At Sinovoltaics.com, we’ve published the report “A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Photovoltaic (Module) Certifications”. If you want to learn more about PV module certifications and, this video will give you a 5 minute introduction to pv module certifications.

Features of the Comprehensive Guide to Solar Photovoltaic Module Certifications:

1. The first and only complete guide on solar panel certifications
2. A must read for any pv expert.
3. A comprehensive, 200 page explanatory guide, which will make you an instant expert on pv certifications.
4. Learn about current PV module certification trends and developments
5. Report contains expert interviews with major testing and certification labs
6. You will discover everything about International + Country specific + Environmental certifications.
7. The report will give you a complete understanding about the certification bodies and highlights the lab tests they perform.
8. After reading the reading report, you will be able to assess the significance, advantages and loopholes of recycling schemes related to solar pv modules.
9. Finally help to Identify scams and avoid pitfalls, such as Identifying fake certifications, when you purchase solar panels.

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Company introduction:
Sunowe Photovoltaic was set up in March 2005 by the Hong Kong U-Tron International Investment Group. The vertically integrated company produces solar cells, wafers and crystalline modules with an annual cell and module production capacity of over 450MW. Sunowe is headquarterd in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province, and maintains branch offices in Austria (Vienna), Germany (Nürnberg), Hong Kong (Kowloon) and USA (Milipas). Currently, Sunowe employs more than 1500 people worldwide. In August 2010, Sunowe went public on the ChiNex stock market board in Shenzhen (code: 300111).

Projects:
The Shaoxing-based pv manufacturer has been involved in a range of large international pv projects, among them a 20 MW power plant in Malaga, Spain, a 4.5 MW solar power plant in Leupheim, Germany and a 450 kW system in the French overseas départment La Réunion.

Products and factory:
Sunowe’s portfolio of mono- and poly-crystalline PV modules comprises 125mmx125mm and 156mmx156mm PV modules with output power ranges between 150Wp – 300Wp. In their Shaoxing factory, Sunowe uses modern European – predominantly first class German – machines and production equipment for the manufacturing of it’s pv modules. The panels are manufactured in modern facilities and modern production chain with structured process control.

Certifications:
The manufacturer has obtained a range of important certifications for its pv modules: apart from being qualified according to IEC 61215 and IEC 61730 – certified by TÜV Rheinland, the company also obtained TÜV-tested and certified IEC 61701 (salt mist corrosion certification) and IEC 62176 (ammonia corrosion) certifications which are increasingly asked for by Australian, Greek and Indian companies, certifications which are particulary required for solar panels installed in coastal areas. Furthermore, Sunowe’s solar panels come with UL 1730, CEC, CE, JetPV and MCS. The manufacturer also participates in the PV Cycle mechanism.

Insurances:
Apart from having obtaiend a complete set of major solar panel certifications, Sunowe’s panels come with a similarly extensive insurance coverage. Liability insurance is insured by Sun Alliance Insurance (China), moreover Sunowe’s panels are covered by Dutch Solar Insurance & Finance (Solarif) re-insurance certification. Thus, Sunowe’s clients can insure on project level – as option on the operational insurance – against damages arising from or caused by an inherent defect and the warranty, up to a maximum period of 20 years.

Quality evolution from Sunflower to Sunowe & conclusion:
The solar panels of the Shaoxing-based manufacturer – back then still publicly under the Sunflower brand – suffered in the early years after the company’s establishment from a range of larger “children deseas”. Many customers, particularly from the critical German market – and one of Sunowe’s major markets – reported bad panel quality, involving discolouration, solder spots, delamination, low output, which earned the company a rather negative reputation in terms of quality and also explains to some degree the brand name switch to Sunowe.

Fast-forward to nowadays, the quality of Sunowe’s panels has significantly improved and those recurrent defects and efficiency problems from the early days have been largely contained. Sunowe’s panels are quality-wise doing quite well, nevertheless, judging from previous quality assessments, Sunowe’s pv panels can (still) not be put in the same line with 1st tier quality manufacturers as random inspection and testing showed regularly minor defects, cleanliness problems and cell aesthetics issues (e.g. CCDs). T

Do you have experience with Sunflower/ Sunowe solar modules? Feel free to comment.

