QuantaSol unveils 28.3% efficient single-junction solar cell World Record

QuantaSol unveils 28.3% efficient single-junction solar cell World record made public at UK’s Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition

Kingston-upon-Thames UK, June 30th 2009:

QuantaSol Ltd, a new independent designer and manufacturer of strain-balanced quantum-well solar cells, has developed what it believes to be the most efficient single junction solar cell ever manufactured. Developed in just two years, QuantaSol's single-junction device has been independently tested by Fraunhofer ISE as achieving 28.3% efficiency at greater than 500 suns.

QuantaSol was established in June 2007 as a spin-out of Imperial College London to commercialise the University’s solar cell IP and offer devices to concentrator Photovoltaic (PV) systems developers. Imperial will be featuring a QuantaSol device as part of its presence at the Royal Society Summer Exhibition in London this week.

“Our technology is the industry’s best kept secret. This is the first time that anyone has successfully combined high efficiency with ease of manufacture, historically a bug-bear of the solar cell industry,” said Kevin Arthur, QuantaSol’s CEO. “We’re now gearing up to provide multi-junction cells of even higher efficiencies as early as Q1 2010.”

QuantaSol’s approach combines several nanostructures, of two or more different alloys, in order to obtain synthetic crystals that overcome the problems associated with current solar cell designs. It also greatly enhances the photovoltaic conversion efficiency.

The company, which has a development laboratory in Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, completed a £2m second funding round last week. It will now concentrate on cutting the cost of ownership of solar energy by moving to multi-junction devices.

Source: http://www.quantasol.com/

First Solar goes for reduction in manufacturing cost

First Solar has indicated that its manufacturing cost has now fallen to 93 cents per watt, down 5% in three months and down 28% in a year.

By 2014, it expects to drive down cost per watt to make solar modules to fall to between 52 and 63 cents by 2014. The biggest driver of the lower costs is better efficiency, it said. Production per fabrication line is expected to nearly double over the next five years.

The company believes its ongoing focus on cost reduction enables continued growth even as subsidies decline.

Earlier this year, when the company had reduced its manufacturing cost for solar modules to 98 cents per watt, it had mentioned that its ongoing improvement plans are to continue to drive the efficiency that helps drive costs down, drive the run rates of the factories, and then of course continuing to focus on the raw material costs as it purchases them. Its manufacturing costs have declined two-thirds from over $3 per watt to less than $1 per watt since First Solar began full commercial operation of its initial manufacturing line in late 2004.

In terms of performance this year, First Solar’s first-quarter profits more than tripled as the company inked numerous new power projects and cut its production costs. The company earned $164.6 million in the first quarter, compared with $46.6 million for the same period last year. Quarterly sales were $418.2 million for the three months that ended March 28, up from $196.9 million during the same period last year.

Source: Thin Film Today

World's Largest Solar Power Station Officially Inaugurated

Bonn, Germany (SPX) Jul 03, 2009
On 1 July 2009 the solar-thermal power station Andasol 1, located in the Spanish province of Granada in Andalusia, was officially inaugurated. At the present time, Andasol 1 is the largest solar power station in the world. Researchers at the German Aerospace Centre were heavily involved in the development of key technologies and identified the most suitable location with the help of various tools, including satellite data.

They did this on behalf of Solar Millennium AG, the project development company. In addition, their measuring methods contributed towards the precision design of the parabolic trough collectors.

Climate-compatible power for 200 000 people
Andasol 1 delivers climate-compatible power for 200 000 people. This makes it possible to cut annual emissions of carbon dioxide by 150 000 tons.

There are more than 600 parabolic trough collectors distributed over a total surface area of about two square kilometres, each of which measures 150 metres in length and 5.7 metres in width. These mirrors have a total surface area in excess of 500 000 square metres.

There is also a heat accumulator located in the centre of this gigantic solar field. Here, two giant tanks, measuring 14 metres in height and 36 metres in diameter, are used to store surplus energy during the midday period using liquid salt.

This salt is heated by solar power to temperatures of up to 390 degrees Celsius and this stored heat enables the power station to operate at full power (50 megawatts) for up 7.5 hours after the Sun has set - a key requirement for the future use of solar power stations.

