Solar Inventions, a new solar technology startup, has been selected to advance to the next stage of competition in an innovative prize program, the U.S. Department of Energy’s American-Made Solar Prize. Solar Inventions’ new technology makes solar cells safer and more efficient with virtually no change to existing manufacturing lines.
“We are honored to be selected as a semifinalist in the American-Made Solar Prize,” said Bill Nussey, CEO of Solar Inventions. “The program offers unprecedented access to a network of world-class laboratories and some of the top minds in the industry. This competition has provided a tremendous leg up for Solar Inventions as we continue to work to commercialize our breakthroughs and bring them to market.”
As a semifinalist, Solar Inventions will use its cash prize to fund additional tests and carry out pilots with prospective partners. The American-Made Solar Prize will announce the finalists in late May, 2019.
Solar Inventions’ technology is based on the inventions of its co-founder, Dr. Ben Damiani. The company’s first product, the Configurable Current Cell (C3), electrically divides a single physical solar cell into multiple electrical partitions. This creates similar benefits to half-cells, a major solar industry trend, but without requiring cells to be physically broken and rewired. Like half-cells, C3 cells offer improved efficiency and power output as well as increased safety due to reduced risks of “hotspots.” But unlike half-cells, C3 cells can be wired into panels identically to traditional square cells with conventional busbars and standard tabbing and stringing. The invention is also complementary to half-cells so it can be applied to manufacturing lines that have already upgraded.
C3 allows the company to create multiple circuits and integrated electronic components directly on a single silicon solar cell, all without cutting the wafer or introducing disruptive process changes. It works with nearly all mainstream silicon cell architectures, which make up about 95% of the global market. C3 has the potential to reshape the industry by offering one of the least expensive ways to improve the efficiency and functionality of silicon solar.
Dr. Frank Faller, the CTO of a leading solar project developer and an advisory board member of Solar Inventions, said, “Everyone in the solar industry is looking for additional power at the lowest cost that does not force changes to existing manufacturing facilities and deployment processes. Solar Inventions’ C3 has the potential to deliver exactly what the industry looking for.”
About Solar Inventions
Solar Inventions is based in Atlanta, Georgia, at Georgia Tech’s world-class startup accelerator, the Atlanta Technology Development Center (ATDC). The company’s mission is to commercialize and license breakthrough technologies in solar and other clean energy markets. Dr. Ben Damiani is one of three co-founders and has a Ph.D. from Georgia Tech. His work at Suniva, Solar World, Fraunhofer, and other leading-edge solar organizations is recognized around the world. His co-founder, Bill Nussey, is a career tech CEO whose companies have created thousands of jobs and billions in shareholder value. He is also the author of the upcoming book on batteries and the decentralization of the grid, Freeing Energy. Another co-founder, Gregg Freishtat, is also a career tech CEO, as well as a lawyer, who has 18 patents to his name.
About the American-Made Solar Prize
The American-Made Solar Prize is a $3 million prize competition designed to revitalize U.S. solar manufacturing through a series of contests and the development of a diverse and powerful support network that leverages national laboratories, energy incubators, and other resources across the country. The American-Made Solar Prize is directed and administered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office. Learn more.
Media contact:
Kevin Wolf
TGPR
(650) 483-1552
kevin@tgprllc.com
