Is glass necessary for solar cell encapsulation??

[gauravc311]

Is glass necessary for solar cells encapsulation?? that is if we have to form modules of about 15-20 cells..then is glass necesary for covering the cells or some other materials can be used??

[SunEagle]

Is glass necessary for solar cells encapsulation?? that is if we have to form modules of about 15-20 cells..then is glass necesary for covering the cells or some other materials can be used??

Glass is probably the best material that you can use. It is not only flat but passes the entire light spectrum of the sun through it to the cells underneath. It is also probably the cheapest for solar panels.

[gauravc311]

Glass is probably the best material that you can use. It is not only flat but passes the entire light spectrum of the sun through it to the cells underneath. It is also probably the cheapest for solar panels.

But what are the other materials that can be used instead of glass as i want to decrease weight of my panels. I have already removed the alluminium casing and is now looking for decreasing weight in other aspects as well.

[russ]

You are going to have to explain what you want to do in order to get any usable comments.

Just making a panel lighter doesn't say much.

[gauravc311]

Actually we are a group of engineers participating in a solar car competition and we have to reduce our car weight as much as we can.
So while encapsulating solar cells we thought of using acrylic or glass to cover our cells. But glass will increase weight issues.
So can we use acrylic sheets or polymers instead of Glass and will those materials decrease our module efficiency as compared to glasss?

[SunEagle]

There are a number of solar panels that can be easily folded up for storage. I would presume that they do not incorporate any type of glass.

I would imagine that they use some type of plastic or polymer that will hopefully not degrade from UV light and still pass a fair amount of sunlight to the cells below.

These panels are much lighter than the traditional solar panel but based on what I have read they are not as efficient and will produce less electricity then panels using a glass front.

[green]

Glass isn't totally needed. You could just encapsulate the cells in an epoxy encapsulant.

[Naptown]

Actually we are a group of engineers participating in a solar car competition and we have to reduce our car weight as much as we can.
So while encapsulating solar cells we thought of using acrylic or glass to cover our cells. But glass will increase weight issues.
So can we use acrylic sheets or polymers instead of Glass and will those materials decrease our module efficiency as compared to glasss?

You could use a polymer.. you arent looking for the cells to last 30 + years just long enough to get through the competition.
I'm thinking clear tedlar with a UV inhibitor.

[russ]

Polycarbonate with a UV inhibitor