28/12/2012

photovoltaics overview
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Photovoltaics
In just one hour the sun delivers more ene rgy to Earth than the world uses in an entire year. This solar ene rgy can be utilised in many ways, through the use of photovoltaics (PV), for example. German PV technology is used on every continent around the globe, supplying electricity to grid-connected and off-grid systems. German companies produce crystalline solar cells and modules as well as top quality thin-film modules in the most modern factories worldw ide . German manufacturers supply plants for the production of silicon, wafers and cells and for the manufacturing of modules as well as products that meet the most stringent qua lity criteria. The worlds most efficient inverters, for example, were de veloped and are made in Germany. Manufacturers of softw are and measurement te chnology,
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AVANC TEC H Renewable Energy Systems Phaesun GmbH Viessmann Werke GmbH & C o. KG event organiser Intersolar Europe 2013 full-line prov ider abakus solar AG BELEC TRIC Solarkraftwerke GmbH C ENTROSOLAR AG MAGE SOLAR AG Scatec Solar Solutions GmbH Schmid Silicon Technology GmbH Smart Energysystems International AG SOLON Energy GmbH manufacturer BELEC TRIC Solarkraftwerke GmbH Bosch Solar Energy AG Dr. Valentin EnergieSoftware GmbH KOSTAL Industrie Elektrik GmbH KOSTAL Solar Electric GmbH natcon7 GmbH SMA Solar Technology AG Solar-Fabrik AG Solare Datensysteme GmbH other Fraunhofer-Institut fr Solare Energiesysteme ISE Viessmann Werke GmbH & C o. KG project developer juwi Holding AG Phaesun GmbH project engineer juwi Holding AG Phaesun GmbH service & maintenance juwi Holding AG KOSTAL Solar Electric GmbH supplier AVANC TEC H Renewable Energy Systems KOSTAL Industrie Elektrik GmbH

module distributors, system integrators, project engineers and project developers, installers and investors as w ell as research

Module manufacturing in Arnstadt, Germany.

facilities supplement the value-added chain with high-quality control standards , excellent customer service and years of experience.

Technologies and applications

Photovoltaic cells enable sunlight to be converted directly into electrical ene rgy. When light (photons ) reach the layers of semiconductor material in the solar cell, free charge s are ge nerated, by means of the socalled photoelectric effect, which can flow off as electrons through an electric conductor. The direct current (DC) generated from this can be used immediately to operate electrical de vices or stored in batteries. Alternatively, the electricity generated can be fed into the public grid once the direct current (DC) ha s be en converte d into alternating current (AC) by means of an inverter. In order to achieve larger capacities, many solar cells are combined and connected to form a solar module. Silicon is most commonly used as the semiconducting material. The re are three types available: firstly, in the form of monocrystalline silicon with an average efficiency of 15 to 18 pe r cent with the modules currently on the market; secondly, as polycrystalline silicon with an efficiency of 13 to 16 per cent; and thirdly, as amorphous silicon (thin-film cells) with an efficiency of less than 10 per cent. Furthermore, alternative materials can be used in thin-film technology, such as gallium arsenide. Over 90 per cent of the solar cells in use around the world consist of crystalline silicon, which has proven itself over decades of use. The fall in the price of solar silicon has significantly reduced the differential be tween crystalline and thin-film modules, although due to new technology, such as organic photovoltaics (OPV), there could still be a significant fall in the price of thin-film technology. Thin-film cells are still currently less efficient however, so they require a large r installation area to achieve the same output capacity as standard modules. There are many pe rformance classes of grid-conne cted photovoltaic systems, ranging from small systems on apartment buildings with an output of 1 kWp (kilowatt peak) and a solar
www.s olarpraxis .de/M .R mer

Diagram of a solar cell: 1) negative electrode 2) positive electrode 3) n-silicon 4) p-silicon 5) barrier layer.

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photovoltaics overview
module surface area of approximately 10 square metres, up to large , free-standing systems with outputs of up to 200 MWp (megawatt pe ak). Small systems with typical outputs of 3 to 4 kWp can be integrated easily into existing buildings. Medium-size systems with outputs ranging from approx. 30 to 50 kWp are ofte n mounted on factory and office buildings, farm buildings, schools, town halls and othe r public buildings. Large systems are usua lly constructed as free-standing systems in open areas. Photovoltaic systems also make it possible to generate and use electrical energy independently of existing power grids, dispensing with the high cost of cons tructing power grids over long distances. Off-grid application is also suitable for regions with unreliable power supplies. One method of off-grid application is to use the direct current ge nerated by the solar energy to operate electrical equipment locally. Photovoltaics can, however, also be used to create off-grid island systems. Such mini-grids can supply electricity to facilities ranging in size from individua l buildings up to several small towns. In order to feed the supply into the mini-grids , an inverter has to first convert the electricity into alternating current. A storage module (e.g. battery) is integrated to ensure that electricity is available whe n required, even during pe riods of insufficient solar radiation. A long-term, convenient and cost-effective version of off-grid electricity supply using such island systems could be created by combining photovoltaic systems with wind farms and hydropower plants and/or electricity generators powered by diesel and biofuels (hybrid systems). PV off-grid systems may make it possible to save on the fuel (e.g. diesel) used to power electricity generators in rural areas, which must often be trans ported over great distances.

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