Efficiency gain of Silicon Ink selective emitter solar cells at module level

Abstract

Innovalight™ previously described an industrially viable approach to fabricate selective emitter (SE) cells based on screen-printed Silicon Ink. In this report we describe the performance of these cells incorporated into photovoltaic modules fabricated at Hanwha SolarOne (formerly Solar-Fun) in Qidong, Jiangsu Province, China. We demonstrate the conservation of the performance gain of Silicon Ink SE cells versus homogeneous emitter (HE) cells after module fabrication. This study is the first systematic and large-scale comparison of full size SE and HE solar panels produced with industry standard materials and facilities. Standard glass and EVA encapsulant used in HE module production at Hanwha SolarOne was used for both the HE and Silicon Ink SE modules. Overall, the cell-to-module (CTM) performance ratio for output power of Silicon Ink SE cells was 94.8 % compared to 95.6 % for HE cells. The fact that the CTM performance ratio for Silicon Ink SE modules was only 0.8 % lower than for HE modules, demonstrates that the performance gains of Silicon Ink SE cells were successfully transferred into the solar module. Ten Modules fabricated on the module production line at Hanwha SolarOne consisting of 54 Silicon Ink 156mm × 156mm SE cells produced at Innovalight have achieved efficiencies of 16.9% (related to the area under the glass, excluding the frame). The Silicon Ink SE modules showed efficiency improvement of over 0.94% (absolute) compared to HE modules fabricated under identical conditions. The Silicon Ink SE modules were submitted to an internationally accredited testing agency and passed certification of PV modules according to the guidelines of IEC-61215.