Solar panel (PV) quality inspections

Are you purchasing solar (pv) panels, inverters or mounting systems in China? At Kisun Solar Consultancy Services we perform independent quality inspections at solar manufacturers factories in China.

Advantages:

1. Replace defects prior to shipment
2. Independent testing report
3. 100% certainty about product quality and performance
4. International testing crew specialized in PV panels

Read more about solar panel quality inspections in China & request a FREE example inspection report

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Company introduction
Soon after having been set up, in September 2007, the Spanish multinational pv enterprise Solarig SA took a 25% stake in Shuqimeng, principal investor and parent company is Hangzhou Fulaite Plastic Development with total investment of 40 Million Dollars. Shuqimeng has no overseas offices and sells its panels through a small network of agents. Main markets of Shuqimeng are Oceania and Central Europe.
 
Production range & capacity
Shuqimeng employs around 1000 people and has an annual production capacity of 200 MW and produced over 130 MW in 2012. Using modern Japanese and German machinery in its automated production line, the company produces crystalline panels with power ranges of 5W up to 300W. Increasingly popular, Shuqimeng produces apart from standard white panels also all-black pv modules as a new addition to their product lineup. Moreover, the Hangzhou-based manufacturer also offers contract manufacturing services (OEM) to national and international customers.

 
Certifications
The Zhejiang-based manufacturer has obtained major international certifications for its modules including IEC 61215 and IEC 61730 certified by TÜV, CE certified by SGS and also possesses UL 1730 certification. Furthermore, Shuqimeng’s panels are also certified for other key markets such as the UK (MCS) and South Korea (KEMCO) and most importantly CEC (Australia). The panels come with a standard warranty of 25 years and are insured via Zurich Insurance.
 
Quality assessment in brief and conclusion
Kisun Solar Consultancy Services has in the past performed quality inspections at the Hangzhou-based manufacturer, which has proved to produce panels of decent yet not premium quality solar panels which has lead to the request for independent quality inspection. As the manufacturer is not an aggressive player on the PV market and in view of current turbulences in the industry, Shuqimeng will not have an easy time as compared to other more aggressive SME pv manufacturers.

Do you have experience with Shuqimeng solar modules? Feel free to comment.

Solar panel (PV) quality inspections

Are you purchasing solar panels or other pv products in China? At Kisun Solar Consultancy Services we perform independent quality inspections at solar manufacturers factories in China and warehouses overseas.

Advantages:

1. Replace defects prior to shipment
2. Independent testing report
3. 100% certainty about product quality and performance
4. International testing crew specialized in PV panels

Read more about solar panel quality inspections in China & request a FREE example inspection report

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1. Scratches on the glass
2. Cell breakages
3. Micro cracks
4. Interrupted contactfingers
5. Off-spec pv module performance.

Part 2 will be released soon!

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Nano coatings have been extensively used on glass, and the advantages are well known.  A coating can make glass Hydrophobic & Dust Repellant and therefore makes it easier to clean the glass.

For that reason it doesn’t come as a big surprise that special coatings for pv modules have been developed recently. But are these coatings really worth it and does a 8nm coating really increase efficiency like some suppliers claim?

For all weather conditions ?

Under most weather circumstances, pv modules only need cleaning a couple of times per year. However in some countries, the conditions are different and panels get dirty much quicker.

For instance here in Shanghai people usually wash their car twice a week! Rain with pollution leaves a lot of dirt. Just like the cars, pv modules will need cleaning regularly and this is where the application of Nano coatings may be handy.

Circumstances where a Nano coating can be useful:

1. Lots of rain
2. Dust or sand
3. Pollution

University of Houston’s Institute for NanoEnergy

Pros and cons

Let’s have a closer look at the advantages that manufacturers claim to offer – there are so many that they can’t possibly all be true.. – and a brief overview of what’s available on the market.

Advantages

The three main advantages of Nano coatings for solar panels are the following:

Hydrophobic

One of the advantages that counts for pv modules installed in rainy climates are the hydrophobic properties. This causes water to repel more quickly than uncoated “self-cleaning glass”, which is typically offered by pv manufacturers. This hydrophobic coating helps panels to let water flow off more easily and therefore would make the solar panel more efficient during inclement weather.
That’s an interesting claim, and it makes you wonder how much direct sunlight shines on a pv module anyway during heavy rain?

