Gettering effects by aluminum upon the dark and illuminated I–V characteristics of N–P–P silicon solar cells

Impurity gettering is an essential process step in silicon solar cell technology. A widely used technique to enhance silicon solar cell performance is the deposition of an aluminum layer on the back surface of the cell, followed by a thermal annealing. The aluminum thermal treatment is typically done at temperatures around 600°C for short times (10–30 min). Seeking a new approach of aluminum annealing at the back of silicon solar cells, a systematic study about the effect the above process has on dark and illuminated I–V cell characteristics is reported in this paper. We report results on silicon solar cells where annealing of aluminum was done at two different temperatures (600°C and 800°C), and compare the results for cells with and without aluminum alloying. We have shown that annealing of the aluminum in forming gas at temperatures around 800°C causes improvement of the electrical cell characteristics. We have also made evident that for temperatures below 250 K, the predominant recombination process for our cells is trap-assisted carrier tunneling for both annealing temperatures, but it is less accentuated for cells with annealing of aluminum at 800°C. For temperatures above 250 K, the recombination proceeds through Shockley–Read–Hall trap levels, for cells annealed at both temperatures. Furthermore, it seems from DLTS measurements that there is gettering of iron impurities introduced during the fabrication processes. The transport of impurities from the bulk to the back surface (alloyed with aluminum) reduces the dark current and increases the effective diffusion length as determined from dark I–V characteristics and from spectral response measurements, respectively. All these effects cause a global efficiency improvement for cells where aluminum is annealed at 800°C as compared to conventional cells where the annealing was made at 600°C.     

Manufacturing method for monolithic dye-sensitised solar cells permitting long-term stable low-power modules

A manufacturing technique for monolithic dye-sensitised solar cells is presented. Encapsulated modules designed for indoor low-power applications have been prepared using industrial methods and equipment. Under certain conditions (light intensity <5000 lx, temperature between –10°C and 50°C, and relative humidity of appr. 50%), the modules have performed well and shown excellent long-term stability. Moreover, modules withstand illumination in combination with storage at 100% relative humidity. However, a certain degradation of the module performance takes place at illuminations exceeding 5000 lx and temperatures exceeding 50°C.     

Water-in-glass manifolds for heat extraction from evacuated solar collector tubes

Measurements are reported on three novel manifolds of the water-in-glass type for evacuated all-glasssingle-ended tubular collectors. The manifolds provide for series connection of tubes, but because there is virtually no partitioning of the inner volume of the collector tubes, the manifolds are extremely simple and exhibit low impedance to fluid flow. The efficiency of heat extraction from the tubes has been determined by measuring temperatures at various points on the surface of glass tubes in a panel of area 1.2 m² while heating the tubes electrically to simulate solar energy input. Measurements have been made for a range of tube inclinations (0–80°), water flow rates (0.5–5 lmin⁻¹, water inlet temperatures (13–70°C), and effective solar fluxes (100–1000 W/m²) for two absorber tube diameters. The results show that for a wide range of operating conditions buoyancy effects alone result in efficient heat transfer to the tops of the tubes. The manifold designs described offer a possible low cost solution to the problem of manifolding evacuated collectors for sub-100°C heat extraction for domestic and industrial applications.     

Utilization the concentrated solar energy for process of deformation of sheet metal

Superplastic forming (SPF) is an important industrial process that has found application in sheet metals which saves energy, reduces cost and enhances structural properties in a single operation. One of the essential share of the process is heating of a preform. Due to utilization the concentrated solar energy this operation can be made more simply and cheaper. The goal of this work was to apply the renewable solar energy to current really effective technology.Deformation experiments were performed at schemes both forming with a punch and negative forming. Several aluminum alloys, brass and iron alloy were employed as sheet preforms to obtaining the parts of convex and concave shape. The sheet metals had thickness from 30 μm to 1,5 mm and has been produced by thermal treatment and rolling. The punches were applied of steel and ceramics, the vacuum pump was employed to the negative forming. The mirror dish concentrators both with diameter of 1500 mm and with diameter of 5000 mm were used for heating the metals by solar radiant energy. The solar plant operated in an automatic regime of the Sun tracking to stability the heating. The parts of different shapes were obtained at the temperatures up to 500 °C (Al alloys), 600 °C (brass) and 700 °C (iron alloy) and strain rates from 10⁻⁴ to 10⁻² s⁻¹. Utilization the concentrated solar energy to heating during forming of sheet metals gives the gain and has the perspectives for the places which are distanced from conventional power sources.     