As well as Andasol 1, the first commercially operated power station of its kind, plans are well underway for a further two solar power station at the same location. In the course of this year, Andasol 2 is scheduled to come on stream, also rated for a capacity of 50 megawatts. Andasol 3, also with a 50 MW rating, is expected to follow in the course of 2011.

DLR researchers tasked with finding the ideal location
On behalf of Solar Millennium AG, the project development company, employees in the Solar Research department of the DLR Institute for Technical Thermodynamics (Institut fur Technische Thermodynamik; ITT) at the Plataforma Solar de Almer�a research station located about 50 kilometres from the Andasol site were tasked with identifying a suitable location for the new solar power station.

One key decision-making indicator took the form of the statistical mean values calculated from many years of sunlight readings taken by the DLR from meteorological measurements at ground stations, and sequential satellite data.

Precision boosts energy yield levels
When setting up this system, it is also possible to use high-speed optical measuring processes developed by the DLR for precision production control of the parabolic collectors. Precise and well-aligned parabolic mirrors are able to boost the energy yield by up to 10%, and this makes a key contribution to the cost-effectiveness of a plant of this kind.

Development of the actual collector technology was aided by the DLR taking a leading role in several projects sponsored by the German Environment Ministry. This meant that the industrial partners were supported during the design and testing of collector prototypes and absorber tubes by DLR employees working at the Spanish test centre of Plataforma Solar de Almer�a, located in Almeria.

The total cost of this power station is somewhere in the region of euros 300 million. A key form of early assistance for the Andasol 1 power station was also forthcoming from the European Union, which contributed euros 5 million of funding aid for the preparation and accompanying scientific research. Power from concentrated solar energy

Andasol 1 is a solar-thermal power station and what is known as a parabolic trough power station. In this configuration, the concentrating mirrors take the form of a very long trough with parabolic cross section. The individual elements of this trough, the collectors, are rotated to track the Sun as it moves from east to west.

Sunlight falling on the collector is reflected onto a focal line, where the light energy is concentrated by a factor of up to 80. Absorber tubes run down this focal line.

These steel tubes, surrounded by an evacuated, insulating glass tube, have a special surface coating which is highly effective at absorbing solar radiation and converting it into heat. In this process, temperatures substantially in excess of 400 degrees Celsius are developed on their surface. An oil known as 'thermo-oil' flows through the centre of each steel absorber tube.

This oil is heated to almost 400 degrees, and the collected heat is then directed to a thermal transfer unit in which steam is generated at high temperature and pressure. As in conventional power stations, this steam is then used to drive a turbine that - linked to a generator - then generates electrical power.

Source: Solar Daily

Record-breaking solar cells are tailored to their location

The burning hot sun at the equator is a far cry from the weak sunlight that reaches higher latitudes. To make the most of such different conditions you need specially tailored solar cells, according to UK firm Quantasol.

So the company has come up with a new solar cell design that can be tuned to the light at a particular latitude, and in the process broken a 21-year-old efficiency record for one type of solar cell.

Semiconductor materials such as gallium arsenide (GaAs) are more efficient at converting light to electricity than the cheaper silicon cells most common today. First used in space, GaAs solar cells are beginning to find uses on Earth too.

But the uniform light conditions in space aren't matched on the ground. The atmosphere acts as a filter, so the light reaching Earth varies from place to place and with changing atmospheric conditions.
Tuned in

Quantasol has now created GaAs solar cells that can be tuned to the prevailing light conditions of a particular place, to get the most out of the cells wherever they are.

To do that, the firm added indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) to pores just a few nanometres across on the surface of their cells, called quantum wells. Like the GaAs that makes up the rest of the cell, they can absorb light to produce electric current. But they do so at very specific frequencies.

The pores can be tuned to absorb light at the frequencies that are most common in a particular place but aren't absorbed well by GaAs. Over time this strategy should extract more energy than an off-the-shelf solar cell.
World record

After the quantum wells have been tuned, the GaAs solar cell absorbs more of the incoming light than previous devices. The peak efficiency of the new cell is 28.3 per cent when exposed to light 500 times as strong as normal sunlight, a figure that has been confirmed by the Fraunhofer Institute of Solar Energy in Germany.

