JPH0951114A - Vacuum lamination device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a vacuum lamination device and method for increase area and for reducing treatment time with a simple structure. SOLUTION: A cylindrical pipe 102 is formed in an annular body and a plurality of deaeration holes 105 are formed on the wall of the inner-periphery side of the annular body. The annular body is installed and fixed on a sheet- shaped base 101 and a space part is constituted for lamination treatment by the base 101 and the annular body. A lid member covers the space part and the formed space part is evacuated. While maintaining the evacuation, lamination treatment space is subjected to heat treatment. Lamination treatment is performed to a material arranged in the lamination treatment space by the brief and simple treatment.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vacuum laminating apparatus and a vacuum laminating method, for example, a vacuum laminating apparatus and a vacuum laminating method applied to a solar cell module manufacturing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a vacuum laminating apparatus has been applied as a final manufacturing apparatus for the purpose of coating semiconductor-related elements, particularly elements such as solar cells exposed to the outside air. This is to improve the durability of the element against temperature and humidity, external pressure and the like.

The vacuum laminating apparatus is the most manufacturing equipment.
Demand for solar cells that are suitable for use has expanded rapidly in recent years.
ing. This is for power supply in portable equipment and
With the expansion of demand as a lean energy source. example
For example, as global environmental pollution expands, awareness of environmental problems
Is rising worldwide. Above all, CO
₂The fear of global warming due to emissions is serious
Yes, the desire for clean energy is increasing
You. In this situation, solar cells are currently
As a safe energy source due to its safety and ease of handling
The main thing that is expected. Trust in these demands
In order to supply highly efficient and economical solar cells,
Vacuum laminating equipment will play an important role.
You.

There are various types and forms of solar cells. The representative ones are listed below.

(1) Crystalline silicon solar cell, (2) Polycrystalline silicon solar cell, (3) Amorphous silicon solar cell, (4) Copper indium selenide solar cell, (5)
Compound semiconductor solar cells, among them, thin-film crystalline silicon solar cells, compound semiconductor solar cells, and amorphous silicon solar cells are relatively low in cost and can be made large in area, and thus are actively researching and developing in various fields recently. Is being promoted.

8 and 9 show the material composition of the solar cell module, FIG. 8 shows the composition when the materials are laminated, and FIG. 9 shows the material composition when the solar cell module is completed. In these figures, 501 is a surface coating material, 502 is a filling material, 503 is a solar cell element, and 504 is a back surface coating material.

[0007] As one manufacturing procedure of the solar cell module,
First, the materials constituting the solar cell module are arranged and laminated in a vacuum device, and a vacuum is applied to remove air between the materials. So-called deaeration. Next, heating is performed in this vacuumed state. The temperature is raised by heating to reach a temperature at which the filler crosslinks or cures, and this temperature is maintained for a predetermined time until the filler is sufficiently cured. After that, it is cooled, the vacuuming is stopped, and the pressure is returned to atmospheric pressure. By this procedure, the solar cell having the configuration shown in FIG. 9 is completed.

10 to 12 are views for explaining the structure of a vacuum laminating apparatus applied to a conventional apparatus for manufacturing a solar cell module. FIG. 10 is an overall view, FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional structural view of FIG. 10, and FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional structural view at the time of manufacturing a solar cell module. In these drawings, 701 is a main body lid, 702 is a main body, 703 is a main body lid vacuum pump, 704 is a main body vacuum pump, 705 is silicon rubber, 706 is a pedestal, 707 is a heater, and 708 is a solar cell module configuration. It is a material.

The procedure for producing the solar cell module in the above-described vacuum laminating apparatus for solar cell modules is as follows. First, as shown in FIG. 10, the solar cell module constituent material 708 is placed on the pedestal 706 in the main body while the main body 701 is open. Next, the vacuum pump 703 for the main body lid is activated to evacuate the inside of the main body lid. Then, after closing the main body lid portion 701 and closing the lid, the main body vacuum pump 7
04 is started and the inside of the main body is evacuated. When the degree of vacuum in each of the main body lid 701 and the main body 702 is stable (vacuum gauge is not shown), the vacuum pump 703 for the main body lid is stopped and the inside of the main body lid is returned to atmospheric pressure. And heater 707
Is activated to raise the temperature, and after holding a predetermined temperature for a certain period of time,
The heater 707 is stopped to cool. When it has cooled sufficiently, the main body vacuum pump 704 is stopped, and the inside of the main body is returned to atmospheric pressure to produce a solar cell module. here,
The predetermined temperature condition by the heater 707 is a temperature at which the filler in the solar cell module constituent material cures or crosslinks. Further, the set time for holding at a high temperature is until the filling material is completely cured or the crosslinking is completed.