New radiometric techniques and solar constant measurements

A series of absolute cavity radiometers, designed to measure solar irradiance, has been developed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Analysis indicates the absolute uncertainty of irradiance measurements made by the most recent devices to be less than ±0·5 mW/cm².In a series of experiments the radiometric scale defined by the JPL instruments has been compared with the International Pyrheliometric Scale (IPS). A systematic 2·2 per cent difference has been observed with the IPS producing consistently lower measurements.The solar constant and spectral distribution have been derived from high-altitude balloon flight measurements made by two types of JPL cavity radiometers. Measurements at 25 km in 1968 produced a solar constant value of 137·0 mW/cm². From 1969 measurements at 36 km, a value of 136·6 mW/cm² was derived, with an estimated absolute uncertainty of ±0·5 per cent. The solar spectrum information from these experiments agrees most closely with the solar spectrum model of Labs and Neckel.     

Experimental investigation of high temperature congregating energy solar stove with sun light funnel

A solar stove which uses a light funnel to guide light and congregate solar energy has been designed. Its structure and operation principle have been introduced. The performance tests under the real weather have been carried out and the graphic lines of experiment have been given. The experimental result shows that the maximum temperature inside the stove is as high as 250 °C under the condition of 1.5 m² of lighting area, 70% reflectivity of reflecting aluminum foil inside surface of concentrator and no load (without water inside the coil pipe). When reflectivity is 86% the heat collecting efficiency of the device is about 43%. The collecting power that the stove receives can be up to 500 W. It is an ideal medium and high temperature solar energy congregating device suitable for industrial usage or cooking and other domestic usage.     

Comparison of different emitter diffusion methods for MINP solar cells: Thermal diffusion and RTP

A solar cell technology with an extremely small thermal budget was developed for MINP cells. MINP solar cells with efficiencies of up to 15.3% have been achieved by rapid thermal processing (RTP). An emitter diffusion process was simulated and developed that yields a doping profile with a tunnelling oxide in a single furnace step. The P concentration profile was investigated by SIMS measurements and compared to the calculated profile. The SIMS results of the 850°C processing temperature differ from the calculated profile, but the 800°C values showed an excellent conformity. The surface passivation can be improved by an increase of the deposition temperature of the antireflection film. The maximum temperature was appointed with 400°C for MINP and 300°C for pn cells. In comparison with pn cells the temperature stability of MINP cells is significantly higher.     

A SOLAR EJECTOR COOLING SYSTEM USING REFRIGERANT R141b

A high-performance solar ejector cooling system using R141b as the working fluid was developed. We obtain experimentally a COP of 0.5 for a single-stage ejector cooling system at a generating temperature of 90°C, condensing temperature of 28°C, and an evaporating temperature 8°C. For solar cooling application, an optimum overall COP can be obtained around 0.22 at a generating temperature of 95°C, evaporating temperature of 8°C and solar radiation at 700 W m⁻².     

Back contact formation using Cu2Te as a Cu-doping source and as an electrode in CdTe solar cells

Cu₂Te was utilized as a Cu source for p⁺ doping in CdTe and as a primary back contact material in CdTe solar cells. A 60 nm-thick Cu₂Te layer was deposited on CdTe film by evaporating Cu₂Te and the samples were annealed at various temperatures. An amorphous layer was found at the Cu₂Te/CdTe interface, while the Cu₂Te has both orthorhombic and hexagonal phases. Annealing at 200°C completely crystallized the amorphous interlayer and enhanced the transformation of orthorhombic phase into hexagonal phase that has a coherent interface with CdTe. A good p⁺ contact was formed at 180°C annealing, where the series resistance of CdTe cells was a minimum of 0.5 Ω·cm² and the fill factor and open-circuit voltage were significantly improved. With the good p⁺ contact, it is possible to determine the exact dopant profile at the CdS/CdTe junction.     

