Greentech Lead America: Amonix , a designer and manufacturer of concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) solar power systems, has achieved a new worldwide PV efficiency record by converting more than 36 percent of direct sunlight into electricity.
A module showcasing Amonix’s latest-generation CPV technology has been in outdoor testing from late February to April of this year. During this period, the Amonix module demonstrated a peak operating efficiency of 36.2 percent measured on March 14, 2013 with a DNI of 876 W/m2, an ambient temperature of 16°C and instantaneous wind speed of 1 m/s, breaking the previous 34.2 percent peak efficiency set by Amonix in May 2012.
The module uses Boeing Spectrolab 40 percent high efficiency solar cells and Amonix’s proprietary CPV technology to achieve world record performance.
Over the entire testing period, the Amonix module earned a National Renewable Energy Laboratory outdoor efficiency rating of 34.9 percent, a new world record, under international standard operating conditions for concentrator photovoltaics of 900 W/m2, 20°C ambient temperature and 2m/s wind speed, breaking the previous 33.5 percent rated efficiency record also set by Amonix in May 2012.
Amonix has been the first to convert over 1/3rd of the sun’s energy in May 2012, and the first to break 30 percent module efficiency in 2011, the company claims.
“Amonix’s proprietary technology platform allows us to continue driving rapid performance improvements in our CPV system,” said Vahan Garboushian, Amonix founder and CTO. “The advances we have demonstrated over the last 2 years have all been with the same generation 40 percent cells, demonstrating an unprecedented cell to module conversion efficiency of greater than 90 percent.”
“With improvements that are underway in cell efficiency and additional advances in our module technology, we will continue to drive efficiency higher over the coming years,” Garboushian said.