Four major constraints on the concentrated photovoltaic power generation industry

According to reports, the "12th Five-Year Plan for Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Industry Development" will be released as early as September. Relevant people predict that the development of emerging optoelectronic industries will be given more attention, and the high-concentration solar energy industry will face huge opportunities in the future.

However, due to bottlenecks in core technology, equipment, talent, channels, etc., my country's high-concentration solar energy industry still faces a series of challenges. Xiamen, where the optoelectronic industry is developing rapidly, has accumulated a lot of experience, which is expected to provide reference for other regions in the future.

Four major factors restrict the development of high-concentration solar energy industry

High-concentration photovoltaic cell chips generally use Ge substrates and MOCVD epitaxial process to absorb sunlight in different bands to improve conversion efficiency.

At present, my country is still unable to mass-produce high-concentration solar cells. A researcher from the China Photovoltaic Industry Alliance said in an interview with a reporter from China Economic Times that this situation is mainly caused by four reasons.

First, the cost is high. The high-concentration solar cells currently produced are mainly GaAs cells, and the production cost of their cell chips is relatively high. In addition, the peripheral packaging, lenses and secondary optical devices of such cells also require a large amount of capital investment.

The second is the reliability issue. High-concentration solar cells all have a sunlight tracking system. This is a high-precision system that has high requirements for the surrounding environment. Due to the concentration of high-concentration solar energy, its temperature rises, which will affect the packaging and heat dissipation of the battery chip, and ultimately affect the performance of the battery function.

The third is market application. Due to various reasons, the commercial application of concentrated photovoltaics is still immature. At present, the photovoltaic market is mainly concentrated in Europe and the United States. However, the application of photovoltaic products in these countries is mainly rooftop systems, which to some extent limits the development of high-concentration photovoltaic cells.

Fourth, the toxicity of related elements. High-concentration solar cells contain arsenic, which is a highly toxic element. This has limited the large-scale production of high-concentration solar cells to a certain extent.

However, as a potential development project, high-concentration solar cells also have the potential advantage of large-scale production.

The above-mentioned researcher believes that the production technology of crystalline silicon solar cells is already relatively mature, and there is almost no room for production costs to fall. In the production cost of high-concentration solar cells, the cost of battery chips accounts for 15%, the cost of high-precision sunlight tracking systems accounts for 20%, the cost of packaging accounts for about 20%, and the cost of related optical devices accounts for 10%. Effectively reducing the peripheral production costs of high-concentration solar energy can reduce the production cost of high-concentration solar cells. In addition, the conversion efficiency of high-concentration solar cells is relatively high, currently reaching 43%, and is expected to exceed 50% in the future.

It is understood that high-concentration solar cells cannot be used on roofs like thin-film solar cells. Generally, they can only be used for ground power generation, so their application channels are relatively narrow. However, with the advancement of production technology, the reduction of production costs and relatively high conversion efficiency, the potential market for high-concentration solar cells is huge. Experts predict that by 2020, the application of high-concentration solar cells can account for 10%-15% of the battery market.

Xiamen's experience in the high-concentration solar energy industry

The optoelectronics industry is a pillar industry in Xiamen. In 2010, the total output value of Xiamen's optoelectronics industry reached 77.189 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 90.88%, accounting for about 20% of Xiamen's total industrial output value. In 2011, the total output value of Xiamen's optoelectronics industry is expected to reach about 90 billion yuan.

Xiamen has formed a relatively complete lighting industry chain relying on the leading enterprises in the optoelectronics industry. As it is close to the Taiwan economic circle, Xiamen can learn Taiwan's chip technology, packaging technology and LED lighting technology. The Xiamen Municipal Government attaches great importance to the development of LED and high-concentration solar energy industries. The Xiamen Municipal Government has established an export base in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and invested in the establishment of an exhibition hall for Xiamen lighting technology and products. In addition, Xiamen also strongly supports related enterprises to participate in international exhibitions and subsidizes the exhibition fees of enterprises.

However, the development of Xiamen's high-concentrated solar energy industry also faces some problems. Due to the lack of cooperation between enterprises, vicious competition is very serious. At the same time, the lack of core competitive technology and equipment has also become a bottleneck for Xiamen to develop the LED and high-concentrated solar energy industries.

Yu Jianmin, general manager of Shenzhen Shengrongda Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. of Hong Kong Federal Group, believes in an interview with a reporter from China Economic Times that in addition to government support, the development of Xiamen's high-concentration solar energy industry also requires the efforts of related companies.

First of all, high-concentration solar energy companies must formulate scientific, effective and systematic development plans and develop intelligent products.

Secondly, establish a complete enterprise sales and service system, innovate sales and service methods, save soft costs and improve efficiency.

Secondly, establish a corporate alliance. Xiamen's high-concentration solar energy companies should avoid vicious competition, strengthen cooperation among companies, form a unified alliance in product production, price setting, market operation, etc., and then distribute profits in proportion.