KR20110077769A - Tubular type solar cell module - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A tube type solar battery module is provided to control a temperature increase by flowing water through a hot water pipe, thereby increasing the photoelectric conversion efficiency of a solar battery. CONSTITUTION: A plurality of photoelectric cells is formed on a substrate and is connected each other. The photoelectric cells include a frontal electrode(100) on a substrate, a photoelectric conversion layer(200) on the frontal electrode, and a rear electrode(300) on the photoelectric conversion layer. A hot water pipe is formed in the photoelectric cells.

Description

Tubular Solar Cell Module

The present invention relates to a tubular solar cell module, and more particularly to a tubular solar cell module with improved photoelectric conversion efficiency having a plurality of tubular photovoltaic cells connected to each other.

Recently, interest in renewable energy is increasing due to high oil prices and environmental problems. Unlike other energy sources, solar cells, which are photovoltaic devices that convert sunlight into electrical energy, are endless and environmentally friendly, and their importance is increasing over time. However, the known method of converting solar light into electrical energy is still insufficient, thus delaying the possibility of replacing solar energy with fossil fuels.

Solar cells can be classified into crystalline solar cells using wafers used in semiconductors and thin film solar cells using deposition techniques on substrates such as transparent substrates. Currently, crystalline solar cells have a high market share, but the market share of thin film solar cells is expected to increase in the future due to high efficiency and low price.

Thin film solar cells have a large area and low manufacturing cost compared to crystalline solar cells. However, due to structural instability, it has a disadvantage of lower efficiency than crystalline solar cells. Therefore, researches to improve the photoelectric conversion efficiency of the thin film solar cell has been very active in the world recently.

One object of the present invention is to control the temperature rise by flowing water through the internal hot water pipe that the efficiency of the conventional thin film solar cell decreases as the temperature rises, from which it can improve the efficiency than the conventional solar cell It is to provide a tubular solar cell module.

One aspect of the invention includes a plurality of photovoltaic cells formed on a substrate and connected to each other, the photovoltaic cells comprising: a front electrode on the substrate; A photoelectric conversion layer on the front electrode; The back electrode on the photoelectric conversion layer, wherein the photovoltaic cell is a tubular solar cell module, characterized in that the tubular photovoltaic cell is a tubular photovoltaic cell is formed inside the hot water pipe to control the temperature rise of the photovoltaic cell It is about.

The hot water pipes of each of the photoelectric cells may be connected to each other by a channel connection pipe.

According to the present invention it is possible to improve the photoelectric conversion efficiency of the solar cell by controlling the temperature rise by flowing water through the hot water pipe inside the tubular photovoltaic cell that the efficiency of the conventional thin film solar cell decreases as the temperature increases. In addition, the heated water can also be used as hot water to save energy. In particular, even in the summer when the temperature increases a lot, the efficiency of the solar cell can be prevented.

Hereinafter, a tubular solar cell module according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In order to clearly describe the present invention, detailed descriptions of related well-known general functions or configurations have been omitted, and in order to clearly express various layers and regions in the drawings, thicknesses are enlarged. In addition, all terms including technical terms and scientific terms used below have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.

A tubular solar cell module of an embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of photovoltaic cells formed on a substrate and connected to each other, the photovoltaic cell comprising a front electrode on the substrate; A photoelectric conversion layer on the front electrode; The rear electrode on the photoelectric conversion layer, wherein the photoelectric cell is a tubular of a predetermined length, the hot water pipe is formed inside the tubular photoelectric cell to control the temperature rise of the photoelectric cell.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a tubular solar cell module according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a detailed cross-sectional view of the photoelectric conversion layer of the light cell of the solar cell module of FIG.

1 and 2, a solar cell module according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of photovoltaic cells. The solar cell module may include dozens of photovoltaic cells, and the photovoltaic cells may be connected in series to obtain a predetermined voltage. The photovoltaic cell includes a front electrode 100 on a substrate, a photoelectric conversion layer 200 on the front electrode 100, and a rear electrode 300 on the photoelectric conversion layer 200. Two adjacent photovoltaic cells are electrically connected by conducting wires (not shown) disposed therebetween.

Leads to. Such a conductive line may connect the rear electrode and the front electrode of neighboring photoelectric conversion layers in various forms, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In the present invention, the transparent substrate 100 is not particularly limited as long as it can be processed into a tubular shape. Examples include, but are not limited to, sheets or plates made of carbon, glass, plastics, metals, ceramics, and the like. Glass that can be used as the transparent substrate 100 includes, for example, borosilicate glass, quartz glass, soda glass, phosphate glass, and the like. Plastics that can be used as the substrate 100 include, for example, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), polyimide, and the like.

