Clever Aussies Go Solar

[xoxoxoBruce]

One of Australia's most notable features is the "Outback"....very big, pretty dry, kinda empty, doesn't have very much. But two things it does have are, sunshine and remote settlements.

Found this press release on the Boeing Intranet, today.

Boeing to supply Terrestrial Solar Cells for Australia
The Boeing Company [NYSE:BA] announced today it has signed a multi-million dollar contract to supply concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) cell assemblies to an Australian company that produces renewable solar energy.

Under the contract with Solar Systems Pty. Ltd. of Hawthorn, Victoria, Boeing will deliver 500,000 concentrator solar cell assemblies for use at power stations that generate renewable energy for small, remote Australian communities.
The cells will be built by Boeing’s wholly owned subsidiary Spectrolab, Inc. of Sylmar, Calif. Deliveries will begin later this year.

The solar cell assemblies for Solar Systems will be capable of generating more than 11 megawatts of electricity – enough to power 3,500 average-sized homes.
Said Dr. David Lillington, president of Spectrolab. “We have leveraged our expertise in space photovoltaic products and created terrestrial concentrating solar cells with record-breaking efficiencies averaging above 35 percent."
In April, Spectrolab and Solar Systems brought the world’s first full-scale ultra high efficiency 35-kilowatt solar generator online in Australia.
The breakthrough demonstrated by this fully operating, full scale system shows the potential for CPV to dramatically change the economics of solar power.

Solar Systems’ concentrators look somewhat like a satellite dish with curved lrefecting mirrors shaped to concentrate sunlight onto the solar cells. A sun-tracking mechanism allows electricity to be produced from morning to late afternoon. Small, remote communities are using a number of concentrator dishes in “solar farms” for energy during the day, and switching to diesel generators at night.

A significant advantage of concentrator systems is that fewer solar cells are rrequired to achieve a specific power output. Large areas of semiconductor materials can now be replaced with lower cost concentration devices. The higher cost of ultra high efficiency multi-junction cells is offset by the need for fewer cells. Because multi-junction cells are so efficient, only a fraction of the cell area is required to generate the same power as crystalline silicon or thin-film flat-plate designs.

I've edited this heavily, because it was a joint press release by Boeing/Spectrolab/Solar Systems Pty., there was a nauseating amount of patting themselves and each other, on the back. That said, it's a great idea. The next step is working out a cheap & efficient way to store the power and kill the Diesel generators except during streches of cloudy weather.

Aussies are smarter than the average Koala Bear.