AWARDSSHORTLIST Industry
Development Award
product has a lighter environmental footprint throughout its lifecycle.
Concentrator photovoltaic technology
SolFocus has developed concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) technology which combines high-efficiency solar cells and advanced optics to provide solar energy solutions which are scalable, dependable and capable of delivering on the promise of clean, low-cost, renewable energy. The company’s mission is to enable solar energy generation at a Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) competitive with traditional fossil fuel sources.
The benefit of CPV technology is that clean energy plants can be built immediately. Distributed generation or utility-scale plants can be achieved in a fraction of the time it takes to build a concentrator solar power plant and can come online in a scaled manner.
The high efficiency of the systems, high performance levels in solar regions, and steady production throughout the day result in SolFocus CPV systems produce anywhere from 15-80 percent more energy in some environments than other solar technologies. With SolFocus CPV technology, sunlight is converted into electrical energy the same way as with conventional photovoltaic (PV) technology. The difference in the technologies lies in the addition of a system of patented reflective optics to concentrate sunlight 650 times onto small, highly efficient solar cells.
The solar cells used in SolFocus CPV systems are different from silicon PV cells as they are capable of converting very large amounts into energy at high efficiency – over twice that of traditional PV cells. Furthermore, SolFocus CPV energy systems have a better energy payback than traditional PV and the
SolFocus maintains the CPV industry’s first certified product. It is TUV Certified to IEC 62108 and UL Standards, which assures product lifetime of 25 years in the field. SolFocus’ approach provides the high energy yield and scalable low- cost manufacturing required to deliver cheap solar energy. Compared with other solar technologies, CPV provides a much smaller Green House Gas (GHG) footprint and shorter energy payback. The energy payback for SolFocus CPV is just over six months, compared with two years for silicon PV. CPV does not suffer from as significant an energy degradation at the higher temperatures as silicon PV does, therefore providing an energy production advantage in sunny, hot geographies.
Scalability: SolFocus CPV technology is scalable, allowing the deployment of medium-scale to large-scale sites located close to the demand load for reduced transmission, which is a source of significant power loss and disturbance to environmentally sensitive areas. Optimized land usage: High efficiency results in the need to use and disrupt less land. Land does not have to be graded, and product can be deployed in irregularly shaped, previously disturbed areas. With a single pole point of entry to the ground for each system, the amount of land disturbed is only a fraction of the field land area.
Dual use of land is a reality. Also, there is no permanent shadowing which is disruptive to plant and animal eco systems. Consumes no water: No water is consumed in the production of electricity utilizing CPV technology. 4 gallons/MWh are used for cleaning; for CSP plants that number is 800-1000 gallons per MWh. Highly recyclable: SolFocus systems are manufactured using primarily glass, aluminum, and steel, all highly recyclable and non-toxic. With over 97% recyclability at end of life the products can easily be transformed into future new uses.
The SolFocus 1100S - This CPV system achieves panel efficiencies of 25% resulting in systems which produce the highest energy density and highest
energy yield of photovoltaic systems available today. The SolFocus 1100S uses approximately 1/1,000th of the active, expensive solar cell material compared to traditional PV panels.
In addition, the cells used in SolFocus CPV systems are over twice as efficient as traditional silicon cells, accelerating the trajectory for solar energy to reach cost parity with fossil fuels. SolFocus integrates its CPV panels with its advanced tracking system that continuously aligns the solar array with direct sunlight throughout the day as the sun moves across the sky.
31
VOTE @
www.solar-pv-management.com/ solarawards_vote.php
The tracking technology has been developed specifically for integration with SolFocus 1100S panels, providing an integrated and optimized system. The tracking capability of the SolFocus 1100S results in energy generation ideally matched to peak demand periods.
The SolFocus CPV panel can achieve 25+ percent conversion efficiency, which was a breakthrough for the CPV industry. 97 percent recyclability is also quite unique, as both traditional PV and thin film technologies can be reclaimed, but not recycled and repurposed. Additionally, the use of simple, concave glass reflectors instead of Fresnel optics which provides for a more field-robust product and a wider acceptance angle.
www.solar-pv-management.com Issue V 2010
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80