefficients (>105cm-1) are now emerging as the most popular materials for the photo absorption layer in thin film photovoltaic (TFPV) cells. More than a dozen companies worldwide are already actively producing these cells, or are in a start-up phase.
Creation of the TFPV layers can be achieved by various methods; using a physical or chemical vapor deposition processes, particle sintering or electro-deposition for example. Reports suggest that the best results are achieved using high temperature (up to approx 500°C) deposition and post-growth anneal of the TFPV layers.
While the processes are complex, and manufacturers continue to research, develop and refine, the essential features remain – high temperatures, aggressive and corrosive process materials.
Quality is key
To date TFPV cells have only achieved approximately 20% efficiency (which is the current benchmark for Crystalline Silicon PV cells manufactured in production quantity) over small areas and under laboratory conditions. In production quantities and large panel sizes the best efficiencies that manufacturers currently achieve is in the range of 10-12%.
In the push towards achieving the goal of grid parity, the manufacturing challenge is to create reliable and consistent process conditions that can reproduce laboratory quality in large quantities.
This is an area where manufacturers of PV cells and their equipment suppliers can benefit from the huge investment in materials research that has already been done over the years in the manufacture of semiconductors and flat screens, both of which have been through large-scale, fast ramp-ups in volume manufacture.
Ceramic – the perfect choice
Technical ceramic materials feature high hardness, physical stability, extreme heat resistance and chemical inertness. As such, they are highly resistant to melting, bending, stretching, corrosion and wear – and ideal for use in environments of extreme heat and aggressive chemicals, like that of TFPV deposition.
Morgan Technical Ceramics, a division of the Morgan Crucible Company plc, is a world leader in specialist engineering of ceramic components. A global business, the company is working with leading players in PV cell manufacture in USA, Europe and Asia, supplying a wide variety of components for both silicon-based and non-silicon based thin film solar cells.
Non-silicon thin film solar cell manufacture
In an application borrowed from the manufacture of architectural glass, fused silica rollers are used to move the hot glass panels through the deposition process. The thermal stability of silica is exceptional; it has a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of <1 x 10-6/°C – lower than any other ceramic material. This low CTE combined with its chemical compatibility with glass make fused silica rollers an ideal choice for ensuring the glass remains perfectly flat during the process.
Morgan Technical Ceramics are supplying precision machined fused silica rollers for use in continuous flow TFPV deposition machines from its locations in Fairfield, NJ, USA and Yixing, China.
In TFPV deposition equipment, precursor vapors and gases are transported from a source vessel through a deposition zone onto a heated glass substrate to deposit the PV layer. Morgan Technical Ceramics produces a number of components used in this part of the TFPV process.
In some instances, solid materials are melted and vaporized from ceramic crucibles or boats to form a flux that is deposited on the heated glass substrate. It is critical that the ceramic crucible or boat be dimensionally stable and chemically non-reactive to the molten source material. Pyrolytic boron nitride (pBN) ceramic is an excellent material for this application due to its high corrosion resistance and non-reactivity with the source materials used in PV deposition. Morgan Technical Ceramics’ Hudson, NH USA site supplies pBN crucibles and evaporation boats made via a chemical vapor deposited (CVD) process that are ideal vessels due to the ultra-high purity nature of the CVD pBN material. Further, Morgan Technical Ceramics provides pBN-coated graphite heating elements used for material vaporization.
In other configurations, vaporized precursor materials are transported from the source to the deposition zone via a vapor distribution manifold. The manifold is formed from a perforated tube made of ceramic because it is one of the few materials with the chemical stability to operate without problems with these very toxic, hazardous chemicals, at high temperatures (above 500°C).
Morgan Technical Ceramics produces these tubes in mullite and in alumina, at its specialist extrusion facility in Waldkraiburg, Germany. Tubes are up to 2.5m (100inches) long x 105 mm (4inches) diameter, with multiple vapor exit points, for uniform deposition across the glass. They are extruded, fired in large kilns, and then precision machined to achieve final product tolerances within +/-0.15mm (0.005inch).
Silicon-based thin film solar cell manufacture
Oerlikon Solar, a European manufacturer of thin film deposition equipment for PV panel production, is using precision-engineered, high-purity ceramic bars in some of its higher temperature thin film deposition machines, for lifting, stacking and aligning components and the glass panels inside the chamber.
The ceramic is semiconductor-grade 99% alumina, chosen for its excellent thermal and chemical stability as an alternative to stainless steel, which has a tendency to buckle and bend at high temperatures.
Morgan Technical Ceramics is able to produce consistent flatness of less than 0.01mm over the 1.2m length of the bar and parallelism of less than 0.05mm, with a polished mirror finish. In fact, these tight specifications are well within the capability of the company’s specialist manufacturing facilities at Rugby, UK, where skills have been honed and refined through years of supplying critical components for the semiconductor, aerospace, laser and other demanding industries.
Ceramic pins, also made of high-grade alumina, are used as locators and separators between key components inside the TFPV deposition reaction module chamber. Shaped like a drawing pin, the component is about 15mm in length with tightly controlled dimensions to enable consistent deposition of the thin film layers within the reaction module.
Morgan Technical Ceramics’ Stourport plant, also in the UK, produces several thousand of these pins per month, and is expecting to double its production volume within the next 12 months.
Summary
In all these examples, two things are key. First, in these applications the very high quality engineering ceramics are not operating any where near the boundaries of their thermal and chemical stability. TFPV manufacturers are free to continue experimenting with higher temperatures and different thin film materials, safe in the knowledge that these components of the system will not have any adverse effect on the efficiency of the process or the finished PV panel. In such a rapidly developing market, this level of reliability is vital.
Second, Morgan Technical Ceramics has proven ability to produce consistently high specification components of this kind in large volume, and to be able to react quickly to sudden increases in demand on both sides of the Atlantic.
The manufacture of PV cells using thin film deposition processes is one of the fastest moving and most exciting manufacturing industries of our time. The global market is growing at a rate of 50% per year and estimates are that growth will continue at this rate until 2010, then increase even more rapidly for a couple years before ‘settling down’ to a steady 25% year on year growth. Clearly, the race is on, and the big money is there for PV manufacturers who can perfect their processes fast and take the lead.
Proven in other sectors, technical ceramics can make an important contribution to helping this roller-coaster of a developing industry achieve its goals of consistent quality in both the process and the finished product, for better PV cell efficiency in volume productions, and ultimately, parity with other sources of grid energy.
About Morgan Technical Ceramics
Morgan Technical Ceramics (MTC) has comprehensive range of Ceramic materials, from which its products are manufactured. Supplying to a variety of demanding markets, MTC has established an enviable reputation for providing value-added solutions through world-class research and development, innovative design and, perhaps most important of all, application engineering.
Morgan Advanced Ceramics, together with Morgan Electro Ceramics forms Morgan Technical Ceramics, a division of the Morgan Crucible Company plc. From manufacturing locations in Australia, North America, Europe and Asia, Morgan Technical Ceramics supplies an extensive range of products, including ceramic components, braze alloys, ceramic/metal assemblies and engineered coatings.
For more information on Morgan Technical Ceramics visit www.morgantechnicalceramics.com
