GB2451720A - Solar panel with reflective lamellae - Google Patents
Solar panel with reflective lamellae Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- GB2451720A GB2451720A GB0808848A GB0808848A GB2451720A GB 2451720 A GB2451720 A GB 2451720A GB 0808848 A GB0808848 A GB 0808848A GB 0808848 A GB0808848 A GB 0808848A GB 2451720 A GB2451720 A GB 2451720A
- Authority
- GB
- United Kingdom
- Prior art keywords
- plate
- light
- solar panel
- receiving surface
- transparent plate
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Granted
Links
- 239000011521 glass Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 7
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 6
- 241000446313 Lamella Species 0.000 claims abstract description 4
- 229920003229 poly(methyl methacrylate) Polymers 0.000 abstract description 4
- 239000004926 polymethyl methacrylate Substances 0.000 abstract description 4
- 210000004027 cell Anatomy 0.000 description 22
- 238000006243 chemical reaction Methods 0.000 description 3
- 238000003475 lamination Methods 0.000 description 3
- 230000005611 electricity Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000012423 maintenance Methods 0.000 description 2
- JBRZTFJDHDCESZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N AsGa Chemical compound [As]#[Ga] JBRZTFJDHDCESZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- XUIMIQQOPSSXEZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N Silicon Chemical compound [Si] XUIMIQQOPSSXEZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000004433 Thermoplastic polyurethane Substances 0.000 description 1
- 125000001931 aliphatic group Chemical group 0.000 description 1
- 238000003491 array Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000005452 bending Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000003245 coal Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000012141 concentrate Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000010276 construction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000007789 gas Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000005431 greenhouse gas Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000009434 installation Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000010030 laminating Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000005459 micromachining Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000003921 oil Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000003287 optical effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 229920000058 polyacrylate Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 229910052710 silicon Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000010703 silicon Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000000758 substrate Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229920002803 thermoplastic polyurethane Polymers 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
- H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
- H01L31/054—Optical elements directly associated or integrated with the PV cell, e.g. light-reflecting means or light-concentrating means
- H01L31/0547—Optical elements directly associated or integrated with the PV cell, e.g. light-reflecting means or light-concentrating means comprising light concentrating means of the reflecting type, e.g. parabolic mirrors, concentrators using total internal reflection
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
- H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
- H01L31/042—PV modules or arrays of single PV cells
- H01L31/048—Encapsulation of modules
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
- H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
- H01L31/042—PV modules or arrays of single PV cells
- H01L31/048—Encapsulation of modules
- H01L31/0488—Double glass encapsulation, e.g. photovoltaic cells arranged between front and rear glass sheets
-
- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
- H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
- H01L31/054—Optical elements directly associated or integrated with the PV cell, e.g. light-reflecting means or light-concentrating means
-
- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
- Y02E10/00—Energy generation through renewable energy sources
- Y02E10/50—Photovoltaic [PV] energy
- Y02E10/52—PV systems with concentrators
Landscapes
- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Condensed Matter Physics & Semiconductors (AREA)
- Electromagnetism (AREA)
- General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Computer Hardware Design (AREA)
- Microelectronics & Electronic Packaging (AREA)
- Power Engineering (AREA)
- Photovoltaic Devices (AREA)
Abstract
A photovoltaic solar panel (100) comprises a photovoltaic cell 110) having a light receiving surface and a transparent plate 115 covering the light receiving surface. The transparent plate has an internal array of light-reflecting lamellae 210, each lamella having a plane oriented transverse or orthogonal to the light-receiving surface so as to reflect incident light 220 towards the light-receiving surface. The lamellae may be grooves or air pockets that act as prisms to internally reflect light. The transparent plate may be formed od a first plate 130 of glass and a second plate 120 of a polymeric material such as polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA).
Description
SOLAR PANEL
The invention relates to solar panels. and in particular to photovoltaic panels for providing electrical energy from sunlight.
Photovoltaic (PV) cells convert light directly into electricity, and are therefore attractive sources of renewable energy. Due to the growing need for solar energy, partly as a result of the increased price of non-renewable energy sources (e.g. oil, gas and coal) in general and partly due to concerns over greenhouse gas emissions, the manufacture and use of solar panels, arid solar photovoltaic cell arrays in particular, has expanded rapidly in recent years.
PV cells are, however, limited in the efficiency with whch they convert light into useable electricity. A typical silicon-based PV cell will have a total conversion efficiency of only around 15%. Other types of cells, for example based on gallium arsenide (GaAs) have demonstrated higher conversion efficiencies of around 30%, but are substantially more expensive and are required to operate under concentrated solar energy to maximise efficiency. requiring further reflectors to concentrate solar energy.
The angle of incident light from the sun vanes with the time of day, peak:ng at midday and falling off towards sunrise and sunset. The energy avalable to a solar cell therefore varies accordingly throughout the day. In order to maximise the amount of energy incident upon a PV cell the cell can be oriented to maximise the surface area exposed to the suns rays by minimising the angle of incidence. Systems to achieve this, which improve the amount of energy a solar cell can receive over each day, involve additional mechanical and electrical components configured to keep the cell in the right orientation To reduce the cost of installation and maintenance, PV cells can oe installed instead on non-moving substrates, such as the (preferably south-facing) roof of a house. The reduction in efficiency by not having the cells moveable with the sun is at least partly offset by the reduction in cost in avoiding the need for additonal components and maintenance.
