itrpv

The two-pronged attack of vastly growing solar capacity and the shift to n-type technologies has converged to make silver a real pressure point for future solar manufacturing.

Silicon-based tandem solar cells and modules are expected to enter commercial production in 2027 with a module efficiency of 27%, according to the latest International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaic (ITRPV) published by German engineering association VDMA.

The PV industry is undergoing rapid technology changes that have been driven by the well documented, swift adoption of monocrystalline wafers. Less well understood is that, within this wafer technology transition comes a shift to larger wafer sizes and this includes p-type and n-type mono-Si wafers.

Ahead of the PV CellTech 2019 meeting in Penang, Malaysia on 12-13 March 2019, conference chair and head of research at PV-Tech, Finlay Colville, caught up with one of the keynote invited speakers at the event this year: Dr. Weiming Zhang, from leading PV materials supplier Heraeus Photovoltaics.

The PV CellTech 2019 meeting takes place in Penang, Malaysia on 12-13 March 2019. Going into its fourth year, PV CellTech has firmly become the key event for all CTOs and heads-of-R&D.

ITRPV has chosen PV CellTech as the event to premiere the ITRPV annual release again in March 2017. Finlay Colville caught up with Markus Fischer, Co-Chair of the ITRPV Steering Committee.

PV manufacturing capacity expansions planned this year are expected to push production levels beyond anticipated demand in 2016, creating further cost pressures for suppliers.