Performance of a non-metallic unglazed solar water heater with integrated storage system

The performance of a new design of non-metallic unglazed solar water heater integrated with a storage system has been studied. In this system, the collector and storage were installed in one unit. All parts of the system have been fabricated from fiberglass reinforced polyester (GFRP) using a special resin composition that provides good thermal conductivity and absorptivity. The storage tank has a capacity of 329 l. The design of the storage system was sandwich construction, with the core material made out of polyurethane foam, which combines stiffness and lightness of structure with very good thermal insulation. The width and length of the absorber plat were 1.4 and 1.8 m, respectively. The performance of the system has been investigated by two methods. In the first method, the storage tank was filled up with water the night before the test. The tank was then drained during the night, refilled and made ready for the next day’s test. The tests were repeated under varied environmental conditions for several days. The maximum water temperature in the storage tank of 63 °C has been achieved for a clear day operation at an average solar radiation level of 700 W m⁻² and ambient temperature of 30 °C. The decrease of water temperature with and without the thermal diode is 10 and 20 °C, respectively. In the second method, the testing was of the same way, but in this case without draw-off or draining of the hot water from the storage tank. All data readings were recorded from sunrise to sunset over the same period. The temperature was recorded for several days and ranges of 60–63 °C were obtained in the storage tank. A system efficiency of 45% was achieved at an average solar radiation level of 635 W m⁻² and ambient temperature of 31 °C.     

An energy efficient hybrid system of solar powered water heater and adsorption ice maker

A new hybrid system of solar powered water heater and adsorption ice maker has been proposed. The working principle of the combined cycles of solar refrigeration and heating is described, theoretical simulation to the thermodynamic processes has been made. Experiments have been performed in a developed prototype hybrid system; it is verified that the hybrid system is capable of heating 60 kg water to about 90°C as well as producing ice at 10 kg per day with a 2-m² solar collector.     

Industrial production of sodium sulfate using solar ponds

An example of the use of a solar pond in the mining industry, the production of industrial grade sodium sulfate from a mineral consisting in a mixture of sulfate decahydrate, sodium chloride and clays, is described. The industrial solar process uses the solar pond as a basin where the mineral is dissolved at temperatures around 40°C. The sodium sulfate is separated from the concentrated hot solution by fractional crystallization during the night, at low temperature. This design was tested successfully in a prototype with a 400 m² pond. An industrial plant using this process has been working in a batch mode for several years. The plant is described and its operation and costs are analyzed. They compare favorably with the results obtained with a conventional plant because of lower initial investments and operational costs.     

Effectiveness of anisotropic etching of silicon in aqueous alkaline solutions

Optical effectiveness of anisotropic etching of (1 0 0) silicon in inorganic alkaline solution has been studied from the view point of its application in commercial silicon solar cells. The damage caused by ID saw or wire saw during slicing of the wafer is required to be removed for fabrication of solar cells. The etch rates for removal of the surface damages for boron doped Czochralski wafers of 1–2 Ω cm resistivity in 20% NaOH solution at 80°C was measured and was found to be 1.4 μm/min. After the damage removal, texturisation was obtained in 2% NaOH solution buffered with isopropyl alcohol at 80°C. An optical effectiveness parameter f_eff,λ was defined and its value was estimated from the study of reflectivity and topography of the wafers textured for different durations of time. The kinetics of anisotropic etching was studied which indicated that growth of pyramids begins at preferential sites which may arise due to crystalline defects or wetting. Silicon solar cells have been realized by standard process involving phosphorous diffusion and vacuum evaporated front and back contacts. The value of optical effectiveness parameter is found to have a direct correlation with the improvement in short circuit current density of the textured cells.     