Without Nano Coating

With Nano Coating

Self-cleaning properties

The coating’s self-cleaning effect stops dust and bird poo from sticking to PV panels. With the help of the coating, all dirt will be easily removed after a little bit of rain or after manually spraying water on the panels.
This would help the panels to stay clean, maintain their efficiency and ensure that the maximum amount of electricity is produced. You would still need to ‘water your pv modules’ regularly to remove the dirt, in case you’re living in a warm climate without much rain.

Maintenance

Climbing on a roof to clean pv modules may be dangerous. Hiring someone else to do it, can be costly. If you can limit maintenance by simply spraying some water on the roof, and let the Nano coating do the rest, it sounds like a good alternative.

Solar panel Cleaning

Disadvantages

Increased efficiency?

Applying an extra coating on top of the surface of a clean pv module will not necessarily increase the efficiency. In fact, an extra coating will most likely reduce the transmissivity of sunlight.

It’s important to understand that efficiency is only gained, when the reduced light transmission caused by dirt is removed with the help of the coating. You will still need to wash off the pv modules regularly to keep them clean.

DIY vs ready made

There are some manufacturers of pv modules that now apply the Nano coating already in their factory. In a market where 99% of the suppliers offer a similar product, I guess a Nano coating is a welcome differentiation for sales people in our industry. However seen the low costs of the DIY Nano coatings, I wouldn’t actually pay more for solar panels that have the coating already on it.
Also I would be keen to see actual test results of these coatings, as I haven’t received any from the pv manufacturers that I asked.

Conclusion

Finally some claims from suppliers are hard to verify, such as

“… the coating pays for itself in under a year.”

“Nanocoating increases efficiency up to 30%”

Other suppliers claim that their coating “Is resistant to salty air”. Perhaps it is true, however this would only be an advantage when the coating is also applied on the corrosive parts of the pv module ie. the frame. Besides that, pv modules that have passed the Salt Mist Corrosion Test are already sufficiently protected against salty air.

Based on what I’ve read and on a few test that I performed myself, I believe that Nano Coatings may be a good solution in areas where a lot of dust and dirt lands on the pv modules, and it will help to wash dust and dirt away with rainwater. I’m less convinced that the Hydrophobic effect of Nano Coatings will help to remove rainwater quicker from the solar panels and therefore would increase efficiency of the pv module. Perhaps future testing data will change my opinion on this.

Companies:

Companies that develop Nano Coatings for solar panels:

Nanopool

Nanopool ® GmbH is an innovative family business located in Germany. Since 2001 its main activity is in the surface refinement field and recently it developed a Nano Coating for pv modules. Visit company website here.

Nanoshell

NanoShell ltd is a UK owned company with the ability to deliver cutting edge nano coatings and impregnators to clients in any part of the world. The company has developed a Nano Coating that can be applied by end users. Visit their website section on pv here.

P2i	P2i specializes in invisible surface functionality and has developed a Nano Coating for pv modules. Visit their website here.

Nanoclear	Nanoclear is involved in the manufacturing and supplying of a broad array of Nano Clear Treatment – Nano Clear Protective Coatings For Glass & Ceramics. Recently it has launched a coating specifically for pv modules. Visit their website here.
	NanoSonic is a US based company and has developed HybridShield Solar, a coating that can provide higher efficiency, self-cleaning properties and enhanced performance to photovoltaic (PV) panels or concentrating solar power (CSP) mirrors. HybridShield Solar is a non-halogenated, low-VOC, spray-on or brush-on coating that is non-toxic at every stage of development. Visit company website here.

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Welcome to this introduction on solar panel certifications

Recently at Sinovoltaics.com we’ve published the report “A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Photovoltaic Certifications”. This video will give you a 5 minute introduction to pv module certifications and will tell you about the following topics:

1. Why do we need PV certifications?
2. When you certify a new solar product, how does the process work, and what are the certification bodies involved?
3. And as a pv expert, what are the main international, country specific and environmental certifications that you should know about?

Most people in the pv industry see PV certifications as a reference of trust, because they stand for certain safety, quality and performance standards. Besides that, certifications have become a legal entry barrier in many countries.