[0010]

However, this conventional vacuum laminating apparatus for solar cell modules is heavy in weight and poor in workability because the main body 702 and the main body lid 701 are made of metal. Also, the pedestal 706 in the main body
Because of its large heat capacity, the temperature rise / fall of the solar cell module constituent material 708 is slow and the heat treatment time is long even if the heater 707 is operated. Further, among the solar cells, especially the amorphous silicon solar cell is suitable for increasing the area. However, since the conventional vacuum laminating apparatus for the solar cell module has the above-mentioned structure, it is possible to increase the area of the solar cell module. There is a problem that it is difficult to increase the size of the device for achieving the above.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum laminating apparatus and a vacuum laminating method which have a simple structure and can increase the area and the processing time.

[0012]

In order to achieve the above object, the vacuum laminating apparatus of the present invention comprises a tubular body having an annular body, and an annular body having a plurality of deaeration holes on the inner wall of the annular body. A vacuum laminating apparatus having a base material on which an annular body is installed and fixed, further comprising a lid member for covering the entire surface of the annular body, and the lid member, the annular body and the base material provide a space portion for laminating processing. It is characterized in that it is formed and the space is evacuated.

In the vacuum laminating method of the present invention, the laminating process space is constituted by the annular body formed by the cylindrical tube having the deaeration hole on the inner peripheral side wall and the plate-shaped substrate to which the annular body is fixed. In a vacuum laminating apparatus in which a laminating process space is formed, a module material arranging process for arranging a module material in the laminating process space, a laminating process space forming process for covering the entire surface of the laminating process space formed by an annular body with a lid member, and a lid. And a vacuuming step of vacuuming the laminating processing space covered by the member, and performing a laminating process on the module material by heating the laminating processing space while maintaining the vacuuming.

Further, the above module material is preferably a solar cell module material.

[0015]

Therefore, according to the vacuum laminating apparatus and the vacuum laminating method of the present invention, the annular body formed by the tubular tube having the deaeration hole in the inner peripheral wall and the plate-like base material to which the annular body is fixed are provided. And constitute a laminating processing space.
The module material is placed in the laminating processing space, and the entire surface of the laminating processing space constituted by the annular body is covered with the lid member. The lamination processing space covered with the lid member is evacuated, and the lamination processing space is heat-treated while maintaining the evacuation. When laminating using this device, the device has a simple structure and is lightweight, so the laminating work is easy, and since the heat capacity of the device is small, the temperature rise and fall during heat treatment are fast, and the processing time is reduced. It can be shortened.

[0016]

Embodiments of the vacuum laminating apparatus and the vacuum laminating method according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 to 3, there is shown an embodiment of a vacuum laminating apparatus and a vacuum laminating method according to the present invention. FIG. 1 of these drawings is a top perspective view of the vacuum laminating apparatus of the embodiment. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. Further, FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1 showing an example of member arrangement for explaining a laminating process procedure using the vacuum laminating apparatus of FIG.

1 to 3, 101 is a plate-shaped substrate, 102 is a tube, 103 is a valve, 104 is a vacuum pump, 105 is a deaeration hole, 106 is a fixing member, 107 is a lid member, and 108 is the sun. A battery module constituent material, 109 is a mesh, and 110 is an opening.

The plate-like base material 101 of these components is
It is a member that constitutes the bottom of the vacuum laminating apparatus. The plate-shaped base material 101 used in the solar cell module manufacturing apparatus of this application example is required to have characteristics such as heat resistance, rigidity, light weight, and surface adhesiveness. The material used for this member is mainly a metal such as iron or aluminum. To reduce the weight, it must be thin, but if it is too thin, the rigidity cannot be obtained. An iron plate having a thickness of approximately 1.5 to 2.0 mm is preferably used. In some cases, the tubular tube 102 may be bonded with a sealant material or the like. Therefore, in order to improve the adhesiveness, the surface is preferably chemically treated with phosphate or the like.

