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FLAT-PLATE FRESNEL LENSES WITH IMPROVED CONCENTRATING CAPABILITIES: DESIGNING, MANUFACTURING AND TESTING

M.Z.Shvarts , V.M.Andreev , V.S.Gorohov , V.A.Grilikhes , A.E. Petrenko , A.A.Soluyanov , N.H.Timoshina , 1 3 E.V.Vlasova , E.M.Zaharevich
1 1 1 3 1 4 2 1

Ioffe Physico-Technical Institute, 26 Polytechnicheskaya str., St.-Petersburg, 194021, Russia 2 Technoexan LTD, 26 Polytechnicheskaya str., St.-Petersburg, 194021, Russia 3 SRC KP-Almaz, 17 Butlerova str., Moscow, 117342, Russia 4 Karpov Institute of Physical Chemistry, 10 Vorontsovo pole str., Moscow, 105064, Russia

ABSTRACT This work presents the results of designing, manufacturing and testing a flat-plate Fresnel lens with improved concentrating capability. At the designing the Fresnel lens, the optimal combination of lens size, focal distance and refracting surface profile parameters was found with applying the photometric model of the concentration process. Lens optical-power characteristics were tested with use of developed indoor equipment. Based on experimentally measured geometrical parameters of the lens profile and spectral characteristics of the testing units, the mathematical model have been corrected and a good fit of simulated and experimental results is demonstrated, which indicates a right choice of the designing procedure, manufacture process and sequence of tests. INTRODUCTION In recent years, developments directed to creation of photovoltaic modules with lens sunlight concentrators, in which a high (up to 500 X and more) average concentration ratio on highly efficient multijunction solar cells is ensured, were livened up considerably [1-6]. However, whereas the problem of rising the multijunction SC efficiency is being solved successfully [7, 8], there are the sufficient number of problems on the way of manufacture of highly efficient lenses, in particular, Fresnel lenses (FLs), which are associated with optimization of their design, with their fabrication and with a correct estimation of the optical-power characteristics. At the same time, to design and create highly efficient photovoltaic modules with lens concentrators, it is necessary to have models and procedures for calculating real operating characteristics of the Fresnel lenses allowing for the peculiarities of their production technologies used. To achieve this aim, it is necessary to solve the following problems: development of a mathematical model and procedures for determining the ideal FL optimum parameters;

fabrication a FL mold and control of its quality; fabrication of a FL and measurement of its optical-power characteristics in the laboratory conditions or on the natural Sun with applying a specially developed equipment; correction of the mathematical model for calculating a real optical-power characteristic of the developed lens. In the paper, presented are the steps for designing, fabrication and testing a FL characterized by an improved concentration capability. A particular attention is focused on the procedures and means for experimental simulation in studying the lens optical-power characteristics, on interpretation of obtained experimental results and on methods for correcting calculation models. FRESNEL LENS DESIGN The main lens characteristic is the distribution of the concentrated radiation density in the focal plane. This socalled optical-power characteristic (OPC) allows estimating comprehensively the lens quality its concentrating capability and optical efficiency. From the calculation results or OPC measurements, one can determine the average radiation concentration in a spot of any diameter (i.e., for a solar cell of any size) and the corresponding optical efficiency of the concentrator-receiver system. Besides, the OPC gives a possibility to estimate the character of the irradiance distribution in the focal spot and its effect on the solar cell I-V curve. The main negative effect on the FL concentrating capability comes from the chromatic aberration (CA), which, at the wide spectral range of the sunlight and the finite Sun angular dimension leads to blurring the concentrated radiation in the place of the photoreceiver location and to the essential decrease of its irradiance average level due to the spatial and spectral energy redistribution. The negative effect from the CA can be essentially diminished by purposeful changing the concentrated radiation characteristics choosing the optimum combination of the lens material, its size, focal distance and geometrical parameters defining the refracting surface profile.

