Hostname: page-component-7b7567c8c-wxvwp Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-11-14T22:44:56.966Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

CENTESIL: A Pilot Plant for R&D in Polysilicon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 January 2011

Carlos del Cañizo,
Araceli Rodríguez,
Gabriel Ovejero and
Antonio Luque
Carlos del Cañizo
Affiliation:
canizo@ies-def.upm.es, Universidad Politécnicad de Madrid, Instituto de Energía Solar, Madrid, Spain
Araceli Rodríguez
Affiliation:
arodri@quim.ucm.es, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Dpto Ingeniería Química, Madrid, Spain
Gabriel Ovejero
Affiliation:
govejero@quim.ucm.es, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Dpto Ingeniería Química, Madrid, Spain
Antonio Luque
Affiliation:
a.luque@upm.es, Universidad Politécnicad de Madrid, Instituto de Energía Solar, Madrid, Spain
Get access

Abstract

The tremendous expansion and the relative avidity for silicon of the solar cell technology has resulted in a dramatic change of the polysilicon industry structure. While in the past the polysilicon was manufactured almost exclusively for the semiconductor industry, in 2008 around 67% of the total production was consumed by the solar industry. The consequence is that while in 2000 virtually only 7 companies supplied all the polysilicon consumed worldwide, in 2008 there were 11 major suppliers and numerous new ventures entering this market.Based on this in 2006 CENTESIL was founded as a new private-public partnership venture to deal with the polysilicon research. For it, a pilot plant is in advanced state of construction that has been preceded of some laboratory-size implementations. The pilot plant is designed for a production capacity of 60 kmol of trichlorosilane per day and 2 t of purified silicon per batch at the CVD reactor. The purpose is to allow the photovoltaic companies worldwide to count with an independent research centre to help them to establish their own polysilicon plant.The R&D activities already carried out by CENTESIL and the present status of the project are discussed in the paper.

Keywords

photovoltaicSipurification

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 1210: Symposium Q – Photovoltaic Materials and Manufacturing Issues II , 2009, 1210-Q05-06
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

1 Hirshman, W.P. Photon International 3, 82 (2009).Google Scholar
2 Luque, A. Progress in Photovoltaics 9, 303 (2001).Google Scholar
3 Mayers, M. Photon International 8, 82 (2009).Google Scholar
4 Ceccaroli, B. in Handbook of Photovoltaic Science and Engineering, edited by Luque, A. and Hegedus, S. (John Wiley & Suns, West Sussex, 2003), p. 153.Google Scholar
5 Hesse, K. Schindlbeck, E. Freiheit, H-C. Proc. 22rd European Photov. Solar Ener. Conf., WIP Renewable Energies, 866 (2007).Google Scholar
6 Peter, K. Kopecek, R. Soiland, A. Enebakk, E. Proc. 23rd European Photov. Solar Ener. Conf., WIP Renewable Energies, 947 (2008).Google Scholar
7 Hofstetter, J. Lelièvre, J.F., Cañizo, C. del, Luque, A. Mater. Science & Engin. B, 159-160, 299 (2009).Google Scholar
8 Dubois, S. Enjalbert, N. Garandet, J.P. Appl. Phys. Let. 93, 32114 (2008).Google Scholar
9 Coso, G. del, Cañizo, C. del, Sinke, W. The impact of silicon feedstock on the PV module cost, Solar Energy Mat. & Solar Cells, accepted for publication.Google Scholar
10 Méndez, L., PhD. Thesis, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 2009.Google Scholar
11 Coso, G. del, Cañizo, C. del, Luque, A. J. Electrochem. Soc. 155(6), 489 (2008).Google Scholar
12 Coso, G. del, Sánchez, M., González, M., Zamorano, J.C. Cañizo, C. del, Luque, A. presented at the 24th European PVSEC, Hamburg, Germany, 2009 (to be published).Google Scholar