A Swiss company named Insolight has just achieved 29% efficiency with their new solar panels. This is able to be done with their new patented optical system, the system is able to concentrate light into a tiny array of space grade solar cells. Insolights pre production solar panel efficiency has been validated by the Energy Institute of the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. This comes after two years of being tested in the lab. Below is an image that shows how the optical system works.
Insolight panels use a protective glass that has a grid of lenses, this grid then causes the sunlight to be concentrated a few hundred times over. This concentrated light is focused on space grade solar cells. In order to maintain peak performance, mechanical parts encased in the panel move the cell a few millimeters every day so that they stay aligned with the glass lenses. What is so great about the solar panels is that they can be mounted in industry-standard tilt angles either on commercial roof or on the ground. Besides being able to use standard mounts these solar panels have been tested in real life conditions. They were installed at the Swiss Institute of Technology in Lausanne where they endured extreme heat, cold, and winter storms. And yet they still came out triumphant and had stellar efficiency.
Mathieu Ackermann, CTO of Insolight. said the following “Over the last two years, our team has brought the product from a lab prototype to a full-size solar panel, connected to the grid and monitored 24/7. Our system has been extensively tested, and we are now preparing an industrialization strategy for large-scale production,” If you would like to read the original article head over to https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2019/02/new-29-efficient-solar-panel-combines-space-grade-pv-cells-with-concentrated-glass-cover/