That may only be one-tenth of a percentage point higher than the previous world-record holder, but it's the first advance in 21 years.

Commercial silicon solar cells are much cheaper than GaAs, but have an efficiency of just 10 to 12 per cent and are also bulkier. The Quantasol device can cope with much brighter light without becoming overloaded, making it possible to use a very small solar cell to absorb light collected by a system of cheap lenses and mirrors.

But more important than the peak efficiency is that the new cells can generate more electrical energy over the course of days and weeks, says Kevin Arthur, Quantasol CEO.

"The commercial market doesn't just want high efficiency, they want the device to be optimised to the environment," he says. "In the past we measured performance in dollars per watt. Now it's cents per kilowatt-hour that's more important."

Quantasol will showcase its new device at the UK's Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition in London this week.

Source: www.newscientist.com

Swiss team unveil pioneering solar plane

Geneva (AFP) June 26, 2009
Round-the-world balloooning pioneer Bertrand Piccard unveiled his solar-powered aircraft in Switzerland on Friday, ready for another trend-setting circumnavigation of the globe powered solely by the sun.

The wasp-shaped prototype of Solar Impulse, with the wingspan of a jumbo jet, was rolled out before some 800 guests at an airfield near Zurich after six years of development.

Ten years after Piccard and Briton Brian Jones achieved the first non-stop flight around the globe in the Orbiter balloon, the Solar Impulse team are aiming to demonstrate that reliance on renewable energy is not a pipedream.

"If an aircraft is able to fly day and night without fuel, propelled solely by solar energy, let no one come and claim that it is impossible to do the same thing for motor vehicles, heating and air conditioning systems and computers," Piccard said.

Although computer simulations have been tried out, the prototype HB-SIA will make its maiden test flight by the end of this year.

Its mission is to test the feasibility of a complete flight sequence through two days and one night, propelled only by solar energy, and pave the say for a second aircraft's bid to fly around the world in five stages in 2012.

The Swiss adventurer -- who is again joined by Jones -- said the idea emerged after that 19 day hot air balloon trip, when Orbiter was partly kept aloft by fuel canisters even if the wind ensured its progress eastwards.

"That historic success could have turned sour because of the lack of fuel," Piccard said at the Dubendorf airfield.

"That's why we took the decision to to attempt a trip around the world without relying on fossil fuels," he explained.

The seemingly flimsy carbon fibre concentrate of new technology has a 63.4 metre wingspan but weighs little more than a medium sized car.

Some 12,000 solar cells spread over its slender wings are meant to keep it aloft, fuelling four tiny ten horsepower electric motors and 400 kilogrammes of batteries that are, unusually, meant to keep it going overnight.

Wedged in the narrow cockpit, the lone pilot will also be helped to fly Solar Impulse by some novel control technology.

"Those are the wings of hope. They are immense, as is the challenge we have to meet in climate protection," said Swiss Transport, Energy and Environment Minister Moritz Leunberger.

Source: Solar Daily

ADB Deems Clean Energy Projects as Risky

The thrust to create so-called “clean” energy projects is hampered by poor financial risk perception, need for big capital investments and policies that still favor conventional sources of energy, an official of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) recently announced.

Stating at the Asia Clean Energy Forum at the ADB headquarters this week, Private Sector Operations Department Director-General Philip Erquiaga said these three impediments are what the bank will take into consideration drafting a new energy policy.

Mr. Erquiaga explained the perception of risk is because of the view regarding clean energy technology is “experimental,” creating it financially risky as an investment.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Senior Vice-President for financial markets Marcelo E. Ayes agreed, evaluating that “many of the companies producing this technology are start-up and will have difficulty accessing credit because they don’t have a track record.”

Noting further that these projects are “capital-intensive,” Mr. Ayes stated the “risk is huge without certain profit even in the long term.”

He said that a well-designed feasibility study and a guarantee by the government, ADB or the World Bank are few of the factors that could better risk perception.

