![]() ![]() Research continued, centered in France and spreading elsewhere, on thermal energy generation from solar radiation. 6 Fritts applied for but never received a patent on his work. Even by the 1980’s, selenium cells had achieved no more than a 5.0% energy conversion rate. 4 Although others continued to develop and patent photovoltaic cells based on selenium, 5 it eventually fell out of favor. Fritts’ selenium cells achieved an energy conversion rate of less than 1 percent. 2 Following English electrical engineer Willoughby Smith’s discovery in 1873 that selenium demonstrates this photovoltaic effect, 3 Charles Fritts in 1883 developed and installed the world’s first solar panel from selenium cells in New York City.Īlthough Fritts argued that his solar cells would soon compete with the coal-fired plants that Thomas Edison had built just three years earlier, his work was met by skepticism in the US. The story of the solar cell began in 1839 with French scientist Edmond Becquerel’s discovery that platinum electrodes coated with silver halides generates electricity when illuminated with blue or ultraviolet light. The early years: selenium, heat and thermopiles In this article, we review that history, as captured in the patents filed contemporaneously with the technological innovation. ![]() That history is also littered with the names of some of the foremost scientists and engineers to walk this earth. Aided by patent protection, this centuries-long technological innovation has steadily improved solar energy conversion efficiency while lowering volume production costs. This exponential adoption has been made possible by 180 years of continuing technological innovation in this industry. Several countries are edging towards double-digit contribution to their electricity needs from solar technology, a trend that by most accounts is forecast to continue into the foreseeable future. ![]() Today, a solar panel can cost as little as $0.50 a watt. By 1975, that figure had dropped to just over $100 a watt. 1 In 1956, solar panels cost roughly $300 per watt. This is at standard market PERC cost-of-production, lowering the cost of solar energy (LCOE) by 25% relative to monofacial systems and by 7-10% relative to other Bifacial cell technologies available or coming to market.For example, worldwide solar photovoltaic capacity had grown to 512 Gigawatts by the end of 2018 (representing 27% growth from 2017). SolAround offers a possible solution: its new p-PERT PV solar cell technology produces 10- 40% more energy per unit area installed, per installation type and operating conditions, compared to current mono-facial and bifacial systems. According to the International Energy Agency, advancement on energy technologies is failing to keep pace, raising concerns about meeting long-term climate goals. The key is highly efficient photovoltaic cells, with high energy production and higher energy density per installed unit, while maintaining low production costs. ![]() However sustained growth in the market is contingent on the continued decrease of the price of solar energy. A new disruptive bifacial p-PERT PV cell technology, with over 90% bi-facility and higher stability, providing n-type Si performance in p-type silicon is coming to Europe and the U.S.Īnalysts predict that solar and wind energy will provide almost 50% of the world’s power by 2050, with renewables accounting for 90% of new power capacity expansion globally in 2021-22. Cutting-edge technology is combining with unmet demand in a now stagnant solar PV market to progress clean energy transitions. ![]()
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