Canada-based Solaires Entreprises, developer of sustainable and scalable perovskite-based photovoltaic modules, has announced the launch of its first
production line.
Solaires deployed its fully functional pilot production line where it will be producing PV modules for customers. The pilot production line is located in Langford, BC, Canada.
China-based RenShine Solar has announced the completion of its 150MW perovskite PV module project in Changsgu, which started in April 2023.
The Company said it has switched on the 150 MW perovskite cell production line. The China-based perovskite manufacturer aims to achieve mass-scale production of perovskite panels with a size of 1.2m*0.6m and an efficiency of 20% by mid-2024. It said it will focus on the development of gigawatt-level production lines to further expand its capacity.
Chinese energy company Akcome has announced an investment of approximately 1 billion RMB (~USD 140 million) to establish a research and production base for heterojunction-perovskite tandem solar cells.
The initiative will be led by Akcome’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Zhejiang Akcome Future Technology Co., Ltd., in collaboration with the Hangzhou Qianjiang Economic Development Zone Management Committee.
GCL Group Holdings, a major Chinese solar materials maker, has reportedly begun building 'the world's biggest perovskite solar cell factory' in the city of Suzhou.
The plant’s production capacity will reach two gigawatts, according to GCL Photoelectric Materials. The new facility will be built in two phases and the products will be 2.4 meters in length and 1.2 meters in width, the Company'srecent statement specified.
Hanwha Qcells recently announced it will be closing its 3.5GW module factory in South Korea, in response to the stagnant solar market in the country. It was reported that the total installed capacity of solar power in South Korea has been continuously decreasing over the past three years, from 4.7GW in 2020 to 3.4GW in 2022, and is expected to further decrease in 2023.
Closing the factory comes as part of a plan to optimize Hanwha's photovoltaic module production capacity. However, Hanwha stated that it will continue to invest in its factory in Jincheon, South Korea, which will continue to produce TOPCon products and operate a perovskite tandem cell pilot line.
Silicon-based solar cells currently dominate the solar market. It is a proven technology, with established manufacturing processes. However, it is also quite expensive to produce, yields rigid cells and has an estimated efficiency limit of around 29%. In recent years, perovskite-based solar technologies have been drawing a lot of attention, and many academics and companies believe they are the future of the solar industry.
Perovskite Solar Cell (PSC) technology is a photovoltaic (PV) technology based on the use of perovskite materials, mostly in the light-absorbing layers of the cell. There are many types of perovskite materials, and several processes used to deposit these materials to create efficient solar panels. PSCs have potential for creating solar panels that are easily deposited onto most surfaces, including flexible and textured ones. They can also be lightweight, cheap to produce, and more efficient than silicon-based solar cells (efficiencies in the lab have already crossed 30%).
The major advantages of perovskite-based solar cells are factors of performance, applicability and sustainability:
The US Department of Energy supports perovskite R&D initiatives, both in academia and industry. We have recently interviewed Lenny Tinker, Photovoltaics Program Manager, Solar Energy Technologies Office at the US DoE.
Q: Hello Lenny, thanks for your time. Do you believe perovskite materials hold the key to next-gen solar (PV) energy?
Perovskite solar cells have shown potential for high performance and low production costs. However, considerable work needs to be done in order for these materials to reach commercial success in PV applications.
The following is a sponsored post by Toray Engineering
In an article dated Oct 17, 2022, Toray Engineering introduced its slot-die coating technology, as well as other technologies that can be utilized for perovskite layer deposition for large-scaled production.
This article will describe two processes to formulate Perovskite layers using such technologies, using Toray Engineering’s manufacturing equipment. One of the processes is a 1-step coating method that applies FAPBI3 coating to formulate a power-generation layer. The other process is a 2-step coating method that double coats PBI2 and FAI to formulate a power-generation layer. For both processes, by combining its technologies in slot-die, vacuum dryer, and air knife, Perovskite layers can be formulated on large-scale glass surfaces.
Chinese perovskite solar technology company Renshine Solar (Suzhou) has announced 29.0% steady-state power conversion efficiency of all-perovskite tandem solar cell developed in-house. The company now expects to exceed 30% in 2023.
Japan Electrical Safety and Environment Technology Laboratories (JET) has reportedly certified the efficiency claim that was reported for a designated area of 0.04888 cm².
U.S-based company CubicPV has announced plans to establish 10 GW of conventional mono wafer capacity in the United States.
While CubicPV reports that its new factory will produce conventional silicon wafers, the company said it will continue research and development of its tandem modules, which reportedly offer more than 30% greater efficiency than the highest efficiency conventional modules. The design stacks two solar cells, with silicon on the bottom, powered by CubicPV’s Direct Wafer technology, and perovskite on the top, the company claims that the tandem design “will dramatically increase the power of every acre of solar deployed.”
