LSA: Low-Cost Solar Array Project. Quarterly project report no. 7 for the period October 1977--December 1977

Abstract

This report describes the activities of the Low-Cost Silicon Solar Array Project during the period October through December 1977. The LSSA Project is assigned responsibility for advancing silicon solar array technology while encouraging industry to reduce the price of arrays to a level at which photovoltaic electric power systems will be competitive with more conventional power sources early in the next decade. Set forth here are the goals and plans with which the Project intends to accomplish this and the progress that was made during the quarter. The Project objective is to develop the national capability to produce low-cost, long-life photovoltaic arrays at a rate greater than 500 megawatts per year and a price of less than $500 per kilowatt peak by 1986. The array performance goals include an efficiency greater than 10% and an operating lifetime in excess of 20 years.