Significant cost reduction through new optical, thermal, and structural design for a medium-CPV system

The design of cost-efficient medium-concentration PV (MCPV) systems requires the analysis of dozens of engineering, manufacturing and financial trade-offs. In 2007, Skyline Solar designed its first system, the HGS1000, based on a 7x concentration factor and 0.5 m aperture width. At the then-current cost of components, this was the optimum design. However, as the cost of silicon cells has fallen and the efficiency of cells has improved, the least-cost point has moved. This paper explains how we used the combination of field data and advanced performance modeling to re-optimize the design for lowest levelized cost of energy (LCOE) and achieve 40% cost reduction.x=14&up