A conductive thin film is stacked on the transparent substrate of the front electrode. The conductive thin film is composed of a transparent electrode to pass light incident from the outside to the photoelectric conversion layer 200. Conductive materials coated on the substrate to pass light include fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO), ZnO, ZnO: B, ZnO: Al, SnO ₂ , ZnO-Ga, ZnO-Ga ₂ O ₃ , ZnO -Al ₂ O ₃ , SnO ₂ : F, SnO ₂ -Sb ₂ O ₃ Etc. can be used, but it is not necessarily limited to these. Such a conductive thin film may be formed by a sputtering process or a vacuum deposition method.

The photoelectric conversion layer 200 is formed on the conductive thin film and formed by a CVD process, such as a plasma CVD process or an inductively coupled plasma CVD process, as a PIN bonding layer to which N-type, I-type, and P-type silicon-based semiconductor layers are bonded. Can be. In detail, the photoelectric conversion layer 200 forms an N-type silicon-based semiconductor layer on the conductive thin film 300, and then forms an I-type silicon-based semiconductor layer on the N-type silicon-based semiconductor layer. It can be configured by forming a P-type silicon-based semiconductor layer on the layer. The N-type silicon-based semiconductor layer is a layer doped with N-type impurities such as phosphorus and nitrogen, and the P-type silicon-based semiconductor layer is a layer doped with a P-type impurity, which is a Group 3 element such as boron. In addition, the photoelectric conversion layer 200 may be formed of a CuInSe ₂ , CuInGaSe or CdTe compound semiconductor layer.

In the tubular solar cell module of the present invention, the photovoltaic cell may be a tandem structure including a photoelectric conversion layer stacked in two or more stages, and each photoelectric conversion layer may include a PN junction structure or a PIN junction structure.

The photoelectric conversion layer of the photovoltaic cell may be an organic semiconductor layer or a compound semiconductor layer. Specifically, the organic semiconductor layer is at least one selected from the group consisting of amorphous silicon, polycrystalline silicon, microcrystalline silicon, germanium, gallium, silicon-germanium, the compound semiconductor layer is a group I-III-VI compound, It may be at least one selected from the group consisting of a II-VI compound, a III-V compound.

The photoelectric conversion layer 200 includes a first P-type semiconductor layer, a first I-type amorphous silicon-based semiconductor layer, a first N-type semiconductor layer, a second P-type semiconductor layer, a second I-type amorphous silicon-based semiconductor layer, and a second N It can be implemented in a structure in which the type semiconductor layer is stacked. Alternatively, the first P-type semiconductor layer, the I-type amorphous silicon-based semiconductor layer, the first N-type semiconductor layer, the second P-type semiconductor layer, the I-type microcrystalline silicon-based semiconductor layer, and the second N-type semiconductor layer are sequentially formed to form a double PIN. It can also be implemented as a structure.

The P-type semiconductor layer is formed of amorphous silicon using a plasma CVD process. Specifically, the front electrode layer 100 is generated by generating plasma while supplying SiH ₄ , H ₂ , CH ₄ , and PH ₃ gas into a plasma CVD chamber. ) Form a P-type silicon layer. Such a plasma CVD process is performed while supplying a predetermined amount of gas under a predetermined power and a predetermined pressure, and the power and pressure intensities, and the amount of the supplied gas, are within a conventional range performed in the plasma CVD process. Subsequently, an I-type semiconductor layer is formed on the P-type semiconductor layer, and an N-type semiconductor layer is formed on the I-type semiconductor layer. By such a process, a semiconductor layer having a PIN structure in which a P-type semiconductor layer, an I-type semiconductor layer, and an N-type semiconductor layer are stacked in this order is formed.

The photoelectric conversion layer 200 generates holes and electrons by sunlight, and the generated holes and electrons are collected in the P layer and the N layer, respectively, to improve the collection efficiency of such holes and electrons. For this purpose, a PIN structure is more preferable than a PN structure composed of only a P layer and an N layer. When the photoelectric conversion layer 200 is formed in a PIN structure, the I layer is depleted by the P layer and the N layer to generate an electric field therein, and the holes and electrons generated by sunlight are Drifted by the electric field and collected in the P and N layers, respectively.

The back electrode 300 of the conductive material is formed on the photoelectric conversion layer 200. In the solar cell of the present invention, the back electrode 300 may be formed of a metal such as Ag, Al, Ag + Mo, Ag + Ni, Ag + Cu, etc. using a sputtering method or a printing method. On the rear electrode, a transparent conductive material such as ZnO, ZnO: B, ZnO: Al, SnO ₂ , SnO ₂ : F or ITO is sputtered or MOCVD (Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition) on the rear electrode. The conductive film can be formed by forming a film by the film.

In the present invention, an anti-reflection film may be formed on the rear electrode. The anti-radiation film may include, for example, a material selected from the group consisting of silicon nitride film, silicon nitride film including hydrogen, silicon oxide film, silicon oxynitride film, MgF ₂ , ZnS, MgF ₂ , TiO ₂ and CeO ₂ . The antireflection film may be formed by vacuum deposition, chemical vapor deposition, spin coating, screen printing or spray coating, but is not necessarily limited thereto.