The cylindrical tube 102 is a tube for vacuuming,
It is an annular body configured in an annular shape. Further, the net 109 and the lid member 107 constitute a space portion for evacuating. The properties required of the tubular tube 102 include heat resistance, rigidity, lightness, and the like. Stainless steel is mainly used as the material. It is desirable that the deaeration hole 105 provided in the side surface portion on the inner peripheral side of the cylindrical tube 102 for evacuation be opened before the vacuum laminating apparatus is assembled.
In some cases, the tubular tube 102 may be bonded onto the plate-shaped substrate 101. In this case, the cylindrical tube 102 is preferably degreased before being bonded. The size is such that the outer frame of the annular body fits within the plate-shaped substrate 101. An opening 110 and a valve 103 for connecting a vacuum pump 104 for vacuuming are provided.

The deaeration hole 105 is used as a deaeration hole during evacuation, and is provided on the side of the cylindrical tube 102 where the evacuation is performed, that is, inside the annular body. It is provided on the entire side of the cylindrical tube 102 on the side of the space to be evacuated, that is, on the four sides of the annular body having a substantially quadrilateral shape, preferably at equal intervals, before being fixed on the plate-shaped substrate 101.

The fixing member 106 is a member for fixing the tubular tube 102 so that no gap is created between the tubular tube 102 and the plate-shaped substrate 101. Since this apparatus is exposed to high temperature while maintaining a vacuum state in the manufacturing process of the solar cell module, the fixing member 106 is required to have a certain heat resistance. As a fixing method, in addition to fixing by welding, there is also a method of fixing with a sealant so as to fill a gap between the tubular pipe 102 and the plate-shaped base material 101. For example,
RTV-curable silicone sealant can be used.

The lid member 107 is used for the purpose of forming a space portion for evacuating the cylinder tube and the plate-shaped base material.
Further, it is used for the purpose of pressing the constituent material 108 of the solar cell module in a vacuumed state to promote degassing between the constituent materials. The lid member 107 used is sufficiently larger than the outer frame of the annular body. The characteristics required for the lid member 107 are heat resistance, flexibility, lightweight, airtightness when evacuated, and the like. The material used is mainly silicone resin,
The shape is a sheet.

The net 109 is used to secure a flow of air when the material 108 of the solar cell module is degassed by drawing a vacuum during manufacturing. That is, it is positioned between the plate-shaped base material 101 and the lid member 107 in the space to be evacuated, and is used to prevent the plate-shaped base material 101 and the lid member 107 from contacting and blocking the air flow. . The size is
The same shape and size as the inner size of the annular body formed by the tubular tube 102 is used. Required properties are heat resistance, flexibility, lightness, and the like. As the material, a wire mesh made of stainless steel or aluminum or a heat resistant resin fiber made of polyester is used.

In the method of manufacturing the vacuum laminating apparatus constituted by the above-mentioned members, first, the cylindrical tube 102 is set to the plate-shaped base material 101.
Place it so that the annular body (outer frame of the annular body) does not stick out. Next, the fixing member 106 is poured from the outside (the side opposite to the space for vacuuming) so as to fill the gap between the cylindrical tube 102 and the plate-shaped substrate 101. Here, the plate-shaped substrate 101 is 900
× 1500 mm size weather-resistant steel plate (for example, trademark “Bonde steel plate”; manufactured by Nippon Steel Co., Ltd., surface phosphate treated, plate thickness 1.6 t), the outer diameter of the tubular body 102 is 80.
0 × 1400mm size stainless steel tube (stainless steel 316BA, tube diameter is 1/2 inch), deaeration holes 105 having 3mm hole diameter, 50mm pitch, provided on 4 sides, and fixing member RTV silicone sealant (Trademark "KE347"; manufactured by Shin-Etsu Silicone Co., Ltd.) was used. Furthermore, it was left to stand in a room atmosphere for 24 hours to cure the RTV silicon-based sealant and fix the cylindrical tube 102 on the plate-shaped substrate 101.

The vacuum laminating apparatus having the above structure is
The structure is simple, and the size of the device can be easily increased in accordance with the production of the large area solar cell module. Further, the heat capacity of the device is small, the temperature can be raised and lowered quickly, the processing time can be shortened, the weight can be reduced, the cost of the device can be reduced, and the efficiency of the process by a plurality of devices can be improved.

(Application Example 1) FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration in which the vacuum laminating apparatus of the above-described embodiment is applied to a solar cell module manufacturing apparatus. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view when the solar cell module is arranged in the laminating processing space. Similar to FIGS. 2 and 3 described above, FIG. 4 corresponds to a cross-sectional view in the AA direction in the vacuum laminating apparatus of FIG.

