Solar goes organic

Pittsburgh-based printed electronics developer Plextronics announced yesterday that it broke a world record for single layer organic solar cell efficiency.

The company hit 5.4 percent efficiency for its solar cells, up from last year's record of 5.2 percent.

But don't expect organic solar to overtake silicon-based photovoltaic cells just yet.

"Long-term there may be an opportunity for customers to use this over silicon technology," James Dietz, VP of business development at Plextronics, told the Cleantech Group. "Everyone wants lower cost power, cheaper, lighter."

"The printing processes are rather straightforward. Lower cost, lighter, less material. We believe these two factors will result in a much lower cost basis," he said.

Plextronics, which hopes to enable 15 billion printed electronic devices by 2015, believes its technology can reduce the cost of solar cells to below $1 per watt, which the company said is a reduction of up to five times that of crystalline silicon-based solar energy systems.

"The capital cost for the entire silicon photovoltaic chain is much higher," said Dietz. With organic solar, "it's more of a printing press than a lot of complex processes."

Founded in 2002 as a spinout from Carnegie Mellon University, the company's ink technology, which allows for flexible printed circuitry, is already being used commercially in radio-frequency identification, or RFID, tags.

Next up are the next-generation television sets with organic light-emitting diode, or OLED, displays. Plextronics will be a part of that market, too.

And after that, solar. Small solar, that is.

"With a rigid substrate using our materials, we see a number of portable applications over the next few years," said Dietz.

Portable chargers for cellphone or laptop computer batteries, or even small water pumps, could be made with glass solar cells.

"Over the last few years, we've spent more time proving how these materials can work," said Dietz.

With over $16 million in financing, they have the resources to do just that. Backers include Birchmere Ventures, Draper Triangle Ventures, Firelake and others.

Some of those new solar products could come out as early as next year.

In another three years, the flexible products will come to light, probably integrated into fabrics, perhaps for flexible tent fabrics for use by the military to heat and power an encampment.

With a well-established silicon industry supplying the photovoltaics market, there's little danger of organic solar overtaking silicon anytime soon, but the possibilities for some interesting applications may only be a few years away.

Over in New England, Konarka Technologies, a company with a similar background is working on a similar technology.

Named after the Konarka temple of sun worship in India, the company was spun out of the University of Massachusetts in 2001.

Konarka has raised $36 million in funding from investors including New Enterprise Associates, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Vanguard Ventures and Zero Stage Capital.

Also still in the development stage, Konarka is working on light-activated power plastic. It has established strategic partnerships with ChevronTexaco, Eastman Chemical, Electricité de France and Siemens.

And the two organic solar companies have a past. Last year they shared the previous efficiency record, certified by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado.

In June, Konarka lost its CEO to the investment game. Howard Berke took a job with Good Energies, an investor with a global renewable energy portfolio of approximately $5 billion, including an investment in Konarka (see Konarka loses CEO, replaced by COO).

CIBC World Market's Adam Hinckley noted in a recent report that he sees global demand for solar energy growing about 40 percent annually for the remainder of the decade.

So even with some close competition, as well as major competition from the established silicon solar market, there's still plenty of room in the world of solar.

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