Energy Assistant Secretary Mario C. Marasigan, chief of the Renewable Energy Bureau, stated the government has addressed the concern over policy drawbacks, citing Republic Act 9513, or the Renewable Energy Act of 2008, which provides fiscal and non-fiscal incentives for renewable energy investors, involving tax credits on domestic capital equipment and services, special tax rates on equipment and machinery, amidst others.

This will bring down the price of technology and make ‘clean,’ renewable energy competitive with conventional energy. The law is a clear indicator that this government prioritizes renewable energy.

Source : Energy Business Daily

Future Perspectives for Renewable Energy in India

Introduction
India is facing an acute energy scarcity which is hampering its industrial growth and economic progress. Setting up of new power plants is inevitably dependent on import of highly volatile fossil fuels. Thus, it is essential to tackle the energy crisis through judicious utilization of abundant the renewable energy resources, such as biomass energy, solar energy, wind energy and geothermal energy. Apart from augmenting the energy supply, renewable resources will help India in mitigating climate change. India is heavily dependent on fossil fuels for its energy needs. Most of the power generation is carried out by coal and mineral oil-based power plants which contribute heavily to greenhouse gases emission.
The average per capita consumption of energy in India is around 500 W, which is much lower than that of developed countries like USA, Europe, Australia, Japan etc. However, this figure is expected to rise sharply due to high economic growth and rapid industrialization. The consumption of electricity is growing on the worldwide basis. Energy is a necessity and sustainable renewable energy is a vital link in industrialization and development of India. A transition from conventional energy systems to those based on renewable resources is necessary to meet the ever-increasing demand for energy and to address environmental concerns.

A Glance at Renewable Energy Sources in India
• Solar Energy
Solar power, a clean renewable resource with zero emission, has got tremendous potential of energy which can be harnessed using a variety of devices. With recent developments, solar energy systems are easily available for industrial and domestic use with the added advantage of minimum maintenance. Solar energy could be made financially viable with government tax incentives and rebates.
An exclusive solar generation system of capacity of 250 to KWh units per month would cost around Rs. 5 Lacs, with present pricing and taxes. Most of the developed countries are switching over to solar energy as one of the prime renewable energy source. The current architectural designs make provision for photovoltaic cells and necessary circuitry while making building plans.

• Wind energy

Wind power is one of the most efficient alternative energy sources. There has been good deal of development in wind turbine technology over the last decade with many new companies joining the fray. Wind turbines have become larger, efficiencies and availabilities have improved and wind farm concept has become popular. It could be combined with solar, especially for a total self-sustainability project.
The economics of wind energy is already strong, despite the relative immaturity of the industry. The downward trend in wind energy costs is predicted to continue. As the world market in wind turbines continues to boom, wind turbine prices will continue to fall. India now ranks as a "wind superpower" having a net potential of about 45000 MW only from 13 identified states.
• Hydro Electric Power
India has a huge hydro power potential, out of which around 20 % has been realized so far. New hydro projects are facing serious resistance from environmentalists. Resettlement of the displaced people with their lands becomes major issue.
• Biomass Energy

Biomass energy can play a major role in reducing India’s reliance on fossil fuels by making use of thermo-chemical conversion technologies. In addition, the increased utilization of biomass-based fuels will be instrumental in safeguarding the environment, creating new job opportunities, sustainable development and health improvements in rural areas. Biomass energy could also aid in modernizing the agricultural economy. A large amount of energy is expended in the cultivation and processing of crops like sugarcane, food grains, vegetables and fruits which can be recovered by utilizing energy-rich residues for energy production. The integration of biomass-fuelled gasifies and coal-fired energy generation would be advantageous in terms of improved flexibility in response to fluctuations in biomass availability with lower investment costs.
Waste-to-energy plants offer two important benefits of environmentally sound waste management and disposal, as well as the generation of clean electric power. Waste-to-energy facilities produce clean, renewable energy through thermochemical, biochemical and physicochemical methods. Moreover, waste-to-energy plants are highly efficient in harnessing the untapped sources of energy from a variety of wastes.


