The biggest problem with solar panels is they cost too much for the power they generate. AccuStrata Inc. is developing a technology that could change that by lowering manufacturing costs and increasing yield.
The company, based in the University of Maryland’s Technology Advancement Program incubator, just won a $150,000, phase-one Department of Energy Small Business Innovation Research grant, its third in six months. AccuStrata will use the grant to refine its field-tested, patent-protected system for monitoring the effectiveness of thin-film solar panel production in real time, enabling manufacturers to make on-the-fly adjustments and ensure panels’ efficiency.
“Solar panels are priced by the electricity they produce, dollar per watt,” says Oscar von Bredow, chief operating officer of AccuStrata. “The ways to make them more affordable are to improve the manufacturing yield or increase the efficiency of the panels so they generate more power.”
AccuStrata’s technology does both. It increases the efficiency of solar panels and saves manufacturers millions of dollars by reducing the number of lower quality panels produced.
Thin-film solar panels are made through a long manufacturing process by depositing layers of different materials, only a few microns thick total, onto a substrate such as a glass panel, metal or plastic roll. The quality of these films largely determines how well the solar panel performs. Depositing the films is a complex process, requiring tight control over many factors, including chemical, optical, and electrical properties, all while maintaining geometrically and structurally uniform films.
The problem is, manufacturers are only able to test efficiency of the panels after they have been made, and if something is wrong, adjustments are only made on the next panel or batch. Lower quality panels are discarded or sold as inferior.
But AccuStrata’s system lets manufacturers know what is going on while the panels are being made, enabling immediate corrections and the production of better panels.
“Currently, manufacturers have no way of knowing how the films are growing inside their deposition chambers, at least until the entire film is deposited,” says Dr. George Atanasoff, president of AccuStrata. “We are giving the manufacturer the ability to know, in real time, what the quality of the film is as it is deposited and how this will affect the final panel quality.”
AccuStrata’s prototype system consists of patented miniature fiber optic sensors installed at specific locations in existing equipment without disrupting the manufacturing process, along with external hardware and software. The system monitors the spectral reflectance and light scattering of films as they are deposited and calculates film properties and their uniformity over the area of the panel, critical for the panel’s final quality.
This summer, AccuStrata installed a prototype in the live production environment of a large solar panel manufacturer. Another installation is just under way.
“As of today, a percent increase in efficiency at a constant price per watt translates into a percent increase in revenue for manufacturers,” says von Bredow. “If our system is able to increase the panel efficiency by only 12-15 percent, as expected, and was adopted by only 25 percent of the $35 billion thin-film solar manufacturing market, it would save over $1 billion by 2013. As prices per watt decrease, manufacturers can lower the price for panels and continue to be profitable. Manufacturers are also able to reduce costs and save energy. This will accelerate solar technology’s ability to achieve grid parity with traditional energy sources.”
The next step is automation. AccuStrata is developing the Thin Film Auto Pilot, which will automatically make corrections during the thin-film solar panel manufacturing process without any human involvement. This new DoE grant supports this research.
The company has acquired more than $1 million in funding from founders, angel investors, and grants. In June, 2009, AccuStrata received a National Science Foundation phase-one SBIR grant for $100,000. In August, 2009, the company won another DOE Supply Chain grant for $150,000. The company also received funding from the Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) through the Maryland Technology Transfer Fund.
AccuStrata plans to enter additional markets using thin-film deposition, such as nanotechnology, flat panel displays, telecom, medical and military applications.
The company has six employees. It has received two patents, has filed another patent, and is in the process of filing more.
AccuStrata was selected as the Maryland Incubator Company of the Year in 2008 and was again nominated for Maryland Incubator Company of the Year in 2009.
AccuStrata Inc. is a College Park, Md-based company developing an intelligent, real-time optical control system able to improve thin film photovoltaic (solar cell) manufacturing, resulting in higher conversion efficiency and reduced cost. As a result of the company’s solution, solar cells produce more power, resulting in increased revenue and profit for manufacturers.
Mtech’s Technology Advancement Program : For over 20 years, TAP has helped entrepreneurs build some of the most successful technology companies in the mid-Atlantic region. TAP’s staff is comprised of seasoned veterans of startups and venture capital firms who provide business advice and support, market intelligence, introductions, access to funding and other critical assistance that can accelerate the growth of technology ventures. TAP offers furnished offices and flexible lab space as well as a multitude of other benefits and services that can only be found at a technology business incubator situated right on the campus of one of the nation’s top public universities, the University of Maryland. TAP was the first technology business incubator in the state of Maryland and is the birthplace of two of Maryland's billion dollar companies: Gaithersburg-based Digene Corporation (now part of Qiagen) and Columbia-based Martek Biosciences.
