The Silicon Solar Manufacturing and Dual-use Photovoltaics Incubator funding program provides $27 million for projects to enable continued solar cost reductions while developing next-generation solar technologies and boosting American solar manufacturing.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) announced the funding opportunity on July 6, 2023 and the 10 selected projects on May 16, 2024.
Approach
A robust domestic solar manufacturing sector increases supply chain resilience and brings other direct domestic benefits, including job creation and economic development. The projects in this funding program support innovation in photovoltaic (PV) materials across the supply chain, as well as the development of new dual-use solar technologies to create new markets for American products.
Objectives
These projects will support an equitable transition to a decarbonized electricity system by 2035 and facilitate secure, robust, and reliable integration of solar electricity into the nation’s energy grid.
Selectees
– Award and cost share amounts are rounded and subject to change pending negotiations –
Topic Area 1: Pilot Demonstration of Silicon Supply Chain Components
Re:Build Manufacturing
Project Name: Solar Crystal Puller
Location: Merrimack, NH
DOE Award Amount: $1.9 million
Awardee Cost Share: $5.8 million
Principal Investigator: Steve Garrant
Project Description: This project aims to develop and manufacture Czochralski ingot pullers for the solar industry, which melt and then freeze the silicon into a crystalline state. Additionally, the project supports necessary ancillary equipment to support the pullers, such as feeders, ingot handling equipment, and crucible handling equipment. This will ease the U.S. ingot industry’s reliance on imported equipment.
Silfab Solar Cells
Project Name: Cost-Effective, High-Efficiency, Industrial Back Contact Silicon Solar Cells with Passivated Contacts
Location: Fort Mill, SC
DOE Award Amount: $5 million
Awardee Cost Share: $14.9 million
Principal Investigator: Vinodh Chandrasekaran
Project Description: This project aims to develop back contact n-type cells, which demonstrate increased efficiency compared to PERC technology at 26%. The team is developing innovations on a 300-megawatt pilot line, which will be co-located alongside the standard n-type cell manufacturing line, to enable rapid scale-up of back contact cell technology into high-volume manufacturing. Improvements to the solar cells will include surface doping, patterning and isolation, and advanced metallization to reduce the use of silver.
Ubiquity Solar
Project Name: Single Crystal Silicon Ingot Growth Using Continuous Czochralski Method (CCz)
Location: Hazelwood, MO
DOE Award Amount: $11.2 million
Awardee Cost Share: $33.6 million
Principal Investigator: Jim Highfill
Project Description: This project is developing the CCz method of manufacturing silicon ingots, which will significantly decrease the cost of manufacturing compared to the standard Czochralski process. The team has successfully demonstrated the CCz technology with smaller ingots, and this project aims to demonstrate the process with larger ingots and wafers used in today’s high-efficiency solar cell manufacturing processes.
Topic Area 2: Dual-use PV Incubator
Appalachian Renewable Power
Project Name: Diversifying on Farm Income in Appalachia: Quantifying the Integration of Beef Cattle Grazing and Photovoltaics
Location: Stewart, OH
DOE Award Amount: $1.6 million
Awardee Cost Share: $400,000
Principal Investigator: Gary Easton
Project Description: This project studies the feasibility of installing and managing solar PV infrastructure in grasslands used for grazing beef cattle. The team will assess the impact of PV products designed for agriculture in the United States on soil health, forage growth, and beef cattle performance. This project plans to empower rural producers across Appalachia to diversify farm income while reducing the carbon footprint of power generation throughout the region.
GAF Energy
Project Name: Advanced Thermal and Energy Modeling of Roof-integrated Photovoltaic Shingles
Location: San Jose, CA
DOE Award Amount: $1.6 million
Awardee Cost Share: $400,000
Principal Investigator: David Kavulak
Project Description: This project aims to develop, test, and validate a combination of optical, thermal, and energy models for roof-integrated PV shingles to improve assessments of electricity production and heating and air conditioning effects on the building. The project is building a testing facility for roof-integrated PV systems equipped with weather, PV, and temperature monitoring. Partnering with Sandia National Laboratories and its network of Regional Test Centers allows for testing and validation of PV models across U.S. climates. New standards will be proposed for temperature and energy modeling of roof-integrated PV systems, which will encourage building designers to integrate PV into rooftops for the electrical and thermal advantages they deliver.
Noria Energy Holdings
Project Name: Tracking and Positioning System for Floating Solar
Location: Sausalito, CA
DOE Award Amount: $1.6 million
Awardee Cost Share: $1 million
Principal Investigator: Alex Mayer
Project Description: This project aims to develop tracker components for floating solar systems, demonstrate and test various sizes of installations, and test certifications to ensure reliable operation and product bankability. The proposed technology allows floating PV islands to rotate and follow the sun throughout the day. Tracking the sun leads to increased power output per solar panel installed, reducing the cost of electricity from floating solar arrays.
RCAM Technologies
Project Name: A Low-Cost Jack-Up Solar Platform to Conserve America’s Water
Location: Boulder, CO
DOE Award Amount: $600,000
Awardee Cost Share: $160,000
Principal Investigator: Jason Cotrell
Project Description: This project mounts solar panels onto frames placed over irrigation canals to generate renewable energy and save water by reducing evaporation. Locating solar in this way reduces land use for renewable energy generation and capitalizes on existing electrical infrastructure that is integrated within many water canal projects. The team will adapt 3D concrete printing from the offshore energy industry to build solar platforms, reducing the cost and complexity of installation and encouraging PV deployment in this sector. The platform can be manufactured on or near-site using local materials and workforce.
Silfab Solar WA
Project Name: Development of High Efficiency Silicon Solar Spandrels
Location: Bellingham, WA
DOE Award Amount: $400,000
Awardee Cost Share: $100,000
Principal Investigator: Eric Schneller
Project Description: This project is developing high-quality, high-efficiency building-integrated PV modules in the form of solar spandrels, which have opaque glass that is well suited for the glazed surfaces between two floors of commercial and high-rise buildings where transparent glass windows are not needed. The project focuses on the technical challenges of merging conventional module manufacturing with construction practices for glass-walled facades. The team will demonstrate key outcomes in PV and building International Electrotechnical Commission reliability tests, a suite of models for thermal performance, electrical performance, return on investment calculations, and building lifetime energy use.
The R&D Lab
Project Name: Roofing for Solar, Starling RFS
Location: Petaluma, CA
DOE Award Amount: $1 million
Awardee Cost Share: $400,000
Principal Investigator: Brian Atchley
Project Description: This project aims to refine, manufacture, and commercialize a new roofing-integrated solar racking system. The racking system enables rapid solar installation after roof construction. The system will be designed for improved reliability and lower cost, with roof-integrated wire management for increased safety and aesthetics.
Wabash
Project Name: Design, Fabrication, and Durability Assessment of a Sustainable Composite Refrigerated Trailer Integrated with Photovoltaics
Location: Lafayette, IN
DOE Award Amount: $1.6 million
Awardee Cost Share: $700,000
Principal Investigator: Michael Bodey
Project Description: This project aims to demonstrate the integration of PV systems into refrigerated trailers for a yearlong study of PV performance, durability, and energy costs. Efficient, flexible, and lightweight PV modules are being integrated onto the rooftop of a composite refrigerated trailer to address long-term durability, environmental exposure, vehicle loads, and maintenance. The team will track PV performance through mechanical, thermal, humidity, vibration, shock, and impact loads.
Learn more about SETO’s manufacturing and competitiveness research, the domestic solar supply chain, and dual-use solar technologies.