Open AccessReview—Research Needs for Photovoltaics in the 21st Century
Author(s) -
Meng Tao,
Hiroki Hamada,
Thad Druffel,
Jae Joon Lee,
Krishnan Rajeshwar
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
ecs journal of solid state science and technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.488
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 2162-8777
pISSN - 2162-8769
DOI - 10.1149/2162-8777/abd377
Subject(s) - photovoltaics , silicon , copper indium gallium selenide solar cells , materials science , wafer , cadmium telluride photovoltaics , electricity , engineering physics , solar cell , process engineering , solar energy , photovoltaic system , nanotechnology , environmental science , electrical engineering , engineering , metallurgy , optoelectronics
By 2050, the scale of installed solar panels must reach about 100 TWp in order to make a tangible impact on our energy mix and carbon emissions. Thin-film amorphous silicon panels are the only technology today capable of 100 TWp installation. Wafer silicon panels could reach 100 TWp if the silver in silicon panels is replaced with copper or aluminum. Cadmium telluride and copper indium gallium selenide would become technologies of insignificance in the big picture. For energy-efficient production of silicon panels, research is needed in energy-efficient purification of silicon, low kerf loss wafering of silicon, and an Earth-abundant top cell on silicon. Alternatively we can pursue a new cell technology which is more energy efficient than silicon and utilizes only Earth-abundant materials. For any cell technology, research is needed to improve the cost, efficiency, and sustainability including storage technologies for daily to multiyear storage and for regional and global trade of solar electricity, recycling technologies to minimize cost and maximize revenue from waste panels, and systems and applications for real-time and in situ consumption of solar electricity.