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In the photovoltaic model of the concentration process developed by us before [9-10], the parameter controlling profile of the lens at its preassigned dimensions and focal distance is the refraction index, values of which are taken from its precisely determined dependence on the wavelength for a chosen lens material, and the optimization parameter is the maximum of the average sunlight concentration corresponding to the focal spot minimum size. The basis for calculation is the OPC of a lens, which characterize the concentrated radiation density distribution in its focal plane. In determining the average values of the concentration ratio and optical efficiency, not the entire focal spot area is considered, but the circle area, in which 95-98% of the concentrated radiation power is collected. This allows obtaining a higher average concentration on a receiver without essential losses of the power of the radiation passed through a lens. A preliminary analysis of different type optical materials for manufacturing FLs has shown that the refraction index increase affects positively the lens concentrating capability. For this reason, the FL profile designing was carried out for two materials: twocomponent silicon compound Wacker 604 and urethane polymer (Fig. 1). For the 40x40 mm lenses, selection of the optimum profile parameters for the terrestrial solar spectrum in the range of 350-950 nm was done. It has been found that, in going to the material with the greater refraction index, the average radiation concentration in the spot increased in 1.5 times, and, in the ideal case, reaches 780 X (Fig. 2). In this case, 95% of the power is concentrated in the spot 1.5 mm in diameter, whereas for a FL of silicon compound the spot diameter was approximately 1.9 mm. MOLD AND LENS MANUFACTURING Manufacturing the negative mold for the urethane FL was carried out on a specialized machine-stand for ultraprecise processing a metal by the diamond cutting technique. In processing, a cutter of native single crystalline diamond with a 4 m chamfer was used. The designing mold parameters corresponded to the values of the tilt angles and the heights of teeth obtained for the optimum lens focal distance (see Fig. 2). A contactless control of the profile parameters and quality of the refracting surface was carried out by the optical beam scanning under a confocal NanoFocus microscope. The mold measurements have shown: the mold refracting surface roughness increases from the center towards the periphery by approximately one class of the optical purity; the measurement accuracy of tooth tilt angles drops from the center towards the periphery, which is associated with the increase in the measured angle value and the effect of a shadow from a neighboring tooth. The following inaccuracies have been revealed at the mold testing: tooth peaks deviations are: 1-2 m; inclination angle deviations are 2-6min of arc; surface roughness is not more 0.1 m.

1.56 1.54

Refractive index

1.52 1.50 1.48 1.46 1.44 1.42 1.40 400 600 800 1000 1200

Urethane

Wacker

Wavelength, nm

Fig. 1. Optical materials refraction index curves.


850 2.1
780 X

Average concentration ratio, X

800 750 700 650 600 550

2.0

Focal spot diameter (d), mm

Urethane

1.9 1.8 1.7 1.6 1.5 1.4 1.3 1.2

dmin=1.875 mm Wacker

dmin=1.495 mm

Urethane

512 X

Wacker

500 450 400 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100

65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100

Focal distance, mm

Focal distance, mm

Fig. 2. Maximum average concentration ratio (left plot) and minimum focal spot diameter (right plot) versus focal distance for 40 mm x 40 mm Fresnel lenses made of Wacker 604 and urethane. In the whole, it may be concluded that the mold corresponds well to designing parameters. The experimental FL specimens were manufactured by means of a direct copying the Fresnel profile from a negative mold on glass during ultraviolet polymerization of the urethane material. The control of quality of the fabricated lense refracting surfaces has shown that, on the first copies, the lens tooth operating surface roughness repeats the mold roughness, and, during the process of fabrication of a significant amount of prints, the mold roughness degrades not more than by one class. EXPERIMENTAL SETUP An important step of the work is the experimental determination of the fabricated lens OPCs with the aim to use the obtained data in correcting the mathematical model of the concentration process. The real irradiance distribution in the lens focal plane is defined by the joint