So can PV certifications be trusted blindly? And are certified solar panels always of excellent quality? The answer, unfortunately, is no.

Certification bodies

Certification bodies issue the pv certifications to factories. Most PV module manufacturers will contact either the German bodies:

1. TÜV Rheinland
2. TÜV Süd
3. VDE.

Other less frequently used options are:

1. Swiss SGS
2. French Bureau Veritas
3. American Intertek

These major certification bodies own the labs in which new solar products can be tested. The certification of a PV module is a multilevel-process and may take several months before completion.

Certification process

It’s usually the pv manufacturer that submits a new solar product with a certification body.

A pv factory submits:

1. Solar panel samples
2. Documentation
3. Factory audit

After the certification body will start accelerated lab tests, that will be executed over a period of 3 to 6 months time.

Examples for such lab tests are:

• Climate chamber tests, that simulate extreme weather circumstances.
• Mechanical load tests that simulate wind and snow load.

When a dozen of these test are successfully passed, the pv certifications are issued.

International certifications

The main certifications are:

IEC 61215 – Aging of pv modules

IEC 61646 – Similar to 61215, for Thin Film modules.

IEC 61730 – Electrical safety qualifications

IEC 62108 – CPV, concentrator PV modules

Besides these, there are several more International Certifications to learn and know about.

Besides the international certifications, there are many country-specific certifications:

Country-specific certifications

-    CEC – Australia, Clean Energy Council
-    INMETRO, Brazil
-    JET PV, Japan
-    NRE, South Korea
-    CNS, Taiwan

There are dozens more country specific certifications.

On top of the international and country specific certifications, there are standards related to the ecological conformity of pv modules.

Environmental certifications

We divide them in 3 categories:

1. Environmental Certifications
2. Recycling schemes, such as PV Cycle
3. Environmental regulations, such as WEEE Directives

If this information was useful and you want to learn more about pv certifications, I recommend you to download the report called “A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Photovoltaic Certifications”.

<DOWNLOAD NOW>

1. The first and only complete guide on solar panel certifications
2. A must read for any pv expert.
3. A comprehensive, 200 page explanatory guide, which will make you an instant expert on pv certifications.
4. Learn about current PV module certification trends and developments
5. Report contains expert interviews with major testing and certification labs
6. You will discover everything about International + Country specific + Environmental certifications.
7. The report will give you a complete understanding about the certification bodies and highlights the lab tests they perform.
8. After reading the reading report, you will be able to assess the significance, advantages and loopholes of recycling schemes related to solar pv modules.
9. Finally help to Identify scams and avoid pitfalls, such as Identifying fake certifications, when you purchase solar panels.

The Guide is now available for a temporary introduction price of 97 USD. Click here to DOWNLOAD.

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Even though they are nearly impossible to avoid in the long-run, their potential impacts pose quite a serious issue that should be addressed as early as possible – a requirement that is only insufficiently met during quality control at many manufacturers.

Micro cracks may have various defect origins and result in rather “soft” outcomes such as yield-reducing shattering of parts of the affected cell up to mores severe impacts involving decreases of the short circuit current and cell efficiency. Often, they are a result of mechanical forces or thermal stress. In the production process, micro cracks most frequently occur during lamination of the panel, especially when using certain EVA films with weak moisture impermeability. If in such cases even slight moisture occurs it cannot easily evaporate which is particularly problematic in hot areas and environments. The moisture may in such cases pass through the micro cracks on the front of the laminate, followed by the oxidization of the contact fingers.

Micro crack in a mono-crystalline solar (pv) module

Micro cracks can also occur during manual soldering when varying thermal expansions of the copper and the silicon elements develop at temperatures above 300°C. Those temperature differentials can lead to the formation of micro cracks in the substrate and thus result in higher cell resistance.

Cracks potentially grow over a longer operational time and thus extend their malicious impact on the functionality and performance of a pv module, potentially triggering hot spots as well. Undetected, micro-cracks can result in a less than expected field lifespan. They differ in size, location on the cell and impact quality.

There are different quality testing methods to identify micro cracks of which electroluminescence (EL) testing is one of the most applied method. EL testing can detect hidden defects that were before untraceable by other testing methods, such as IR imaging with thermal cameras, V-A characteristic and flash testing. It is an imaging measurement process allowing to peer directly into the cells of a pv module and locate potential inherent defects.

