Oct 16 2011
BASF will showcase its current portfolio of innovative solutions for the solar industry at the Solar Power International Conference and Exhibition, booth 3751, October 17-20, 2011 at the Dallas Convention Center, Dallas, Texas.
The offering includes products and solutions that allow efficient production and enhanced performance of photovoltaic modules and solar thermal products. Experts will be on hand to discuss the company’s extensive offering, which covers the entire value chain for solar cells, as well as to discuss new development opportunities.
New product launch
BASF has just launched Tinuvin® 1600, a high performance UV absorber for transparent outdoor thin section applications. The product’s outstanding UV absorption capacity makes it ideal to enable biaxially oriented PET films to become a key component for photovoltaics and other solar power devices. With Tinuvin® 1600, PET films are now a viable alternative for photovoltaics, getting the industry closer to grid parity by making solar energy more cost effective. Tinuvin® 1600 helps to extend the durability and life expectancy of products under intense exposure to UV light. Its extremely high-performance and light-stable UV-filter lends itself particularly well to long-term outdoor use for up to 25+ years. Tinuvin® 1600 belongs to the class of triazines and exhibits very low volatility, excellent thermal stability and good substrate compatibility in a variety of polymeric resins, which also makes it ideal for PMMA/PC films and laminations for solar power applications.
Photovoltaic/construction applications
Polyurethane casting system
COLO-FAST® Polyurethane (PU) casting system is a versatile framing solution for photovoltaic, solar hot water generation and duo units that provides an alternative to traditional aluminum framing systems. Frames produced with COLO-FAST are weather resistant and easy to design, and are not limited to shape or color requirements. COLO-FAST frames are fast molding for ease of manufacturing, and incorporate features such as quick modular installations and electrical connections.
Basotect® melamine foam
BASF’s Basotect® melamine foam is in use for insulating the Gobi line of solar flat plate collectors by Heliodyne, Richmond, California, one of the oldest and largest manufacturers of solar collectors in the United States. The Gobi line is Heliodyne’s flagship product that has continuously been refined and optimized for over 30 years.
Flat plate solar collectors use solar energy to produce hot water for residential and commercial buildings. Water or heat transfer fluid is heated as it passes through panels that are designed to collect heat from the sun. One essential aspect of the collector design is the thermal insulation that is used to retain the heat in the collector. Solar collectors that are stagnant, meaning that the liquid is not flowing through the collector, can reach temperatures that exceed 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Basotect can withstand these temperatures unlike other polymeric foam insulating materials, such as polyisocyanurate, that start to degrade at 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
Plastics
In the field of photovoltaics, BASF has, in the meantime, become very active with its polyamides Ultramid® A3X2G7 and Ultramid A3XZG5 for connectors and junction boxes. Both materials are certified on the basis of the f1 weathering test (UL). In addition, an especially interesting new product is the novel plastic pan for photovoltaic modules developed together with SCHOTT Solar. Ultramid® B High Speed (polyamide 6) is not only easyflowing, but also tough, rigid and weather -resistant– characteristics that sets a plastic apart from metal. It also satisfies the criteria required by such construction applications (material class B2).
Solar cell cleaning
BASF offers and develops solutions for etching, texturizing, doping and cleaning mono- and polycrystalline solar cells. The range is extended by the innovative cleaning fluid SELURIS® Clean. Treatment with SELURIS Clean prior to phosphoric acid doping provides both final pre-dope wafer cleaning and efficient surface hydrophilization resulting in excellend dopant wetting.
Heat, light and UV stabilizers
BASF plastic additives enable all plastics used in photovoltaic modules to withstand exposure to heat – Irgafos® and Irganox® antioxidants, and to sunlight – Chimassorb®, Tinuvin® and Uvinul® light stabilizers. They are tailor-made for the various plastic resins used in photovoltaic applications, such as encapsulants, frames, backsheet films and electrical components, to meet the lifetime minimum requirement of 25 years.
Cutting fluids
Pluriol® fluids allow wafer cutters the flexibility to design cutting slurries that match their process requirements. The Pluriol portfolio ensures optimized wafer products economies through constant high wafer quality, high yield, less wafer defect and breakage.