In the solar cell module manufacturing apparatus of this application example, a plate-shaped base material 101, a cylindrical tube 102, and a valve 10 are provided.
3, vacuum pump 104, deaeration hole 105, fixing member 10
6, each of the lid member 107, the net 109, the opening 110,
This is the same as the above-mentioned vacuum laminating apparatus, and redundant description is avoided. Reference numeral 208 of the other member is a solar cell module constituent material forming the solar cell module.
Reference numeral 0 is a filler flow prevention material for preventing the filler filled around the solar cell module constituent material 208 from leaking out. In this application example, these components are laminated.

The procedure for producing a solar cell module using the laminating apparatus of the embodiment will be described below. The filler flow prevention material 210 is provided in the space of the laminating apparatus to be evacuated.
, The solar cell module constituent material 208 is placed thereon, and the filler flow prevention material 210 is further placed thereon. After arranging these, the lid member 107 is covered so as to cover the entire annular body of the tubular tube 102.

Here, a PTFE film (manufactured by Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.) was used as the filler flow prevention material 210. Further, as the lid member 107, a 1000 × 1600 mm size silicone rubber (thickness: 2 t, hardness: 50, general-purpose silicon resin type, made of Tigers Polymer) was used.

After the arrangement of the above-mentioned members is completed, the vacuum pump 1
04 is started to evacuate the space to evacuate and evacuate the air between the solar cell module constituent materials 208. While being deaerated by the vacuum pump 104, the vacuum laminating apparatus is put into a high-temperature oven (not shown) to a temperature (about 150 ° C.) at which the filler in the material forming the solar cell module is cured. 30 until the temperature is raised and curing is completed
Hold for minutes. After that, the apparatus is taken out of the oven and cooled, and the vacuum pump 104 is stopped to return the space to atmospheric pressure. According to this procedure, a solar cell module was manufactured.

Next, the constituent materials of the solar cell module will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing constituent materials of the solar cell module used in this application example. In FIG. 5, 301 is a surface coating material, 302 is a filler, 303 is a solar cell element,
304 is a back surface coating material. Surface coating material 301 is 500
Fluorine resin film with a size of 1400 mm (trademark "Unstretched Tefzel"; manufactured by DuPont, thickness; 50 μm)
m), the filler 302 is 500 × 1400 mm EVA (trademark “weather resistant grade”; manufactured by High Sheet Industry Co., Ltd., thickness: 460 μm). The backside coating 304 is 500 × 1.
A weather-resistant coated steel sheet having a size of 400 mm (trademark "Timer Color GL"; manufactured by Daido Steel Sheet Co., Ltd., 0.4 t) was used. The method for manufacturing the solar cell element 303 will be described below.

FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of the solar cell element.
In FIG. 6, 401 is a stainless steel substrate, 402 is a back reflection layer, 403 is a semiconductor photoactive layer, 404 is a transparent conductive layer,
Reference numeral 405 is a collector electrode. Washed stainless steel substrate 40
An Al layer (thickness: 500 nm) and a ZnO layer (thickness: 500 nm) are sequentially formed as a back surface reflection layer 402 on the substrate 1 by sputtering. Then, by plasma CVD method, SiH
_An n-type a-Si layer is formed from a mixed gas of ₄ and PH ₃ and H ₂ by Si
An i-type a-Si layer is formed from a mixed gas of H ₄ and H ₂ , and a p-type microcrystalline μc-Si layer is formed from a mixed gas of SiH ₄ , BF ₃ and H _2. 400 nm / p layer thickness 10 nm / n layer thickness 10 nm / i layer thickness 80 nm / p
A tandem type a-Si based semiconductor photoactive layer 403 having a layer structure with a layer thickness of 10 nm was formed.

Next, as a transparent conductive layer 404, In ₂ O _{3 is formed.}
A thin film (thickness: 70 nm) was formed by vapor deposition of In in a O ₂ atmosphere by a resistance heating method. A collector electrode 405 was formed thereon by pattern-printing a silver paste with a screen printing machine and drying.

By the above procedure, using the vacuum laminating apparatus of this embodiment and the above solar cell element, 500 ×
A solar cell module having a size of 1400 mm was produced.

(Modification 1) In this modification, the sizes of the plate-shaped base material 101, the cylindrical tube 102, and the lid member 107 in the above application example are increased. The plate-shaped substrate 101 is 1
200 × 5700 mm, the outer diameter of the tubular body 102 is 1
The silicon rubber used as the lid member 107 was 150 × 5650 mm and 1300 × 5800 mm, and the tubular tube 102 of the annular body had a tube diameter of 3/4 inch. The size of the solar cell constituent material used was 800 × 5400 mm for the surface coating material, the filler, and the back surface coating material. Except for the above changes, the procedure is the same as in the above application example.
A large-area solar cell module having a size of 5400 mm was produced.

