‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member Trina Solar has set a new world record of 19.86% aperture efficiency for a P-type multicrystalline solar cell-based module, independently verified by the Fraunhofer ISE CalLab in Germany.
The record was set with half-cut cell interconnection, passivated emitter and rear contact (PERC) technology and highly efficient light trapping on a module area of 1.514m2.
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The new record represents an increase of more than 0.7 percentage points, or approximately 3.8% higher than the previously held efficiency record of 19.14% on a 1.515m2 module aperture area announced in April 2015. As with previous developments the work was carried out at Trina Solar’s State Key Laboratory of PV Science and Technology of China (SKL PVST).
Dr. Pierre Verlinden, Vice-President and Chief Scientist of Trina Solar said, “The efficiency of PV modules is one of the key parameters to estimate the final Levelised Cost of solar Electricity (LCOE). This 19.86% aperture efficiency result that Trina Solar achieved demonstrates the huge potential for future multicrystalline p-type silicon research. It is also a leap forward in the trend of continuous efficiency improvements of crystalline silicon solar modules.”
Trina Solar had recently said it had achieved an average efficiency of 21.1% for its industrially-produced P-type monocrystalline cells (156 x 156 mm2) with Passivated Emitter and Rear Cell (PERC) technology at its ‘golden’ pilot production line.
