The Whitfield Solar CPV Collector

Whitfield Solar is now in production with a point‐focus Fresnel lens 70x PV concentrator that uses LGBC silicon cells. The design builds on initial research carried out under a number of EU‐funded R&D projects. Each collector has twenty‐four V‐troughs 1.2 m long by 110 mm wide by 110 mm deep, and each trough carries 12 cells. Tracking is closed‐loop, in a 2‐axis tilt & roll system. Initial prototypes were installed in Spain in 2006, and subsequent production‐version collectors have been on‐sun since September 2008. In‐field normalised d.c. system efficiency is 13.5%. Volume‐manufactured sales price—including support frame and mark‐up—is €2.40/Wp,dc, with scope for further significant cost reduction identified.