(Modification 2) In this modification, three vacuum laminating apparatuses used in the above application example are prepared, three apparatuses are arranged so as to be stacked, and the apparatus is simultaneously put into an oven and once By the heat treatment of, three solar cell modules were created. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the apparatus used in this variation. According to FIG. 7, 3 is mounted on a predetermined carriage.
It shows a form in which one vacuum laminating apparatus is installed.
In this form, three solar cell modules were created at one time. The application example is the same as that of the above application example except that three vacuum laminating apparatuses are arranged on the carriage.

The solar cell module manufacturing apparatus having each of the above-mentioned configurations has characteristics such as a simple structure, easy enlargement of the apparatus, short processing time, light weight, low cost, and high efficiency.

The above-described embodiment is an example of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, although the vacuum laminating apparatus is applied to the manufacture of the solar cell module in the present embodiment, the object of the laminating process is not limited to the solar cell module.

[0039]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the vacuum laminating apparatus and the vacuum laminating method of the present invention, the module material is placed in the laminating processing space constituted by the annular body and the plate-shaped substrate, The entire surface of the laminating processing space formed by the body is covered with a lid member. The lamination processing space covered by the lid member is heat-treated while vacuuming. By this heat treatment, the module material placed in the laminating treatment space is laminated in a vacuumed state. These procedures or configurations are simple and simple, and it is easy to deal with the processing of large-sized processing objects, high-speed processing, etc., and to shorten the processing time, reduce the cost, and reduce the weight.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an embodiment of a vacuum laminating apparatus and a vacuum laminating method of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

[Fig. 3] Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating AA when laminating is performed using Fig. 1.
It is sectional drawing.

FIG. 4 is a layout view of members when the vacuum laminating apparatus and the vacuum laminating method of FIG. 1 are applied to a solar cell module manufacturing apparatus, and is a cross-sectional view corresponding to a direction AA of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a view for explaining constituent materials of the solar cell module used in the application example, and is a cross-sectional view of the solar cell module.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a solar cell element of the solar cell module used in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining a second modification, showing a state in which three vacuum laminating apparatuses are installed on a carriage.

FIG. 8 is an external perspective view of a conventional solar cell module manufacturing apparatus.

9 is a cross-sectional view showing a material configuration of a solar cell module configured as shown in FIG. 8 in a completed state.

FIG. 10 is an external perspective view for explaining the configuration of a conventional vacuum laminating apparatus for solar cell modules.

11 is a conceptual sectional view for explaining the laminating process using FIG.

FIG. 12 is a conceptual cross-sectional view for explaining the laminating process using FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 101 plate-shaped base material, 102 cylindrical tube, 103 valve, 104 vacuum pump, 105 degassing hole, 106 fixing member, 107 lid member, 108, 208 solar cell module constituent material, 109 mesh, 110 opening, 210 filler flow Preventing material, 301, 501 surface coating material, 302, 502 filling material, 303, 503 solar cell element, 304, 504 back surface coating material, 401 stainless steel substrate, 402 surface reflection layer, 403 semiconductor photoactive layer, 404 transparent conductive layer, 405 Current collecting electrode, 701 Main body lid, 702 Main body, 703 Main body lid vacuum pump, 704 Main body vacuum pump, 705 Silicon rubber, 706 pedestal, 707 heater, 708 Solar cell module constituent material.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A vacuum laminating apparatus comprising a tubular body having an annular body, the annular body having a plurality of deaeration holes in a wall on an inner peripheral side of the annular body, and a base material having the annular body fixedly installed. A vacuum, further comprising a lid member that covers the entire surface of the annular body, wherein the lid member, the annular body, and the base material form a space portion for laminating processing, and the space portion is evacuated. Laminating equipment. 2. The vacuum laminating apparatus, wherein a laminating process space is formed by an annular body formed by a cylindrical tube having a degassing hole on the inner wall and a plate-shaped base material to which the annular body is fixed. Then, a module material arranging step of arranging a module material in the laminating processing space, a laminating processing space forming step of covering the entire surface of the laminating processing space constituted by the annular body with a lid member, and a laminating member covering step. And a vacuuming step of vacuuming the lamination processing space, wherein the module material is laminated by heating the lamination processing space while maintaining the vacuuming. 3. The vacuum laminating method according to claim 2, wherein the module material is a solar cell module material.