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effect of lens material, designing parameters and the incident sunlight characteristics the spectral composition, the angular divergence (32), the density and the uniformity of light flux. The requirements to simulation of each parameter of the sunlight in the experimental laboratory installation and to the measurement equipment are considered below. Spectral composition. The radiation spectrum should correspond the most exactly to AM1.5D LAOD because of the essential effect of the lens concentrator chromatic aberration on the irradiance distribution in the near-focal region. The data on the irradiance spectral composition should be used in the calculation model for obtaining preliminary results close to those expected in an experiment. Angular divergence. The requirement to the accuracy of the sunlight angular divergency simulation is the most strict due to the very strong effect of the diverging light beam angular dimension on the shape and the irradiance distribution profile in the focal spot. Density and uniformity of a flux. In accurate reproduction of the angular divergency and the radiation spectral composition, fulfillment of the requirement for an accurate reproduction of the flux density in the test plane becomes to be not obligatory in the case, if the measurement of the local concentration ratio in the focal plane is based on comparing the photocurrent value of a small-size photodetector in illuminating by nonconcentrated light with those obtained in illuminating it by concentrated radiation in the focal spot points. For this reason, in measuring the lens OPC, it is enough to restrict ourselves to small irradiance in the plane of the lens location in conserving the high flux uniformity (not worse than 5%), and, in going to the absolute values at a standard flux density (1000 W/m) to take advantage of normalization. For investigation of the OPCs, a specialized stand based on a lighting device with a xenon lamp and an

optical system for forming directed flux with the angular divergence of 32 was designed and developed (Fig. 3). Nonuniformity of illumination on the operating zone was 5%. The radiation spectral composition was corrected by color glass filters to obtain the maximum correlation with the standard spectral distribution in wavelength range of 350-900 nm (Fig. 4), which corresponds to the GaAs solar cell spectral sensitivity range. Deviations in the radiation flux density distribution of the lighting device for narrow spectral bands with respect to AM1.5D LAOD are presented in Table 1. The greatest deviations in spectrum from the standard one are observed in the wavelength region of 800-900 nm, which may result in not true radiation distribution in the focus of a lens under investigation. After correcting the spectral composition, the flux density was about 25 W/m. Scanning the focal spot was done by a small dimension GaAs photodetector, which was positioned in the focal spot points by means of a precision coordinate unit (the transfer accuracy is 0.001 mm). To increase the measurement accuracy in recording small signals, the light modulation by frequency principle was used. In the experiment, the local concentration ratio is calculated as a ratio of the photodetector current in a definite point of the focal spot to the current of the same photodetector when the nonconcentrated radiation is falling directly on it. The experimental Fresnel lens OPC obtained in such a way allows in common for the imperfectness of the refracting surfaces and also for the effects of the chromatic aberration, the simulator spectrum and the detector photosensitivity on the irradiance distribution shape and character. For this reason, to obtain real FL characteristics, it is necessary to introduce into the calculation model corrections with accounting for the following experimental data: - radiation spectral distribution (see Fig.4); - photodetector spectral sensitivity SR(); - deviation of the tooth tilt angels from the designing values.

Fresnel lens

PD

Fig. 3. Schematic of indoor experimental setup

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Irradiance, nondimensional units

6 5

Light source

1 AM1.5D Low AOD

Besides, one should allow for the effect of local geometrical inaccuracies of the shape (tooth top roundingoff) and microroughnesses of the refracting surface, which lead to a partial scattering of radiation at refraction. In general case it means that the spatial angle of the refracted beam could be greater than that of the incident beam in conserving the axis direction of the latter after refraction. In the frames of the calculation photometric model, the mentioned effect can be taken into account by a minor increase (from 32 to 34) of the incident beam discrepancy angle. The influence of the mentioned factors on the lens OPC is presented in Fig.5.
a
3000

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

1100

2500

Wavelength, nm

Concentration ratio, X

= 0' = 4' = 8' = 12' = 16'

Fig. 4. Spectral irradiance distribution of a light source in comparison with standard spectrum. Table 1. Deviations in the radiation flux density distribution. Wavelength intervals, nm 350-400 400-450 450-500 500-550 550-600 600-650 650-700 700-750 750-800 850-900
ES (light ) ES (1.5D)

2000

experimental curve

1500

1000

500

Concentration ratio, X

0.89 1.17 1.13 1.0 0.99 0.96 0.97 0.92 2.03 1.95

0 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0

b
3000

r, mm
= 32' = 33' = 34'

2500

experimental curve
2000

1500

ANALYSIS OF THE EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS AND CORRECTION OF THE CALCULATION MODEL Usually, the rated OPC is presented in the following way: in power units in a form of the flux density 2 distribution E in mW/mm in focal spot points; in a normalized form as the dependence of the local concentration value C in focal spot points (in this case the flux density value in the focal points is normalized to the nonconcentrated flux density value on the lens surface). Since, in the focal spot, spatial and spectral power redistribution takes place, the use of E dependencies in correcting the calculation model allows accounting for the effect of the detector spectral sensitivity on the accuracy of the OPC determination. In correcting, first, the simulator radiation spectrum and the mean-statistical value of the FL tooth tilt angle deviation () were introduced.

