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Credit: Kevin Bullis and Technology Review

Last August I wrote about the typical 50% waste created when wire saws are used to slice silicon ingots into PV-suitable wafers, and research being conducted in Germany to lower that waste.

Now 1366 Technologies, according to a story and video by Technology Review’s Kevin Bullis, is saying it might be able eliminate all saw waste, apparently by directly manufacturing each wafer from molten silicon. 1366 showed off their technology at the recent pre-ARPA-E Summit Innovation Showcase.

Although always happy to see basic PV science breakthroughs, 1366 has always proclaimed that its route to success in the industry is through process and manufacturing innovation. To put a finer point on this, 1366 says the cost of its PV units will reach parity with coal power in a decade.

According to Bullis, credit for the direct-wafer process invention goes to Emanuel Sachs, a professor at MIT who co-founded the company and is behind of portfolio of PV innovations. The company likens the potential for this new innovation to the shift from handcrafting glass windows to use of float-glass manufacturing.

While only small low-efficiency demonstrator wafers have been created so far, ARPA-E apparently likes what it sees and has given the company $4 million to continue this work. Read the whole article and watch the video (an interview with CEO and 1366 co-founder Frank van Mierlo at the showcase).

For more information on 1366 Technologies, see:

Cutting PV costs, Part 1: New busbars, ‘fingers’ to cut costs by 20%?

Cutting PV costs, Part 2: Process improvements versus science breakthroughs

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Credit: iSuppli

Via Greentech Media, a recent report indicates that there has been a dramatic fall off in the spot market price of polysilicon, a development that may help continue to lower the price of solar panels.

First, it can’t be emphasized enough that spot market pricing is much different than typical production-volume pricing. The spot market is what a company would pay/earn if it had to suddenly and immediately obtain/sell some material. PV panel makers, however, get their materials based on long-range supply and pricing schedules. Some PV manufacturers may even engage in some hedging of polysilicon prices by buying forward and futures contracts, investment products that are largely based on spot prices.

But spot-price trends can be strongly indicative of where supply contracts will be heading.

So, according to market research firm iSuppli, in 2007 spot prices for polysilicon were approximately $100 per kilogram. iSuppli data indicates that the spot price shot up to over $400 per kg in 2008. Greentech Media says the price hit a high of around $500 per kg in 2009.

But since then, spot prices have plummeted, despite growing demand. iSuppli suggest that supplies will be so great that prices may have fallen 50% this year alone, an then will fall to $150 per kg in 2010, to under $100 in 2011 and to under $50 in 2012.

The fall off in pricing is probably linked to an explosion of producers. There were 7 in 2007, and the current number may be closer to 70. The price spike in 2008-2009 is generally considered an artifact caused by a temporary mismatch between supply and demand. Now, demand based on long-term contracts is being met and the excess is being dropped on the spot market.

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Down Corning researchers work on next-generation solar technologies.

Dow Corning Corp., known for its silicon-based technology, is betting it can be a major supplier to solar industry via a capital investment of several billion dollars. The investment will include construction of a new plant in Hemlock, Mich., where the firm will begin manufacturing high-purity monosilane, a critical specialty gas central to the production of thin-film solar cells and liquid crystal displays. The company’s commitment to becoming a major solar supplier also will include an investment of more than $2.2 billion in two of its joint ventures: Hemlock Semiconductor Corp. and Hemlock Semiconductor LLC. According to Stephanie Burns, Dow Corning’s chair, president and CEO, the firm will initially invest $1.2 billion to build a new HSC polysilicon-production facility in Clarksville, Tenn. It will spend another $1 billion to expand HSC’s existing polysilicon operations in Hemlock, Mich., near the site where Dow Corning will build its new monosilane factory. Burns explains that polysilicon is a “cornerstone material used in the fabrication of most solar cells.” She reports that HSC’s new Tennessee plant, coupled with the expansion of its Michigan facility, will give HSC an additional 34,000 metric tons of polysilicon capacity. Burns is pulling out all stops and says construction of Dow’s new monosilane plant, HSC’s Tennessee facility and HSC’s Michigan expansion will begin immediately. HSC’s Michigan plant has seen three major expansions in the past five years, according to company officials. Over this period, they say, HSC has invested “as much as $2.5 billion” in beefing up the operation. Burns says the recently announced expansion will bolster Michigan polysilicon capacity “by 13,000 metric tons, create 300 permanent new jobs and keep more than 800 construction workers busy during the construction.” She predicts the expansion won’t be fully completed until about 2011. Dow Corning’s involvement in monosilane plant and the two polisilicon plants confirms its commitment to developing “the two most common types of solar cells - crystalline-based and thin-film solar cells,” Burns says, noting that crystalline-based solar cells utilize “sliced polysilicon” as their primary semi-conducting material. “Thin-film solar cells are made by depositing a thin film of silicon, enabled by monosilane, onto a sheet of another material, such as glass,” she explains. According to Burns, Dow Corning and its HSC joint ventures want to create “new, high-paying jobs, clean-power technologies and a revitalized economy” built around the solar industry. “We’re committing our resources, know-how and technology, because we’re confident that solar technology represents a tremendous opportunity for both clean energy and economic growth,” she says.

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