Color, graphic design and high efficiency for photovoltaic modules

Author

Klampaftis, Efthymios ; Ross, David ; Richards, Bryce S.

Author_Institution

Sch. of Eng. & Phys. Sci., Heriot-Watt Univ., Edinburgh, UK

fYear

2014

fDate

8-13 June 2014

Abstract

Luminescent materials suitably embedded into the architecture of photovoltaic (PV) modules can increase the short-wavelength response, and thus efficiency, of nearly all inproduction PV technologies. At the same time, visible-wavelength luminescence that escapes the modules due to its omnidirectional nature is perceived as color when it reaches the human eye. It is shown that this “lost” luminescence can be used for the application of aesthetical as well as functional coloration, while maintaining or even increasing in favorable cases the efficiency of commercial PV modules. Performance enhancement of 0.4 mA/cm² is reported for a CdTe mini-module with a custom graphical design.

Keywords

cadmium compounds; computer graphics; elemental semiconductors; photoluminescence; photovoltaic cells; power engineering computing; tellurium compounds; PV technologies; cadmium telluride mini module; custom graphical design; functional coloration; luminescent materials; photovoltaic modules; short-wavelength response; visible-wavelength luminescence; Color; Encapsulation; Materials; Photonics; Photovoltaic cells; Photovoltaic systems; color; encapsulation; energy efficiency; green buildings; luminescence; photovoltaic systems;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Photovoltaic Specialist Conference (PVSC), 2014 IEEE 40th

Conference_Location

Denver, CO

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/PVSC.2014.6925025

Filename

6925025