| EPSRC Reference: |
EP/N508433/1 |
| Title: |
OSI - One Step Interconnect for Thin Film PV Modules |
| Principal Investigator: |
Walls, Professor JM |
| Other Investigators: |
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| Researcher Co-Investigators: |
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| Project Partners: |
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| Department: |
Wolfson Sch of Mech, Elec & Manufac Eng |
| Organisation: |
Loughborough University |
| Scheme: |
Technology Programme |
| Starts: |
01 July 2015 |
Ends: |
31 December 2017 |
Value (£): |
217,757
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| EPSRC Research Topic Classifications: |
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| EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications: |
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| Related Grants: |
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| Panel History: |
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
The market for photovoltaic (PV) modules has expanded dramatically from 6.4GW in 2009 to 37GW in 2013. PV demand is
poised for explosive growth to reach 49GW in 2014, and is forecast to reach up to 100GW by 2018. This end-market
growth is projected to increase annual PV module revenues, which are forecast to reach US$50 billion in 2018. Despite
being severely hampered by overcapacity and declining operating margins during 2012 and 2013, the PV industry still grew
34% over this two-year period. Thin film PV has approximately a 10% market share and has inherent cost advantages,
especially in the development of utility scale installations. As part of the manufacturing process, it is necessary to
interconnect gridded areas of the PV module to form long series connected PV regions. In this project, the interconnect will
be achieved using a new laser ablation/inkjet process that works at speeds of up to 3m/sec. This will radically change the
way modules are produced by reducing complexity and cost of manufacture. The sales target for this new process is
>$10m per annum with attractive ongoing sales of specialist inks. The primary objective is to develop the OSI process and
materials for semi-transparent perovskite for Building Integrated PV glazing applications, a very promising market. The
secondary and tertiary objectives are to develop the process and materials for CIGS and CZTS, respectively.
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Key Findings |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
| Summary |
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| Date Materialised |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
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| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.lboro.ac.uk |