Decentralized Energy Generation in India
Microgeneration, also called “micropower”, is the generation of zero or low-carbon electrical power by individuals, small businesses and communities to meet their own needs. The most widely-used microgeneration technologies include small wind turbines, solar power photovoltaic or biomass conversion systems that have been promoted for decades as alternative sources of renewable energy. Because of technological advances, microgeneration now includes handheld solar and wind-power recharging devices for personal electronics, as well as advanced photovoltaic, biomass and wind-turbine systems for domestic and industrial power generation.
Traditional “megapower” production of electricity is insufficient today because of exponential industrial growth and high living standard. Microgeneration can act as a catalyst for cultural changes in consumer attitude, and provides evidence of the important impact that microgeneration has on consumers’ attitude and behavior regarding energy production and use. Microgeneration is both a serious form of clean energy production and also a cultural movement that is gathering momentum worldwide. Microgeneration technologies include small wind turbines, biomass gasifiers, solar power, micro-hydro, or a combination of these technologies. Prima-facie renewable energy may appear a bit costlier than the conventional source of energy, but looking at the benefit of continuous power availability and great contribution against global warming, it is worth.
Industrialized countries, like USA, Australia, Japan, have formulated action plan to foster sustainable energy to make judicious use of renewable energy resources. For example, USA has announced massive renewable energy program, to generate large share of total energy requirement from renewable energy sources by 2025, which will create 5 million new job opportunities in various areas of Renewable Energy.
Proposed Guidelines for Power Consumers in India
• Explore all possibilities to set-up an independent power plant making use of renewable resources like solar, wind and biomass.
• Use of government / utility electricity supply, only in case of emergency.
• Energy savings by using low wattage / high luminous lamps (CFL / LED).
• Use of power factor improvers.
• Regular maintenance and servicing of electrical equipments.
• Avoidance of inverters and large storage batteries (except emergency).
• Intelligent power factor correctors to minimize energy losses in capacitor at lower load conditions.
• Frequent energy audits
Proposed Guidelines for Policy Makers in India
• Vigorous promotion of renewable energy by government agencies, corporate, public sector, academic institutions etc.
• Establishment of national-level body to increase awareness of renewable energy at grass-root level
• Financial support and sponsorship for research and development in renewable energy technologies.
• Ambitious goals and targets for power generation non-conventional sources.
• Installation of solar / wind / biomass power generation systems and energy saving in every government office to encourage and inspire people.
• Restriction on using large battery energy storage systems.
• Compulsory installation of solar water heating systems for all urban residential and commercial establishments.
• Mandatory renewable energy systems provision for new residential, commercial and industrial buildings.
• Attractive incentives and subsidies for installation and successful operation of renewable energy equipment.
• Abolishing duties / taxes on import of small-scale renewable energy generating equipment
• Cultivation of energy crops on marginal and degraded land
• Use of biofuels in vehicles.
• Soft loans for setting up renewable energy enterprises.
• Additional incentives for buyers and manufacturers of renewable energy equipments in rural areas.
Guidelines for Research Professionals
• Development of comprehensive educational and awareness modules for renewable energy systems.
• Development of cost-effective, high-efficiency and long-lasting photovoltaic cells.
• Development of high efficiency wind turbines, ranging from 300 W – 10 kW, to generate energy even at low wind velocity.
• Development of small-scale, low maintenance biomass gasifiers to make use of abundant biomass resources in rural areas for cogeneration
Conclusion
There is an urgent need for transition from petroleum-based energy systems to one based on renewable resources to decrease reliance on depleting reserves of fossil fuels and to mitigate climate change. In addition, renewable energy has the potential to create many employment opportunities at all levels, especially in rural areas. An emphasis on presenting the real picture of massive renewable energy potential, it would be possible to attract foreign investments to herald a Green Energy Revolution in India.

Author’s Profile
Ravi Soparkar
Electrical Engineer from Mumbai. 40 + years experience in engineering business. Working on micro-generation feasibility in renewable energy for past five years. Participated in numerous national and international conferences and workshops all over the world. Presently associated as senior consultant with Super Consultants Inc from Maryland USA
Address: Soparkar House, 36/2 Kondhwa Budruk, Pune 411048.
Phones: 020 26934300, 9325014999
Email: surepower@aol.in