Performance of solar driven methanol–water combined ejector–absorption cycle in the Athens area

The performance of a solar driven CH₄O-H₂O combined ejector– absorption unit, operating in conjunction with intermediate temperature solar collectors in Athens, is predicted along the five months (May–September) in case of the unit working as heat pump in an industrial area. The operation of the unit and the related thermodynamics are simulated by suitable computer codes and the required local climatological data are determined by statistical processings over a considerable number of years. It is found that the heat gain factor varies in the range from 2.1330 to 2.4481 for the above period of time. The maximum HGF of about 2.4481 is obtained in July at 14.25 hrs with corresponding specific heat gain power 915 W/m². The maximum Q_gain of about 1086 W/m² is obtained in June at 12.54 hrs with corresponding HGF 2.3572. Also the maximum value of HGF was estimated by correlation of three temperatures: generator temperature (85.0°C–97.2°C), condenser temperature (43.3°C–47.6°C) and evaporator temperature (12.6°C–25.4°C).     

Simulation of solar air heating at constant temperature

Solar space heating with warm air in typical air collectors and rock bed storage systems involves constant air flow rates and varying the temperature of supply to rooms and to storage. This practice results in undesirable fluctuations in comfort levels in the living space, excessive storage size, useful but inaccessible heat in storage, and unnecessarily high energy consumption for air circulation and auxiliary heat. These drawbacks can be avoided by use of a practical controller and variable speed fan to provide heated air from the collector at constant temperature and a continually varying flow rate. Collector manufacturer's data, confirmed by seasonal tests on a solar air heating system in Solar House II at Colorado State University, have been used in simulations at constant hot air supply temperatures of 40°, 50°, and 60°C, and at one typical constant flow rate of 49 kg/h per m² through a 50 m² collector and rock bed storage unit, providing approximately half the seasonal heating requirements of a residential building. Auxiliary heat requirements and fan power use in the 40°C and 50°C constant temperature operations were significantly reduced from the levels prevailing under constant flow conditions. Collection efficiency and solar heat supply at constant flow were slightly higher than values at the 60°C constant temperature level.     

Contact resistivities of sputtered TiN and Ti---TiN metallizations on solar-cell-type-silicon

Contact resistivities of TiN and Ti---TiN contacts on a shallow junction solar-cell-type silicon substrate have been investigated. The contact materials were sputter-deposited. The method of the transmission line model was applied for contact resistivity measurements. The contact resistivity of the n⁺Si---TiN contact system was 2 × 10⁻³ Ωcm² ± 50 per cent and remained constant after annealing up to 700°C for 30 min. For the n⁺Si---Ti---TiN system, the contact resistivity of 9 × 10⁻⁴ Ωcm² ± 50 per cent was measured. A heat treatment of 700°C. 30 min decreases this value by one order of magnitude and the interposed Ti fully reacts with Si and forms a TiSi₂ layer. The voltage drop caused by the n⁺Si---TiN contact system in a standard non-concentrator solar cell is negligible. The n⁺Si---TiSi₂---TiN contact system should be acceptable for Si solar cells used at up to 100 times solar concentration.     

Numerical modeling of CdS/CdTe and CdS/CdTe/ZnTe solar cells as a function of CdTe thickness

CdTe-based solar cells have long been of interest for terrestrial usage because of their high potential conversion efficiency (in the range of 18–24%) with low-cost manufacturability and concern over environmental effects. In order to conserve material and address environmental pollution concerns as well as to reduce carrier recombination loss throughout the absorber layer, efforts have been carried out to decrease the thickness of the CdTe absorption layer to 1 μm. As a result, to date, the experimental part of this study has realized cell efficiencies of 15.3% and 11.5% with 7 and 1.2-μm-thick CdTe layers, grown by close-spaced sublimation (CSS) [N. Amin, T. Isaka, T. Okamoto, A. Yamada, M. Konagai, Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. 38 (8) (1999) 4666; N. Amin, T. Isaka, A. Yamada, M. Konagai, Sol. Energy Matter. Sol. Cells 67 (2001) 195]. Since some problems remain with such thin 1 μm CdTe layers, possible methods to realize higher efficiency have been investigated using novel solar cell structures, with the help of numerical analyses tools. In the theory part of this study, numerical analysis with a 1-D simulation program named NSSP (Numerical Solar Cell Simulation Program) has been used to simulate these structures. We investigated the viability of CdTe thickness reduction to 1 μm together with the insertion of higher band-gap materials (i.e., ZnTe) at the back contacts to reduce carrier recombination loss there. The study shows potential results of the thickness reduction of CdTe absorption layer for a conventional CdS/CdTe/Cu-doped C structure with around 16% efficiency for cells below 3  μm CdTe. Decreases were found in spectral response that suggest from minority carrier recombination loss at the back contact interface. A higher band-gap material like ZnTe has been inserted to produce a back surface field (BSF) to inhibit the minority carrier loss at the back contact. An increase in the efficiency to about 20% has been found for a 1 μm-thin CdTe cell, which can be attributed to the increased BSF effect at the back contact of thinner CdTe-based cells.     