Showing posts with label solar power market. Show all posts
Showing posts with label solar power market. Show all posts
Kyocera Announces 13MW Ohgishima Solar Power Plant on Artificial Island
Rendering of Planned Ohgishima Solar Power Plant (13MW)
Kyocera Corporation President Tetsuo Kuba announced that it will provide approximately 13 megawatts (MW) of solar modules for the Ohgishima Solar Power Plant “Mega Solar System,” planned by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) with construction by Hitachi, Ltd. Scheduled for completion in 2011, the installation will be one of the largest in Japan, providing electricity for approximately 3,800 homes and off-setting about 5,800 tons of CO2 emissions each year. To promote land-use efficiency, the Kyocera solar modules, covering about 57 acres, will be installed on an artificial island just outside of Tokyo Bay.
Kyocera has a track record of providing solar modules for large-scale power plants in Europe — the world’s largest solar energy market. Kyocera has supplied 13.8MW of modules for Spain’s Planta Solar de Salamanca and other large-scale projects. Governmental subsidies and a planned feed-in-tariff system are increasing demand for solar energy in Japan as well — both for residential applications and among public utility companies, which have confirmed plans to build large-scale solar power plants by 2020.
With over 34 years of experience in the solar business, Kyocera has attained the largest share of Japan’s market for industrial and public solar installations due to the high quality of its products and the trust earned from customers. Kyocera first began research into solar energy in 1975, and over the years has developed a unique fully-integrated production process — allowing the company to ensure high quality by controlling every phase of manufacturing, from procuring raw silicon to producing photovoltaic cells and assembling finished modules.
By developing high-efficiency multicrystalline solar cells for a multitude of applications, Kyocera will continue to contribute to energy independence and the preservation of the global environment.
Sanyo Electric Shows Off Solar Electric Truck and Hybrid Electric Bicycle
Sanyo Electric Company is showing two electric vehicles at Japan's largest environmental exhibition, "Eco-Products 2009," in Tokyo which is organized by Japan Environmental Management Association and Industry Association, Nihon Keizai Shimbun.
The truck is able to run up to a 130km after 16 hours of direct solar charging, or may be charged directly with AC power in half the time.
Sanyo products have received International CES Innovations 2010 Design and Engineering Awards. The Sanyo “Synergetic Hybrid Bicycle”, CY-SPA600NA, model of the eneloop bike, a pedal-assist electric hybrid, was honored as Best of Innovations having received the highest overall score in the Eco-Design and Sustainable Technology category. The high-definition waterproof Dual Camera Xacti, VPC-WH1, was selected as an honoree in the Digital Imaging category.
Sanyo, as a “Leading Company for Energy and Environment” has created a number of products that are designed with the intent of promoting sustainable technology, based on its brand vision “Think GAIA”. The eneloop bike embodies Sanyo’s strengths, combining both its rechargeable battery and battery systems’ technologies with its concept of preserving and promoting a sustainable environment, whether at work or leisure.
The eneloop bike “Synergetic Hybrid Bicycle” model is a part of the Sanyo ‘eneloop universe’, a series of products that are based on the concept of reusing resources such as “energy” by “looping” it in a sustainable cycle. The concept was first shown as Sanyo announced the ‘eneloop’ rechargeable battery in 2005 and has grown to include a number of award-winning products.
Now in its 33rd year, the CES Innovations Awards gives consumer technology manufacturers and developers an opportunity to have their newest products judged by a preeminent panel of independent industrial designers, engineers and journalists.
The Sanyo eneloop bike is a 26-inch, three-speed regenerative, pedal-assist hybrid electric bicycle. As such, riders can propel the eneloop bike under their own power or can engage the bike’s motor and electrical system to pedal in one of three assist modes – standard, power-up or auto – where the front hub-based motor helps the bicycle and rider travel forward.
It employs a unique Torque-sensing Power Management Controller within the regenerative electrical system. The bicycle automatically adjusts to differences in terrain uphill/downhill slopes, applying the perfect amount of assisted power when needed and engaging the regenerative properties of the “energy looping” (ene+loop) eneloop “Loop Charging” system when coasting or braking. As a result, eneloop bike owners can ride further and longer than traditional pedal-assist systems.
Panasonic recently received regulatory approval of it's $4.6 billion plan to purchase Sanyo Electric, which is a leading battery maker. Panasonic's president of the battery division Naoto Noguchi said, "Panasonic Corp. is in discussions with some 10 automakers to supply lithium-ion batteries for hybrid and electric vehicle."
Discussions with vehicle manufacturers include companies from India, Europe, Japan, and the U.S. Panasonic plans to invest $1.4 billion to triple their lithium-ion battery output by late 2011 and believes that the hybrid electric and all electric vehicle battery market will grow to five times its current size by 2018.
Noguchi warned of possible battery shortages, saying "If demand continues to grow, we have concerns that production capacity might be insufficient, an increase in Japanese electric cars could make supply an issue by as early as 2012."
Panasonic has received approval from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission allowing the deal with Sanyo to proceed. The company received full antitrust clearance in 11 countries. The deal between Panasonic and Sanyo could make Panasonic the largest battery producer in the world.
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