First Solar: Quest for the $1 Watt

Photovoltaic cells, once so costly they could be used only to power million-dollar satellites, are today turning up even on humble parking meters. Now a brash Tempe, Ariz., company called First Solar plans to take the technology to the next level by making it cost-effective enough to compete with coal-fired generation.

Achieving grid parity--selling power to the nation's electric grid at a competitive price--has long been a holy grail of the photovoltaic industry and other suppliers of alternative energy. Yet despite the company's soaring price share and its multimilliion-dollar order book, First Solar declines to speak to journalists.

In the August issue of IEEE Spectrum, British writer Richard Stevenson combines a journalist's knack for investigation with the expertise of a solid-state physicist to piece together how First Solar has cracked the problem. He concludes that the secret involves not the photovoltaic cell itself but the way in which it is manufactured. Instead of the familiar silicon, the design uses a compound of cadmium and tellurium.

Not long ago it was little more than a laboratory curiosity, largely because nobody had found a practical way to make the cells much larger than a postage stamp. First Solar has now refined the manufacturing procedure to blow up the cells to poster size.

Already the firm has been able to make a profit selling the panels to utilities in a number of countries--particularly Germany--that subsidize alternative energy sources for environmental reasons. Available figures suggest that the manufacturing cost per watt delivered is still too high to compete with that of power delivered on the grid, but First Solar has told investors that it expects to be able to lower the cost substantially.

It seems likely that such improvements, together with the rising price of fossil fuels generally, will enable the company to reach grid parity within just a few years. Indeed, the technology is so promising that it puts into question whether there will be enough tellurium available to make all the solar panels the world is likely to demand. Stevenson's conclusion is that the answer is yes, because increased demand for the panels will stimulate the search for new supplies of the scarce element.

Meanwhile, other photovoltaic technologies continue to advance, not the least of which is silicon. If, as expected, the current shortage of silicon should abate in the coming years, then First Solar's clear lead on the industry may narrow. In any case, photovoltaic cells seem poised to advance from their current role in niche applications to become one of the more important sources of electricity in the world.

Source: IEEE

Related stories:

NREL Solar Cell Sets World Efficiency Record at 40.8 Percent
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have set a world record in solar cell efficiency with a photovoltaic device that converts 40.8 percent of the light that hits it into electricity. This is the highest confirmed efficiency of any photovoltaic device to date.
Scientists mimic essence of plants' energy storage system
In a revolutionary leap that could transform solar power from a marginal, boutique alternative into a mainstream energy source, MIT researchers have overcome a major barrier to large-scale solar power: storing energy for use when the sun doesn't shine.
Improving computer memory, solar cells goal of UH chemist
A high-tech breakthrough in solar cells and flash drives may just come down to good old-fashioned pencil and paper calculations, says an award-winning young chemist at the University of Houston.
A better image for plastic solar cells
A new way to help technologists develop efficient and inexpensive plastic electronic devices, such as plastic solar cells and a new type of transistor was showcased by physicist Andrea Liscio, who is supported by the European Science Foundation, at the EMRS (European Material Research Society) Spring Meeting held in Strasbourg, France at the end of May.
Getting wrapped up in solar textiles
Sheila Kennedy, an expert in the integration of solar cell technology in architecture who is now at MIT, creates designs for flexible photovoltaic materials that may change the way buildings receive and distribute energy.
IBM Research Unveils Breakthrough In Solar Farm Technology
IBM today announced a research breakthrough in photovoltaics technology that could significantly reduce the cost of harnessing the Sun's power for electricity.
Nanowires may boost solar cell efficiency, engineers say
University of California, San Diego electrical engineers have created experimental solar cells spiked with nanowires that could lead to highly efficient thin-film solar cells of the future.
Carbon nanotubes made into conductive, flexible 'stained glass'
Carbon nanotubes are promising materials for many high-technology applications due to their exceptional mechanical, thermal, chemical, optical and electrical properties.

News discussion:

Technology news