DuPont will team with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for a $9 million solar research program funded in part by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
DuPont will provide $6 million and the DOE will contribute $3 million to the program, which the chemical company described as part of its effort to “provide more mainstream solar photovoltaic (PV) products for commercial and residential applications.”
The three-year program will accelerate commercialization of an ultra-thin protective film – more than 3,000 times thinner than a human hair – that prevents moisture from degrading the performance of thin-film PV modules.
Thin-film PV modules, with their potential to reduce the costs of producing solar energy, are expected to be the fastest-growing segment of the solar module industry. Thin-film PV panels can be made with flexible plastic instead of glass, and can be bent and wrapped, offering greater versatility and easier integration into the roofing, windows or siding of a commercial or residential building. Environmental degradation can take place without glass protecting the sensitive portions of the module.
Ultimately, the DOE-funded program will help enable the broad, commercial production of flexible PV modules that are durable and lightweight with higher efficiency. The initial focus of the program is on Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS) type thin-film PV modules; however, the technology could be leveraged into other PV technologies and potentially into other industries.
DuPont has said it expects to nearly triple its annual photovoltaic sales to more than $1 billion in 2012.