EL test - defect cells

Optimally, EL testing is performed once before the lamination process so that the defect solar cells can be replaced and then again after (careful) lamination. This procedure costs time and manpower which not all pv manufacturers are willing to invest in the quality of their produced solar panels.

Visually, micro-cracks may appear in form of so called snail trails on the cell structure. However, snail trails – as a long-term impact sign – can also be the result of chemical process causing the surface of the cell to change and/ or hot spots. Therefore, visual checking of pv modules alone is not an effective method to identify micro-cracks and should not replace a thorough electroluminescence check.

Solar panel (PV) quality inspections

Are you purchasing solar panels in China? At Kisun Solar Consultancy Services we perform independent quality inspections at manufacturers of solar pv modules as well as inverters and mounting structures in China and their overseas warehouses.

Advantages:

1. Replace defects prior to shipment
2. Independent and confidential testing report
3. 100% certainty about product quality and performance
4. International testing crew specialized in solar (PV) technology

Read more about our PV quality inspections and consultancy services in China & request a FREE example inspection report

Useful references:
a) http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2010/12/minimizing-micro-cracks-in-solar-cell-interconnection-during-manual-soldering
b) http://idealpv.com/ESW/Files/Solar_Cell_Microcracks_Are_Inevitable_And_idealPV_
FOZHS_Makes_Them_Irrelevant_120323c.pdf

• PV company report: GESOLAR
• GPHLAMS: small-size pv modules

You can find the link to the forum in the navigation bar on the upper side:

Moreover, we will in the very near future offer you more new features and free stuff on this site.

Stay tuned!

Team SINOVOLTAICS

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GPHLAMS: small-size, low-power output pv modules
Other than most manufacturers in China, GPHLAMS – although having higher output mono- and poly solar panels in its product lineup as well – specializes in particular in the development and production of small-size pv modules with power output ranges starting from as low as 3W. GPHLAMS’ products specifically aim at meeting the demands and requirements for small-scale and very economic pv modules in the South Asian and Southeast Asian markets. Every of our Indian clients unisono confirmed that such small solar panels were ideal for their rural electrification pv projects, reaching customers that do not require much more than stable supply of electricity for their low-consumption appliances such as bulbs, fans and televisions, but that would also never have been able to afford a large pv system producing power beyond their real daily needs.

Big minus: lack of standard certifications
Even though certifications and warranties alone are not enough to guarantee product quality as a once obtained certification is not followed by regular re-inspections, GPHLAMS pv modules are yet to prove that they are capable of meeting the standard qualification and safety testing according IEC standards, most importantly IEC 61215 (ageing of pv modules), IEC 61730 (safety of pv modules) and IEC 61345 (and UV testing). The manufacturer currently only holds ISO and CE certifications which in fact do not tell much about the overall quality of the manufacturer’s pv modules.

Performance during quality inspections
Pre-shipment quality inspections on finished goods at GPHLAMS, performed by Kisun Solar Consultancy Services, have shown that GPHLAMS’ modules have done quite okay in terms of quality and on average over 95% of the tested modules have performed within positive tolerance levels of +3%. Minor and repairable issues such as welding spots on cells and poor sealing of the modules as well as missing labels have been quite frequent and were recovered during quality inspections.

Conclusion
PV modules ordered from GPHLAMS currently come with inadequate certification and thereof lacking standard quality and safety conformity. From our experience, even though the average quality of GPHLAMS’ pv modules has been more than acceptable and are certainly a good buy especially for solar pv projects in rural South- and Southeast Asia, rampant minor quality issues and overlooked quality control details internally before final shipment make a strong case for systematic quality inspections.

Solar panel (PV) quality inspections

Are you purchasing solar panels in China? At Kisun Solar Consultancy Services we perform independent quality inspections at manufacturers of solar pv modules as well as inverters and mounting structures in China and their overseas warehouses.

Advantages:

1. Replace defects prior to shipment
2. Independent and confidential testing report
3. 100% certainty about product quality and performance
4. International testing crew specialized in solar (pv) technology manufactured in China

Read more about our PV quality inspections and consultancy services in China & request a FREE example inspection report

• PV company report: GESOLAR
• PV Module aesthetics: an introduction to Cell Color Deviations (CCDs)

Organic solar cells are one of the promising new cell technologies.