It would be beneficral therefore to be able to ameliorate at least some of the reduct'on in efficiency associatec with fixed solar PV panels. Consequently, it is an object of the nvention to address this particular problem.
The invention provides a photovoitaic solar panel comprising.
a photovoitaic cefl having a iightreceiving surface; and a transparent plate covering the light-receMng surface, wherein the transparent plate comprises an internal array of hght-reflecting lamellae, each lamelia having a plane oriented transverse to the ght-receiving surface so as to reflect incident light towards the light-receiving surface.
The lamellae of the transparent plate are preferably oriented orthogonal to the light-receiving surface of the PV cell. In this configuration, the lamellae act to reflect sunlight towards the PV cell surface as the angle of incidence of light increases.
in order to uniformly distnbute the solar energy across the PV cell, the lamellae are preferably arranged in a regular parallel array across the transparent plate, The threction of the iameliae across the plate can therefore be oriented transverse, and preferably substantially orthogonal, to the arc of the sun as it tracks across the sky. so that light rays are angled towards the PV cell by the larneilae when the sun is away from its zenith.
The larnellae may each be in the form of a groove extending at least partly across tne thickness of the transparent plate. This allows the larnellae to act as internal reflectors as the light interacts with the surfaces of the grooves, without substantially affecting The proportion of light transmitted through the plate.
The transparent plate comprising the lamellae may be laminated to one or more plates, for example in the form of glass plates. Lamination serves the purpose of protecting the plate containing the lamellae, which may be composed of a polymeric niatenal.
The invention t4ll now be described by way of example, and with reference to the enclosed drawings in which: figure us a schematic cross-sectional representation of a solar panel according to the invention; figuce 2 is a partiai schematic cross-sectional representation of the transparent plate of the solar panel of figure 1: and fgure 3 is a schematic perspective view of the solar panel in use.
Figure 1 illustrates schematically an embodiment of a solar panel according to the invention, in which a light-receMng surface 111 of a photovoitaic cell 110 is covered with a transparent plate 115. The transparent plate 115 comprises a flrst plate 130 of glass laminated to a second plate 120 composed of a polymeric material. The second plate 120 comprises an internal array of hght-reflecting lamellae, with each lamella having a plane oriented transverse to the light-receiving surface 111 so as to reflect incident hght 140 towards the light-receiving surface 111. As the sun 160 tracks across the sky, the angle of incidence of light failing on the solar panel 100 increases. The lamellae act to internally reflect the light such that light falls on the light-receMng surface lii of the photovoitaic cell 110 at a reduced angle. This is expected to increase the effecttve conversion efficiency of the solar panel, rn particular by reducing reflection of light from the light-receiving surface of the PV cell.
The cor'strucbon of the solar panel is shown in more detail in figure 2, in which the internal array of iightreflecting lamellae 210 are illustrated in cross-section. The second plate 120 rs preferably in a form similar to that disclosed in GB 2400396 or GB 2240576, the disclosure of each of which is incorporated by reference herein. Plates of this form are currently available under the trade name Serraglaze from Bending Light of London, UK (www.bendingirghtso. uk).
The second plate 120 typically consists of two thin sheets of an acrylic polymer, such as polymethylmethacrylate çPMMA, incorporating larneliae in the form of grooves or air pockets that act as prisms to internally reflect light. The grooves can be formed by a micromachining process pnor to lamination of the o sheets. The lamellae 210 may be oriented orthogonal (i.e. at 90°) to the faces of the plate 120, thereby making the reflective properties syrnrnetncal about a normal to the plate surface.
Light beams 230 at or near normal incidence pass through the plate 120 essentially unaffected by reflection or refraction. For light beams 220 at an angle 0 to the normal, however, the iamellae 210 act as reflecting mirrors, due to the difference in refractive index between the plate material and the lamellae, which typically contain only air. For a plate composed of PMMA, the refractive index is about 1.49, making the critical angle for total internal refiectron about 42 degrees. At high angles of incidence therefore, the incident light is totally internally reflected by the array of larneilae, the light being reflected towards the PV cell light receiving surface, with only small amounts of light passing through the iameliae. The behaviour of the plate 120 with respect to incident light varies from a majority of the incident light being transmitted at low angles of incidence to a majority of incident light being reflected at high angles of incidence, with a gradual variahon between the two extremes.
Construction of the solar panel 100 may be achieved through lamination of the first and second plates, teenniques for whch are widely known in the art. Suitable materials for use as a laminating nterface include thermoplastic polyurethane (IPU) optical aliphatics, available from Huntsman Corp The first plate 130. which may be in the form of a glass cover piate, is preferably larmnated to the second piate 120 comprising the larnellae The second plate may be further larmnated to the lightreceMng surface 111 of the PV cell 110. A further glass plate 150 may be laminated to the back of the PV cell for added support and rigidity.
