Environments, needs and opportunities for future space photovoltaic power generation: A review

Abstract

This paper aims to assess the potential and requirements of photovoltaic arrays to provide energy for more than 30 mission types to explore 14 celestial bodies in our solar system. The environment that exists at the Earth’s orbits, on the Martian and Lunar dusty surfaces, at the hottest Venus and Mercury, or among the distant Gas Giants, differs radically from one celestial object to another. In consequence, solar-powered spacecraft present many challenges and not all existing photovoltaic technologies have yet been optimized for such a wide variety of conditions. We address these challenges by reviewing the specific constrains of these worlds: solar irradiance levels, mission lifetimes, extreme temperatures and thermal cycling, as well as several specific characteristics such as radiation, chemical compounds, gravity, pressure, and dust. The suitability of photovoltaic arrays during past missions is examined by evaluating their behavior during their lifetime. A focus is made to study the feasibility of concentrator photovoltaics, which demonstrated record performances, reaching a cell efficiency of 47.1%. These systems do not seem to be adapted to missions with environments: highly scattered, with temperatures higher than 523 K and solar irradiances exceeding 3000 W/m2. However, some viable missions such as geostationary Earth orbit, deep space or moon bases can be successfully powered by concentrators. Key issues are addressed to enable the choice of materials and cell technology adapted to these specific missions. This paper presents a comprehensive review that can help spacecraft designers to use photovoltaic arrays to provide energy for space applications.