Morgan Solar (Canada)

On the typical solar cell factory floor, end-of-line I-V measurements and batch-level tracking data alone contain sufficient information about the underlying process tool performances for a variety of meaningful analysis that will lead to improved plant operational efficiency. In one PERC cell manufacturing site, an evaluation over two months data concluded that there is potentially 0.045-0.058% average efficiency gain by taking advantage of big-data analysis to perform preferential batch routing. When implemented to detect tool performance excursions, simulations for a larger 2–3 GW PERC plant show that an abrupt tool performance drop that negatively impacts cell efficiency by 0.05%, can be detected and traced to the correct problematic tool (out of 88 possible process tools) within 24 hours. This anomaly detection and root cause tracing can be further improved if other end-of-line and mid-stream measurements are also taken into consideration. Finally, the accuracy of the analysis technique in the face of tracking errors (imperfect batch integrity) is examined.

Herein, an ultrafast random‐pyramid texturing process is proposed for monocrystalline silicon (mono‐Si) solar cells by combining metal‐catalyzed chemical etching (MCCE) and the standard alkaline texturing process. Namely, large numbers of artificial defects are introduced on the wafer surface in 3 min by MCCE; therefore, the process duration of alkaline texturing is largely shortened from 420 s for the as‐cut wafer to 180 s for the wafer with artificial defects due to its high surface reactivity. Moreover, those tiny artificial defects are apt to form small pyramids, resulting in a better light‐trapping performance. As a demonstration, the passivated emitter rear contact solar cell with ultrafast random pyramid texture achieves a power conversion efficiency of 23.02%. Therefore, such a cost‐effective ultrafast texturing strategy can open a promising new route toward the mass production of high‐efficiency industrial mono‐Si solar cells.

Nursery WorldVol. 2022, No. 3 Managementchildcare counselHannah Francis-HopkinsHannah Francis-Hopkinssolicitor at Morgan LaRoche, discusses work dress codes.Search for more papers by this authorHannah Francis-HopkinsPublished Online:8 Mar 2022https://doi.org/10.12968/nuwa.2022.3.44AboutSectionsView articleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail View article FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails 2 March 2022Volume 2022Issue 3ISSN (print): 0029-6422ISSN (online): 2059-9358 Metrics History Published online 8 March 2022 Published in print 2 March 2022 Information© MA Education LimitedPDF download

In this work, spatially resolved characterization methods are used to identify loss mechanisms for common [Formula: see text]-type silicon solar cell architectures, including multicrystalline aluminum back surface field (Al-BSF), monocrystalline Al-BSF, monocrystalline passivated emitter and rear cells (PERC), and bifacial monocrystalline PERC. The characterization methods used in this work include suns-[Formula: see text], photoluminescence imaging, and spatially resolved external quantum efficiency and reflectance measurements. The optical and recombination losses are driven by the material properties, cell processing conditions, and device architecture. These losses are quantified and categorized in terms of underlying mechanisms (e.g., front reflectance, escape reflectance, front recombination, and parasitic optical absorption and recombination in the bulk and rear). The ability to create images of these loss parameters can be used to gain more insight into the materials and manufacturing processes used to produce solar cells, and examples are given in this work to illustrate how these images can help reveal the origin of defects.

This article presents a test facility for design validation of microgrids with high penetration of renewable energy, developed as a joint effort with industry, government, and academia. The Canadian Renewable Energy Laboratory (CANREL) described here is a physical simulation tool for the design, development, and performance testing of islanded and grid-connected microgrid projects. CANREL is equipped with a diesel generator, different renewable energy sources, various renewable energy generation simulators and physical systems, a bidirectional power-flow grid simulator, a battery- based energy-storage system, and controllable resistive?inductive?capacitive and electronic test loads for the design and testing of a variety of microgrid solutions. The test facility provides project performance demonstration and validation services at each stage of a microgrid project development to help utilities and project developers reduce risks. It is also a physical simulation tool for benchmarking microgrid equipment and controllers for research and development purposes. Some facility test results are presented in this article to demonstrate the capabilities of CANREL for simulating a wide range of scenarios.

If you consider community electricity access issues and their environmental impact, you might not think Canada would have communities where these are major concerns. Canada has abundant dispersed natural resources providing sufficient electrical capacity with a relatively low environmental footprint. In general terms, the country has enough generation capacity to supply electricity for the vast majority of the population and for foreseeable growth. In addition, since 2002, Canada has reduced its environmental footprint from the electricity sector, mainly due to the retirement of coal plants. So, what is the problem?

Soiling is a major source of power degradation in photovoltaic (PV) modules, with variable impact as a function of environmental conditions. For concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) modules the impact is greater due to requirements in preserving the optical path within the module. In an effort to reduce soiling a number of self-cleaning coatings have been developed and implemented in solar modules. Self-cleaning films are generally based on high (hydrophilic) or low (hydrophobic) surface energy materials that leverage extreme wetting behavior to reduce contamination, and/or photocatalytic materials that decompose contaminants with ultraviolet (UV) activation. In this study we explore a number of third-party coating materials to reduce soiling losses in Morgan Solar’s Sun Simba CPV modules. The primary objective is to identify coating solutions that are mechanically robust and effective in anti-soiling, as well as compatible with our materials and optical concentration architecture. In preliminary testing two products were compared with extreme wetting characteristics. The material 1 coating reduces soiling rates to 0.8-1.4%/month, whereas the material 2 coating failed mechanically and the module soiled at a rate of 6.6%/month as a consequence – the control module soiled at a rate of 4.1%/month for comparison. We followed-up with the deployment of a long-term study that will compare 4 self-cleaning/easy-to-clean products. The materials have been selected for their extreme wetting characteristics and suitable optical properties. Deposition parameters were optimized and the coated modules have been mounted for evaluation in the Mojave Desert, California.

This paper presents a low-cost dc-dc distributed power-management architecture for a low-profile concentrating-photovoltaic (CPV) system. The proposed scheme uses inverting buck-boost converters connected across neighboring series-connected CPV cells to achieve a virtual-parallel connection and thus improve the tolerance of the overall system to parameter variations. Since the converters process the difference between corresponding cell currents and the string current, they have reduced power-handling and efficiency requirements. Current cascading is identified as the main challenge with this architecture. Statistical simulations are used to investigate the current distributions in the converters, and power benefits are analyzed using measured data from a six-cell CPV system. Experimental results from four- and three-cell systems using digitally controlled converters demonstrate clear power benefits in the presence of tracker misalignment and short-circuit current mismatches.