As shown schematcaily in figure 3, the solar panel 100 in use is preferably onented such that the iamellae 210 are aligned transverse to the azimuth 310 of the sun 160 as it tracks across The sky during the daytime, so that hght rays are reflected by the lameliae at high angles of incidence.
Other embodiments are mtentionally within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Claims (8)
1. A photovoltaic solar panel compnsing: a photovoltaic ceil having a light-receiving surface; and a transparent plate covering the bght-receiving surface, wherein the transparent plate comprises an internal array of light-reflecting lamellae each lamella having a plane oriented transverse to the light-recewing surface so as to reflect incident light towards the light-receiving surface.
2 The soiar panel of claim I wherein the lamellae are oriented orthogonal to the light-receivin9 surface -
3. The solar panel of claim I or claim 2 wheren the lamellee form a regular paraliel array across the transparent plate.
4. The solar panel of any preceding claim wherein the lanellae each comprise a groove extending at least partly across the thtkness of the transparent panel
5. The solar panel of any preceding claim wherein the transparent plate compnses a first and a second plate laminated to each other across a planar interlace, the second plate comprising the lamellae.
6. The solar panel of claim 6 wherein The second plate is interposed between the first plate and the photovoltaic cell.
7. A solar panel substantially as described herein, with reference to the accompanying drawings. * ** * S * * .. * .*a
S *
S..
S * * * * 0S
S * * S. * * S * * ** S * SS * SI (0
7. The solar panel of claim 5 or claim 6 wherein the first plate is composed of glass.
8. The solar panel of any of claims 5 to 7 wherein the second plate is composed of a polymeric material.
9. A solar panel substantially as described herein, with reference to the accompanying drawings.
( Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows
1. A photovoltaic solar panel comprising: a photovoltaic cell having a light-receiving surface: and a transparent plate covering the light-receiving surface, wherein the transparent plate comprises an internal array of light-reflecting lamellae, each lamella comprising a groove extending at least partly across the thickness of the transparent plate and having a plane oriented orthogonal to the light-receiving surface so as to reflect incident light towards the light-receiving surface.
2. The solar panel of claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the Iamellae form a regular parallel array across the transparent plate.
3. The solar panel of any preceding claim wherein the transparent plate comprises a first and a second plate laminated to each other across a planar interface, the second plate comprising the lamellae.
4. The solar panel of claim 3 wherein the second plate is interposed between the first plate and the photovoltaic cell.
5. The solar panel of claim 3 or claim 4 wherein the first plate is composed of glass.
6. The solar panel of any of claims 3 to 5 wherein the second plate is composed of a polymeric material.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0808848A GB2451720B (en) | 2008-05-15 | 2008-05-15 | Solar panel |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0808848A GB2451720B (en) | 2008-05-15 | 2008-05-15 | Solar panel |
Publications (3)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| GB0808848D0 GB0808848D0 (en) | 2008-06-25 |
| GB2451720A true GB2451720A (en) | 2009-02-11 |
| GB2451720B GB2451720B (en) | 2010-06-30 |
Family
ID=39595953
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB0808848A Expired - Fee Related GB2451720B (en) | 2008-05-15 | 2008-05-15 | Solar panel |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| GB (1) | GB2451720B (en) |
Citations (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US6050526A (en) * | 1997-07-21 | 2000-04-18 | Hughes Electronics Corporation | Solar reflector systems and methods |
| WO2004001859A1 (en) * | 2002-06-24 | 2003-12-31 | Jx Crystals Inc. | Planar solar concentrator power module |
| EP1693900A1 (en) * | 2005-02-17 | 2006-08-23 | Shiro Mitsunari | A solar cell array having a three dimension structure |
| WO2007041922A1 (en) * | 2005-10-09 | 2007-04-19 | Chengwei Wang | A solar energy generating electricity device with doubling light |
Family Cites Families (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GB2451108A (en) * | 2007-07-18 | 2009-01-21 | Robert Michael Brady | Photovoltaic Device |
-
2008
- 2008-05-15 GB GB0808848A patent/GB2451720B/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Patent Citations (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US6050526A (en) * | 1997-07-21 | 2000-04-18 | Hughes Electronics Corporation | Solar reflector systems and methods |
| WO2004001859A1 (en) * | 2002-06-24 | 2003-12-31 | Jx Crystals Inc. | Planar solar concentrator power module |
| EP1693900A1 (en) * | 2005-02-17 | 2006-08-23 | Shiro Mitsunari | A solar cell array having a three dimension structure |
| WO2007041922A1 (en) * | 2005-10-09 | 2007-04-19 | Chengwei Wang | A solar energy generating electricity device with doubling light |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB2451720B (en) | 2010-06-30 |
| GB0808848D0 (en) | 2008-06-25 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCNP | Patent ceased through non-payment of renewal fee |
Effective date: 20160515 |