There are many advantages associated with printed plastic solar technology. The table below explains some of them:
|
Benefit |
Technology / rationale |
|---|---|
|
Low Cost Module Production |
Organic semiconductor materials can be processed from solution at ambient temperatures onto low cost flexible substrates. These properties allow manufacturing on continuous webs (roll-to-roll), resulting in rapid scalability with relatively low capital outlay. |
|
Flexible, Robust, Lightweight Modules |
Processing thin films on lightweight flexible substrates reduces material usage and enables more innovative ways of deploying the resultant modules for new and established markets. |
|
New Capabilities |
The Organic Photovoltaic (OPV) materials used in plastic solar cells can be synthesised using standard organic chemistry methods, offering significant opportunity to vary and tune the properties of the photoactive materials to create optimal systems. Organic solar cell power conversion efficiencies have been steadily increasing over the past few years, and currently champion cells of 8% have been demonstrated. |
|
Abundant, Non-Toxic, Cheap Materials |
Organic polymers and small molecules can be readily synthesised from abundant chemical pre-cursors and do not require exotic rare materials, reducing risks regarding materials supply or costs. The non-toxic nature of the final devices is an important element for widespread acceptance and enables OPV modules to be more easily deployed. |
|
Reduced Balance of System Costs |
The use of mechanically robust, flexible plastic films can dramatically reduce the cost of housing the solar cells (the so called “balance of system” costs). This enables solar technology to be used in new, low cost applications where established technologies are inappropriate |
|
Low Cost Energy Production |
Taken together, the inherent benefits of plastic solar cells are expected to drive a wide variety of applications where plastic solar cells produce electricity at a lower cost than their traditional counterparts. |
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The flexible, semi-transparent nature of plastic solar cells opens up attractive and innovative building design possibilities. Additionally the materials can be tuned over a wide range to achieve attractive colour and aesthetic effects in areas such as deployment in architectural glass within buildings, where the appearance of modules is an important consideration. |