Product Briefing Outline: GT Solar International has launched the ‘DSS450HP,’ a high performance ingot growth furnace with a thermally optimized, second-generation hot zone for improved throughput while delivering industry-leading crystal quality. Because the DSS450HP has the same dimensions as the DSS450, current users can easily migrate to the new DSS450HP with a field upgrade kit.
Problem: Lowering the cost of ingot manufacturing is a critical aim to help reduce the overall cost per watt. With high investment costs in the wafering sector that has also suffered from high price declines, emphasizes the need for improved productivity, lower cost of manufacturing and increased yield and product quality.
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Solution: The high-throughput DSS450HP furnace produces large ingots rapidly – down to 52 hours – resulting in a 15-20 percent improvement in productivity. Silicon is directionally solidified into a square ingot and later cut into 25 bricks. GT Solar’s innovation and expertise in mechanical design, vacuum and high-pressure chambers, control system design, and crystal growth modeling, provide a technologically advanced system that is claimed to consistently produce high quality ingots that optimize mass ingot yield. Furnace Output is calculated at 8MW per year (assuming 15.8% efficiency from 156mm cell lines). Existing DSS450 and DSS240 customers can upgrade to the new DSS450HP platform with a simple field upgrade kit that allows them to take advantage of the new levels of throughput and cost savings.
Applications: Directional Solidification System (DSS) furnaces that cast multi-crystalline ingots.
Platform: Dimensions: W x L x H: 3823mm x 4774mm x 5105mm (151” x 188” x 201”). Ceiling height: 6000mm (236”). Power for entire system: 200 kVA, 400-480V, 3 Ph, 50/60 Hz. Power factor: Ave 0.93. Cooling water: 120 to 130 liters/min at 3.4 to 4.5 bar. Argon: 65 m3 per ingot. Helium (optional). Weight approx.: 10,200 kg (22,440 lb)
Availability: April 2010.
