Silicon - News, Trends, Silicon Links
Better to build solar PV with iron pyrites
It found that, based on material cost and availability, solar photovoltaics made with iron pyrites (aka Fool?s Gold) are more likely to solve our energy crisis than PV made with silicon or CIGS thinfilms. This is due to both the cost of the raw materials and their availability - both crystalline silicon and the CIGS precursors are relatively expensive and relatively rare. Iron pyrite and its precursors are among the most common elements on earth, in contrast. - Read More
Tags : solar energy solar pv photovoltaics
Topics : Solar Energy
Non-crystalline or amorphous silicon
Non-crystalline or amorphous silicon absorbs light easily but is not very efficient and cannot be mass produced reliably and easily
Tags : solar panels
Topics : Solar Energy
Polycrystalline silicon
Polycrystalline silicon has lower efficiency than the single crystal type but is less expensive to manufacture
Tags : solar panels polycrystalline silicon
Topics : Solar Energy
Single crystal silicon most efficient
Single crystal silicon is the most efficient except for thin film gallium arsenide, but it is hard to make
Tags : solar panels
Topics : Solar Energy
Silicon second most abundant material
Si is the second most abundant element in the earth's crust., so supply should not be a problem (for solar cells etc)
Tags : solar panels