Solliance is planning a four new webinars in the coming period. After a successful serie at the end of last years, we decided to come with a serie in depth webinars with experts from all our partners. In two of the coming episodes we focus on the research behind durability and lifetime of thin-film solar. On the other two episodes we focus on the developments and possibilities of mass customisation, the large volume production of solar semi-fabricate products, that can be applied in highly customised end-products.

Encapsulating and lifetime

With input from our audience, we decided to take a deeper dive in the protection and lifetime of thin-film solar technologies. Just like conventional silicon, thin-film is vulnerable to moisture and oxygen. A good and flexible protection layer is essential to lifetime. Dr Mirjam Theelen (TNO) is researching the fail mechanismes within the CIGS cell by isolating a deceased cell for a module and measuring its properties. Because these modules were used in the field and malfunctioned under normal circumstances, these measurements can tell us what happened cell level.

Prof. Michaël Daenen takes an other interesting perspective. By trying to build thin-film sensors into cell, he is able to measure the condition under which a solar cell has to operate. From this he is able to learn how to prevent these conditions or toughen the cells against it.

Frank Huijnen (Yparex) and Aldo Kingma (TNO) will do a webinar on encapsulating materials and methodes. Yparex is developing solar applied encapsulants and is focussing on flexible PV. Aldo is researching lifetime effects of materials and processes to be used on the pilot production line for mass production of solar integrated semi fabricate building materials.

Mass customisation

Imagine buying an easy-to-laminate solar wallpaper, a solar integrated semi-finished product that you can apply yourself and simply connect. Solliance partners TNO, imec and UHasselt are working on production, integration and application. In the last two episodes, Marc Koetse (TNO), Marc Meuris (imec), Michaël Daenen (Uhasselt) will tell you about the research these institutes are doing into production processes and the application of thin-film laminates that are cost-effective and easy to apply in industrial processes.