The consortium will develop glasses and new coatings to improve the physical properties of the cover material of PV modules (photovoltaic solar cell modules).Furthermore, novel toughening techniques of thin glass will be investigated, and prototypes will be assembled.
There is a global drive to lower the cost of solar generated electricity. Currently, 3 mm glass is the predominant cover of solar modules and it implies 30 % of the price. Reduction of encapsulant materials can help to minimize the foot print of the solar panel by minimized cost over the whole chain from raw materials to installation.
"We aim to exploit the development of 1 mm toughened glass as encapsulant to produce a light weight, low cost PV module with enhanced efficiency" says Stefan Karlsson, Glafo – the Glass Research Institute, project coordinator.
LIMES aims at promoting excellence in research and innovation in order to enhance the competitiveness of European industry and increase the energy produced by sustainable solar power in the future.
Consortium:
Glafo AB, Sweden, www.glafo.se, Coordinator
Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Spain, www.csic.es
Johnson Matthey Public Limited Company, United Kingdom, www.matthey.com
Sheffield Hallam University, United Kingdom, www.shu.ac.uk
Solar Capture Technologies Ltd, United Kingdom, solarcapturetechnologies.com
SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden AB, Sweden, www.sp.se
For more information, contact Stefan Karlsson, Glafo, tel +46 10-516 63 57, stefan.karlsson@glafo.se
Project website, www.limes.nu