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Grid-connected polymer solar panels: initial considerations of cost, lifetime, and practicality

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Abstract

Large solar panels were constructed from polymer solar cell modules prepared using full roll-to-roll (R2R) manufacture based on the previously published ProcessOne. The individual flexible polymer solar modules comprising multiple serially connected single cell stripes were joined electrically and laminated between a 4 mm tempered glass window and black Tetlar foil using two sheets of 0.5 mm thick ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA). The panels produced up to 8 W with solar irradiance of ~960 Wm−2, and had outer dimensions of 1 m x 1.7 m with active areas up to 9180 cm2. Panels were mounted on a tracking station and their output was grid connected between testing. Several generations of polymer solar cells and panel constructions were tested in this context to optimize the production of polymer solar panels. Cells lacking a R2R barrier layer were found to degrade due to diffusion of oxygen after less than a month, while R2R encapsulated cells showed around 50% degradation after 6 months but suffered from poor performance due to de-lamination during panel production. A third generation of panels with various barrier layers was produced to optimize the choice of barrier foil and it was found that the inclusion of a thin protective foil between the cell and the barrier foil is critical. The findings provide a preliminary foundation for the production and optimization of large-area polymer solar panels and also enabled a cost analysis of solar panels based on polymer solar cells.

©2010 Optical Society of America

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Figures (8)

Fig. 1
Fig. 1 (a) Schematic of process to convert R2R coated polymer solar cells into full size solar panels. Actual number of cells per module and modules per panel differs from that shown in the diagram. (b) Schematic (approximately to scale) of the layer structure for the panel, module, and solar cell. Amcor and Fasson refer to commercial PET encapsulation layers as described in the experimental details.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2 The assembly of the module starts with laying the modules onto a glass panel covered with an EVA laminate sheet (a), after which electrical contacts are soldered onto the polymer modules (b). An EVA laminate sheet is placed over the modules (c) and a tetlar backing foil (black underside) is placed above the EVA (d). The panel is then heated to 150 °C for 30 minutes melting the EVA and laminating/securing the modules (e). After cooling the panel is completed (f).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3 Outdoor testing of the GEN1 (left) and GEN2 (right) solar panels on a tracking station showing seasonal variation.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4 Daily energy output (a) and performance stability (b) of GEN1 panels over a 24 day period. Red curve corresponds to solar irradiance (left axis), and black curve corresponds to power conversion efficiency (right axis).
Fig. 5
Fig. 5 Degradation of critical parameters for GEN1 panels over 24 day outdoor study. The daily max of each parameter is given (subscript max), with the exception of fill factor which is a daily average (subscript mean). The parameters from top to bottom are: (a) Solar Irradiance (Irrmax), (b) power conversion efficiency (ηPCE,max), (c) max power (Pmax), (d) short-circuit current (ISC,max), (e) open circuit voltage (VOC,max), (f) and fill factor (FFmean).
Fig. 6
Fig. 6 Degradation of GEN3 panels made with modules encapsulated by 3-ply (black crosses), 4-ply (blue circles), and 6-ply (red squares) barrier layers. The parameters from top to bottom are: (a) power conversion efficiency, (b) short-circuit current, (c) open-circuit voltage, and (d) fill factor.
Fig. 7
Fig. 7 GEN1 panel after 6 months showing bleaching over silver stripes (a) and the absence of bleaching in GEN2 panels after 6 months (b).
Fig. 8
Fig. 8 Graphical representation of total cost of polymer solar panels (center), cost of panel fabrication (left) and cost of module production (right).

Tables (4)

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Table 1 Structure of polymer solar modules from various generations

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Table 2 Cost estimates of producing a 1 x 1.7 m2 panel under laboratory conditions. Panel contains 24 modules with a total active area of 8640 cm2 (51% coverage)

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Table 3 Degradation of all parameters after 6 months for GEN2 panels

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Table 4 Barrier types for small GEN3 panels along with their performance before and immediately after panel lamination

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