Currently organic solar cells have reached an efficiency of only 10%, and researchers  expect it to increase to 15% in the coming 3 to 5 years.  Efficiency is lower than standard silicon solar cells when measured under Standard Testing Conditions (STC), however there are major advantages compared to Silicon (Si) cell technology:

Advantages organic solar cells

Organic solar cells carry several advantages, including the following:

1. Low cost materials, the materials used in organic solar cells have low production costs when produced on a large scale.
2. Temperature resistance, temperature increases do barely affect the efficiency of organic solar cells, which means organic solar cells have the same performance during hot weather.  As you probably know, silicon solar cells show a 0.5% drop in output for every degree in temperature increase above 25C, which leads to large performance losses.
3. Light absorbance. On top of that, organic solar cells absorb de-fractioned light (just like thin films), which means the organic cells perform already during the early and late hours of the day. Silicon solar cells work best with direct sunlight only.

Organic flexible solar cells

Concerns organic solar cells

To benefit from the potential advantages of organic solar cells, research will need to overcome a few challenges. These are main ones:

1. Lifetime organic solar cells. The main concern for organic solar cells is the lifetime. Currently lifetime is only around 6 years, which is not enough to compete with current mainstream cell technologies.
   To improve the lifetime and reliability of organic cells, research team need to make several advances, including:
2. Encapsulation. Like any solar cells, organic solar cells need to be encapsulated. Most pv modules are encapsulated through lamination (EVA, TPT and glass), but a lighter weight solution would be plausible..
3. UV protection.Besides the encapsulation, the organic solar cells will need a UV filter. Any organic material contains carbon, which will degrade. Instead of a UV filter, glass as the front protector can be used, which will catch most of the light.

Solutions from LED industry

Current problems with organic solar cells are quite similar to problems that were solved in the organic Light Emitting Diod (LED) industry. The solar industry can now borrow lots of technology from the LED industry and therefore people are confident that organic solar cells will overcome its current challenges, just as they solved the problems with LED lights in the early stages of its industry.

It is expected that organic solar cells will be stable in the future, the lifetime will increase, and that the efficiency will increase to up to 15%. In combination with the cheap material costs, this is a cell technology with the potential to go mainstream.

Dye Sensitized Solar Cells

Dye sensitized solar cells are closely related to organic solar cells, and belong to the thin films. This cell technology is currently amongst the most efficient third generation solar cells. With an efficiency of around 11%, and low cost production, this technology has the potential to compete on the commercial market.

Advantages dye sensitized solar cells

The dye sensitized solar cells has a number of advantages:

1. Ease of production. Dye sensitized solar cells are simple to make using conventional roll-printing techniques.
2. Flexibility. Dye sensitized solar cells are semi-flexible and semi-transparent, which opens up application that are impossible to cover with glass-made pv modules.
3. Low cost. Most of the materials used are low-cost. Most of them..

Disadvantages dye sensitized solar cells

1. Few expensive materials. Like mentioned above, most materials used to produce a dye sensitized solar cell are low cost. However researchers have so far not been able to eliminate some expensive materials, including Platinum and Ruthenium.
2. Different weather conditions. The liquid electrolyte presents a challenge to making the solar cells suitable for use in all weather conditions. When installed in low temperature conditions, the electrolyte can freeze, which will stop power production and will potentially lead to damage. Higher temperatures cause the liquid to expand, making the encapsulation of the panels a serious problem.
3. Conversion efficiency. The current conversion efficiency of dye sensitized solar cells is less than the best thin film cells. However due to the low manufacturing costs, the price / performance ratio is good enough for large scale power plants to compete with most fossil fuels in terms of pricing, including coal.

There are multiple companies working on dye sensitized solar cells, and a number of them are announcing to launch these cells as a commercial product. Companies working on dye sensitized solar cells include Solaronix, Dyesol, SolarPrint and G24innovations.

• Solar cell guide, part 3 – third generation (multi junction, gallium arsenide GaAs) solar cells
• Solar cell guide, part 2 – Thin Film (CdTe, CIGS) solar cells