The effect of temperature on the power drop in crystalline silicon solar cells

The influence of temperature and wavelength on electrical parameters of crystalline silicon solar cell and a solar module are presented. At the experimental stand a thick copper plate protected the solar cell from overheating, the plate working as a radiation heat sink, or also as the cell temperature stabilizer during heating it up to 80°C. A decrease of the output power (−0.65%/K), of the fill-factor (−0.2%/K) and of the conversion efficiency (−0.08%/K) of the PV module with the temperature increase has been observed. The spectral characteristic of the open-circuit voltage of the single-crystalline silicon solar cell is also presented. It is shown that the radiation-rate coefficient of the short-circuit current-limit of the solar cell at 28°C is 1.2%/(mW/cm²).     

Crystallization as a limit to develop solar air-cooled LiBr–H2O absorption systems using low-grade heat

In the present work the use of low-temperature solar heat is studied to produce cooling at 5°C, using a double-stage LiBr–H₂O air-cooled absorption cycle. A solar plant, consisting of flat plate collectors feeding the generators of the absorption machine, has been modeled. Operating conditions of the double-stage absorption machine, integrated in the solar plant without crystallization problems for condensation temperatures up to 53°C, are obtained. Results show that about 80°C of generation temperature are required in the absorption machine when condensation temperature reach 50°C, obtaining a COP equal to 0.38 in the theoretical cycle.A comparative study respect to single-stage absorption cycles is performed. Efficiency gain of the double-stage solar absorption system, over the single-stage one, will increase with higher condensation temperatures and lower solar radiation values. Single-stage cycles cannot operate for condensation temperatures higher than 40°C using heat from flat plate collectors. For higher condensation temperatures (45°C) the generation temperatures required (105°C) are very high and crystallization occurs. Condensation temperatures able to use in double-stage cycles may be increased until 53°C using heat from flat plate collectors without reaching crystallization.     

Performance of a collector-cum-storage type of solar water heater

An inexpensive solar water heater of about 701 capacity, combining collection and storage, has been tested. The blackened plate (1.5 m²) of the collector-cum-storage unit of this heater absorbs solar energy and transfers it to the water stored in its enclosure (140 × 90 × 5.5 cm), the water being in direct contact with the absorber plate. The collector-cum-storage unit is enclosed in a wooden box with 10 cm thick glass wool insulation at the bottom and one glass cover.Experiments have been carried out to test the performance of the water heater under four different modes of operation: (a) water circulation with a small pump (b) natural convection conditions (c) water draw-offs taking place when the water is around 50–60°C (d) water flowing continuously past the absorber plate with flow rates of 38, 60, and 75.9 kg/hr. The day-long collection efficiency under the first two modes has been ascertained to be around 50–53 per cent for a rise in water temperature of 57-50°C. For water temperatures between 60 and 70°C, the collection efficiency is around 65-58 per cent. No appreciable difference in the collection efficiencies has been observed under the first two modes of operation. The average collection efficiency under the third mode of testing has been found to be 64.8 per cent with 202.61 of water heated from 38.5 to 58°C. In continuous flow of water past the absorber plate, a collection efficiency as high as 71.8 per cent was attained at the mass flow rate of 75.9 kg/hr, when tested under steady flow conditions. If no water is drawn off during the day, temperatures between 50 and 60°C are reached at about 11 a.m.–12 noon, 60–70°C at 12 noon–1 p.m., and 70–80°C at about 1–2 p.m., the maximum being as high at 86°C by about 3.30 p.m.In addition a theoretical calculation based on Hottel and Woertz equation for the overall heat loss coefficient between the absorber plate and the surroundings for the hourly rise in water temperature shows a very good agreement with the experimentally measured values of water temperatures.