Water for cooling the solar cell is introduced into the hot water pipe 400 and flows therein, but other types of liquids or gases other than water may be used. As shown in FIG. 3, the tubular solar cell module of one embodiment of the present invention is composed of a plurality of photovoltaic cells, and each of the hot water pipes 400 in each photovoltaic cell is connected to each other by a channel connecting pipe 410. A temperature control medium such as water is supplied from one hot water supply tank (not shown), and the warmed water may flow out of the drain of each photovoltaic cell and be collected in the hot water tank (not shown) via one drain.

In order to prevent damage to the electrode due to the penetration of moisture between the back electrode 300 and the hot water pipe 400, a waterproof coating layer may be formed. The waterproof coating layer may be formed by treating various organic materials such as glue and PVC on the surface where the rear electrode and the hot water pipe are in contact by using spin coating, printing, and taping methods.

Figure 4 is a schematic perspective view of a tubular solar cell module of another embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 4, the tubular solar cell module of another embodiment includes a reflector plate 500 installed at the bottom of the tubular photovoltaic cells. The reflecting plate 500 may be composed of a metal reflecting plate such as aluminum alloy foil having a predetermined thickness. The reflector 500 has a planar structure having a reflective surface that reflects sunlight into a solar cell. In this case, the plurality of photovoltaic cells in the solar cell module may utilize both incident light incident from the sun and reflected light reflected from below.

The plurality of photovoltaic cells are spaced apart at predetermined intervals so that incident light incident from the upper side of the photovoltaic cells can be reflected by the lower reflecting plate. The incident light is incident on the upper portions of the plurality of photovoltaic cells, and also passes through the spaced regions between the plurality of photovoltaic cells and then is reflected on the reflecting plate below to be incident on the lower portions of the plurality of photo-cut cells. Therefore, the spaced areas between the plurality of photovoltaic cells serve as propagation paths of incident light.

The tubular solar cell module configured as described above operates as follows. When light is incident on the solar cell from outside, electrons and holes are generated by the light energy incident from the photoelectric conversion layer 300, and the electrons are diffused into the N-type silicon layer and the holes are respectively diffused into the P-type silicon layer. When polarization of the charge carriers occurs, a potential difference occurs on both sides of the semiconductor. At this time, when the N-type silicon layer and the P-type silicon layer are connected, electric power is generated by the movement of the electrons and holes. When the temperature of the solar cell rises, the solar cell is cooled by water flowing in the hot water pipe, and the warmed water may be used as domestic hot water or agricultural water.

Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments of the present invention, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and many modifications are made by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains within the technical spirit of the present invention. This possibility will be self-evident. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be defined by the scope of the claims and their equivalents.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a tubular solar cell module of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a detailed cross-sectional view of the photoelectric conversion layer of the solar cell module of FIG. 1.

3 is a perspective view of a state in which a plurality of solar cell modules are mounted in the present invention.

4 is a schematic perspective view of a tubular solar cell module of an embodiment in which a reflector is installed.

* Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings *

100: front electrode 200: photoelectric conversion layer 300: rear electrode

400: hot water pipe 410: channel connector 500: reflector

Claims (7)

A plurality of photovoltaic cells formed on a substrate and connected to each other, The photocells are front electrodes on the substrate; A photoelectric conversion layer on the front electrode; And a back electrode on the photoelectric conversion layer, wherein the photovoltaic cells are tubular having a predetermined length, and a hot water tube configured to control a temperature rise of the photovoltaic cell is formed inside the tubular photovoltaic cell. The tubular solar cell module according to claim 1, wherein the hot water pipes of the respective photovoltaic cells are connected to each other by a channel connection pipe. The tubular solar cell module according to claim 1, wherein a waterproof coating layer is formed between the rear electrode and the hot water pipe. The solar cell module of claim 1, wherein the solar cell module is formed under the plurality of tubular photovoltaic cells to reflect the incident light incident to the spaced areas between the plurality of tubular photovoltaic cells to the plurality of photovoltaic cells. Tubular solar cell module, characterized in that it further comprises. The tubular solar cell module according to claim 1, wherein the photocell is a tandem structure including a photoelectric conversion layer in which two or more layers are stacked, or each photoelectric conversion layer includes a PN junction structure or a PIN junction structure. The tubular solar cell module according to claim 1, wherein the photoelectric conversion layer of the photovoltaic cell is an organic semiconductor layer or a compound semiconductor layer. The method of claim 6, wherein the organic semiconductor layer is at least one selected from the group consisting of amorphous silicon, polycrystalline silicon, microcrystalline silicon, germanium, gallium, silicon-germanium, the compound semiconductor layer is Group I-III-VI A tubular solar cell module, characterized in that at least one selected from the group consisting of compounds, II-VI compounds, and III-V compounds.

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