1000

500

0 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0

r, mm

Fig. 5. Effect of the mean-statistical value of the FL tooth tilt angle deviation () (a) and the incident light divergence angle () (b) on the Fresnel lens OPC. To take into account the detector spectral sensitivity, rearrangement of the SR() dependence to a step-like form (Fig. 6) with a wavelength step of 50 nm was done. Normalization of the OPCs calculated for the same subranges to the obtained SR values with following

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summation of them gives the generated photocurrent density distribution, which just is registered in the experiment by the photodetector. Normalization of the latter to the detector photocurrent density value for the simulator spectral radiation allows plotting the dependence for the local concentration ratio distribution in the focal spot. Namely such distribution allows for all experimental peculiarities and may be compared with the experimental OPC. The and magnitudes, in this case, act as coefficients correcting the photometric model of the concentration process and permit to vary the rated OPC shape in a wide range up to obtaining its maximum coincident with the experimental one (see Fig. 5). Comparison of the corrected rated OPC with the experimental one has shown a quite good agreement at =34 and =10-12 (Fig. 7).
0.5

Measured curve
0.4531 0.4628

Spectral response, A / W

0.3
0.2703

0.3221

0.3627

0.4021

0.4

Averaged values

possible lens profile deformation in removing the mold from the original and by the increase of the value in going to the peripheral teeth due to their fabrication peculiarities. One can correct and values used in the calculations in the same way also at a natural experiment, when the effect of the gap between the spectral content and radiation angular divergency and the standard values used in designing will be minimal. The elucidated and values are used in the calculation model for obtaining the operating FL OPC at standard conditions of determining the average concentration and optical efficiency. Thus, the accounting of all experimental study results in the calculation model is necessary to determine a real Fresnel lens OPC. A OPC calculated for the standard AM1.5D LAOD spectrum with accounting for the deviations obtained in the laboratory experiment is presented in Fig. 8. For a solar cell with the photosensitive surface diameter of 1.5 mm, the manufactured lens ensures an average radiation concentration ratio of 730 at the optical efficiency of 82% (Fig. 9).
1400 Irradiance flux density, mW/mm 2000 1200 1000 800 600 400 500 200 0 0 1000 1500

0.4345

0.4437

0.2066

0.2036

0.2

0.1

0.0

400

500

600

700

800

900

Wavelength, nm

Fig. 6. Rearrangement of photodetector spectral response


2500
=10'

-1.0

-0.5

0.0 r, mm

0.5

1.0

Fig. 8. Real optical-power characteristic of Fresnel lens.


2500 90

Concentration ratio, X

2000

Average concentration ratio, X

1500

=12'

82 %
2000 80 70 1500 60 50 1000 40

1000

500

experimental curve

730 X
500

30 20 10

0 -1.5

-1.0

-0.5

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

r, mm

Fig. 7. Comparison of the experimental and rated Fresnel lens OPCs. Some increase of the mean-statistical value of the tooth tilt angle deviation compare to the measured one on the negative mold (=6) may be explained by a

0 0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

Focal spot diameter, mm

Fig. 9. Dependence of the average concentration ratio and optical efficiency on the focal spot diameter for the manufactured FL.

