Page 72 - Solar Power in Building Design The Engineer's Complete Design Resource

42 SOLAR POWER TECHNOLOGIES

After the cables are connected to the terminal box on the dc side and to the inverter
on the ac side, electricity produced by the building can be fed into the grid.
In the event of malfunction the MegaSlate PV elements are easy to replace or
exchange. The MegaSlate roof-mount installations are walkable. It is recommended
that system maintenance be undertaken by qualified personnel.

MegaSlate Technical Specifications

■ Available in polycrystalline or monocrystalline cells.
■ Horizontal length is 1.32 m (approximate).
■ Vertical length is 1.0 m (approximate).
■ Glass thickness is 6 to 10 mm.
■ Overlap from upper to lower element is 15 cm.
■ Electric power on each slate is 130 to 150 W.
■ Has an electric touch-safe connector.

Solar Photovoltaic System Power

Research and Development in the

United States

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY SOLAR ENERGY PROJECT FUNDING
The following is adapted from an excerpt from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
2007 funding awards announcement for Solar America Initiative which is intended to
make solar technology cost-competitive by 2015.
Thirteen development teams selected for negotiation have formed Technology Pathway
Partnerships (TPP) to accelerate the drive toward commercialization of U.S.-produced
solar photovoltaic systems. These partnerships are comprised of more than 50 companies,
14 universities, 3 nonprofit organizations, and 2 national laboratories. DOE funding is
expected to begin in fiscal year 2007, with $51.6 million going to the TPPs.
In addition, the projects announced today will enable the projected expansion of the
annual U.S. manufacturing capacity of PV systems from 240 MW in 2005 to as much
as 2850 MW by 2010, representing more than a 10-fold increase. Such capacity would
also put the U.S. industry on track to reduce the cost of electricity produced by pho-
tovoltaic cells from current levels of $0.18 to $0.23 per kilowatt-hours to $0.05 to
$0.10 per kilowatt-hours by 2015—a price that is competitive in markets nationwide.

Teams selected for negotiations under the Solar America initiative

Amonix At present Amonix is the manufacturer of the industry’s most efficient solar
power MegaConcentrator dual-axis tracking system. It manufactures a low-cost, high-
concentration PV system for utility markets. This project will focus on manufacturing