U.S. finally develops an edge against China's solar dominance
Two new technologies for creating solar panels could swing the market leadership back toward American companies, who have lost ground to Chinese competitors in the past few years.
GT Advanced Technologies, which supplies furnaces that turn silicon into wafers for solar-energy cells, has created the pair of new technologies. One is a new furnace technology that can reduce the costs of creating higher-quality wafers. The other is a new technology that improves the efficiency for the cells for less money, too.
These two improvements may allow American manufacturers to be more competitive. The new furnace technology, called Monocast, can allow manufacturers to easily migrate from multicrystalline silicon, which is of lower quality, to the more desirable monocrystalline silicon. With the way GT Advanced Technologies has created Monocast, it can be fitted onto existing furnaces, giving companies access to the new manufacturing technique without the expense required to purchase an entirely new furnace. This is especially important for the solar manufacturers around the world, but primarily in America, who are lagging behind Chinese companies in sales.
The relationship between Chinese and American solar panel makers has been under scrutiny lately. The American companies say subsidies from the Chinese government allow Chinese solar manufacturers to undercut American products and dominate the market. This perceived lack of competitive fairness in the market is leading some American companies to cut production to save money.
In October, American solar manufacturers requested that the U.S. government place a minimum 100% duty on all solar imports from China. American solar manufacturers say that without the duties, their ability to innovate will be stunted, because of lagging sales.
GT Advanced Technologies is hoping its second technology can provide the primary innovation needed to level the playing field.
The process, called HiCz, reduces the cost of placing tiny amounts of phosphorous into monocrystalline silicon. The act of adding the phosphorous is so expensive now that only 10% of solar panels contain phosphorous, according to Technology Review. But GT expects that the introduction of HiCz technology will reduce the cost of producing the more efficient wafers by up to 40%.
GT’s Monocast furnaces already would offer a slight advantage, as its monocrystalline silicon could create about 245 watts of power with a standard-sized panel, better than the 230 watts available from multicrystalline silicon, which is where Chinese solar manufacturers have focused their production. However, the monocrystalline silicon infused with phosphorous can produce 320 watts of power per standard-sized panel, which is quite a boost from the 230 watts common in the market now, potentially providing the technological boost needed to boost American sales.
HiCz’s advantages come because it makes the solar cells more efficient in turning sunlight into power. The infusion of the phosphorus increases the efficiency.
GT Advanced Technologies, which provides materials for both solar and LED products, has undergone tremendous growth in 2011, with sales increasing by 65%. The company changed its name from GT Solar International earlier this year, and its furnace products produced 40,000 metric tons of silicon for solar cells in 2010.
Monocast and HiCz could boost GT’s sales even further when they become available in 2012. Other companies around the world are also working on new processes that can make the process of creating solar cells using monocrystalline silicon. Some companies are looking at the possibility of using inkjet technology to create the solar cells on flexible surfaces. However, the potential of HiCz and Monocast together appear to have some of the best potential for long-term benefits.
These technological boosts are needed because the U.S. government’s appetite for subsidizing solar energy development has soured after the well-publicized bankruptcy of Solyndra, another solar-energy technology company. The bankruptcy caused a loss of a $535 million government-guaranteed loan to Solyndra. With a major election less than a year away, it’s difficult to imagine too many politicians being willing to match their Chinese counterparts and subsidize further solar-related technologies any time soon.
China has shown no signs of ending the government subsidies, so American solar manufacturers need a technological edge to compete. The addition of HiCz may provide that infusion for American manufacturers.