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Optical efficiency, %

Concentration ratio, X

0.1194

CONCLUSION The main results of the carried out investigations are: - developed is a procedure for determining real Fresnel lens OPCs allowing for technological peculiarities of lens manufacture; - substantiated is the utility to use optical materials with high refraction index for lens manufacturing, and fabricated were experimental specimens of FL made of urethane; - developed and created was an experimental installation for simulating the sunlight concentration process in the laboratory conditions. It was shown that for correct measurement of the lens OPCs only two parameters of solar radiation should be precisely reproduced spectral content and angular divergence; - measured OPCs of the Fresnel lens specimens fabricated, and, on the bases of the obtained results, correction of the calculation model of the concentration process in Fresnel lenses was performed. Using the corrected calculation model, on OPC for the standard solar spectrum AM1.5D LOAD has been obtained. It has been shown that the use of the procedures proposed for designing and manufacturing lenses allow producing FLs ensuring an average sunlight concentration ratio of 730 on a solar cell of 1.5 mm in diameter at the optical efficiency of more than 82%. ACKNOWLEDEMENTS This work was partly supported by the European Commission through the FULLSPECTRUM project (SES6CT-2003-502620) and by the Russian Foundation for the Basic Research (Grants 05-08-33603 and 07-08-13616). REFFERENCE [1] V. D. Rumyantsev, N. A. Sadchikov, A. Chalov, E. A.Ionova, V. R. Larionov, V. M. Andreev, G. R. Smekens, E.W. Merkle, "Pilot Installation with "All-Glass" Concentrator PV modules", Twenty first EPVSEC, 2006, pp. 2097-3000. [2] A. Luque, G. Sala, Concentrators: the path to commercialization of the novel sophisticated ultra high efficiency solar cells, Proc. on CD of the Forth Int. Conf. on Solar Concentrators for the Generation of Electricity or Hydrogen, 2007, p.XXVII-XXXII.

[3] A. Bett, F. Dimroth, J. Jaus, G. Peharz, G. Siefer, The needs of industrialization for CPV technologies, Proc. on CD of the Forth Int. Conf. on Solar Concentrators for the Generation of Electricity or Hydrogen, 2007, p. XLIV-LIV. [4] K. Araki 500X to 1000X R&D and market strategy of Diado Steel, Proc. on CD of the Forth Int. Conf. on Solar Concentrators for the Generation of Electricity or Hydrogen, 2007, p.73-76. [5] H. Lerchenmller, A. Hakenjos, I. Heile, B. Burger , O. Stalter, From FLATCON pilot systems to the power plant Proc. on CD of the Forth Int. Conf. on Solar Concentrators for the Generation of Electricity or Hydrogen, 2007, p 225-228 [6] R. Gordon, K.W. Stone, D. Dutra, A. Gray, R. Hurt, R. Boehm, M.J. Hale, F. Posey-Eddy, Towards a >33% efficient photovoltaic module, Proc. on CD of the Forth Int. Conf. on Solar Concentrators for the Generation of Electricity or Hydrogen, 2007, p 221-224 [7] R. King, D. Law, K. Edmondson, C. Fetzer, G. Kinsey, H. Yoon, R. Sherif, D. Krut, J. Ermer, P. Hebert, P. Pien, and N. Karam, Multijunction solar cells with over 40% efficiency and future directions in concentrator PV, Twenty second EPVSEC, 2007, pp. 11-15. [8] M. Meusel, W. Bensch, T. Bergunde, R. Kern, V. Khorenko, W. Kostler, G. LaRoche, T. Torunski, W. Zimmermann, G. Strobl, W. Guter, M. Hermle, R. Hoheisel, G. Siefer, E. Welser, F. Dimroth, A.W. Bett, W. Geens, C. Baur, S. Taylor, G. Hey, Development and production of European III-V multijunction solar cells, Twenty second EPVSEC, 2007, pp. 16-21. [9] V.Grilikhes, E.Bobkova, A.Soluyanov, M.Shvarts,. The method for choosing the optimal parameters of flat-plane Fresnel lenses, intended for sunlight concentration, Geliotekhnica, 2006. No 3 pp. 50-57, (Translated into English in Applied Solar Energy) [10] V.A. Grilikhes, M.Z. Shvarts, A.A. Soluyanov, E.V. Vlasova, V.M. Andreev The new approach to design of Fresnel lens sunlight concentrator, Proc. on CD of the Forth Int. Conf. on Solar Concentrators for the Generation of Electricity or Hydrogen, 2007, p. 49-52.

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