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Even if silicon is the industry normal semiconductor in most electrical products, including the solar cells that photovoltaic panels utilize to convert sun rays into energy, it is hardly the most cost-efficient product on the market. For example, the semiconductor gallium arsenide and connected compound semiconductors provide practically 2 times the efficiency as silicon in solar devices, however they are rarely utilized in utility-scale applications because of their high production value.

U. of Illinois. professors J. Rogers and X. Li investigated lower-cost methods to produce thin films of gallium arsenide which also granted usefulness in the sorts of products they can be incorporated into.

If you can reduce significantly the expense of gallium arsenide and other compound semiconductors, then you might expand their variety of applications.

Usually, gallium arsenide is transferred in a individual thin layer on a smaller wafer. Either the ideal device is made specifically on the wafer, or the semiconductor-coated wafer is break up into chips of the preferred dimension. The Illinois group chose to put in multiple levels of the material on a individual wafer, making a layered, “pancake” stack of gallium arsenide thin films.

If you grow ten layers in 1 growth, you only have to fill the wafer 1 time. If you do this in 10 growths, loading and unloading with temp ramp-up as well as ramp-down get a lot of time. If you consider exactly what is necessary for every growth – the equipment, the research, the time, the workers – the overhead saving this approach gives is a considerable expense decrease.

Next the scientists separately peel off the layers and move them. To complete this, the stacks alternate levels of aluminum arsenide with the gallium arsenide. Bathing the stacks in a solution of acid and an oxidizing agent dissolves the layers of aluminum arsenide, freeing the single small sheets of gallium arsenide. A soft stamp-like device selects up the levels, 1 at a time from the top down, for move to another substrate – glass, plastic-type or silicon, depending on the application. Then the wafer could be reused for another growth.

By executing this it’s possible to produce considerably more material more quickly and more cost efficiently. This process could generate bulk amounts of material, as compared to just the thin single-layer method in which it is typically grown.

Freeing the material from the wafer also opens the opportunity of flexible, thin-film electronics produced with gallium arsenide or different high-speed semiconductors. To make products that could conform but still retain higher efficiency, which is significant.

In a paper released on-line May 20 in the academic journal Nature, the group explains its methods and shows 3 kinds of units making use of gallium arsenide chips produced in multilayer stacks: light products, high-speed transistors and solar cells. The authors also provide a comprehensive cost evaluation.

An additional advantage of the multilayer approach is the release from area constraints, especially essential for solar cells. As the levels are removed from the stack, they may be laid out side-by-side on one more substrate to make a significantly larger surface area, whereas the standard single-layer process restricts area to the dimension of the wafer.

For photovoltaics, you need large area coverage to catch as much sunshine as possible. In an extreme situation we might grow enough layers to have 10 times the area of the standard.

Up coming, the group programs to explore more prospective device applications and other semiconductor materials that could adapt to multilayer growth.

About the Article author – Shannon Combs publishes articles for the residential solar power cost blog, her personal hobby blog focused on tips to help home owners to save energy with sun power.

Complete Bio Photo of the Author

Related articles by Zemanta

• Thin-Film Trick Makes Gallium Arsenide Devices Cheap (spectrum.ieee.org)
• Solar cells sliced and diced (nature.com)
• Spire Produces World’s Most Efficient Large Area Concentrator Solar Cell (eon.businesswire.com)
• Research hints at cheaper, more efficient photovoltaics (lightbulbs.org)

While most of the coverage of ‘green’ issues in the media and in environmental campaigns tends to focus on how an individual can promote a more eco-friendly lifestyle, arguably the biggest impact on the environment can be achieved by businesses and corporations addressing these issues. In this post I explore how a business can actually achieve environmental targets by keeping accurate records of their fixed assets – ie equipment, machinery, vehicles etc – and their carbon footprints.

Fixed asset management has many advantages. It allows your organisation to manage internal and external service providers to reduce administrative costs associated with asset maintenance and repairs. Software-based systems can capture data adrift in paper-based processes and provide asset-specific total cost of ownership information that can be analysed at a corporate level. However another dimension has been added that makes reliable asset management programmes even more essential. Whether you agree with the theory of man-made global warming or not, the UK government has decided to adopt a target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80% over 1990 levels by the year 2050.

Image credit: johnb/uk

The Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) requires that companies must achieve energy efficiencies (or purchase allowances from the government) based on the amount of CO2 emitted. Companies that achieve significant reductions will be rewarded financially. Those that do not will suffer the consequences. Carbon taxes will inevitably become more significant mechanisms for the Exchequer and there’s likely to be an increasing emphasis on enforcing regulations governing the collection, treatment and recycling of all sorts of waste, especially electrical and electronic equipment as specified by the WEEE directive. The Carbon Reduction Commitment will affect approximately 20,000 organisations in the public and private sectors and the Environment Agency requires disclosures to be submitted by those companies by the summer of 2010.

Sustainable environmental management is not only concerned with supply chain resource or carbon emissions management. It also addresses the wider issues of sustainable planning and design, waste reduction, water management, the efficiency of electronic and electrical equipment etc. All these facets of business operations are inputs into an organisation’s environmental impact and ultimately its bottom line. From a sales and marketing point of view, companies are also going to have to prove their “green credentials” to consumers and who are increasingly demanding that green tinge of virtually every product or service. Doing all this will create a significant cost for business, unless they get their fixed asset register in order. Organisations now have to prove their commitment to green issues through information transparency and fully auditable policies.

At the core of this approach has to be consistent and detailed information about the life cycle of all fixed assets, from country of origin, maintenance schedules and carbon efficiency to final disposal details. A good, up to date central asset register therefore will not only streamline year end audits but will also provide highly detailed insight into corporate assets that will enable management to make more informed decisions. Until you truly know what assets you’ve got, which you own and the real operational/ownership cost of those assets, managers cannot make informed decisions about capital expenditure, carbon footprint reduction and how to “green” the business in the most cost effective and beneficial way possible.

About the author:
Tom is a blogger currently working for a company specialising in software for asset tracking and fixed asset accounting. He passionately believes that businesses can go greener at the same time as cutting costs.

It is a fact that companies who take a clean and green approach to the way that they operate are more trusted by customers, and the public in general, and also incur fewer costs. What then can be done to become an environmentally friendly company?

Reduce Waste Where Possible – Assess your company processes to see where waste could be reduced. For example, can invoices be sent electronically and goods ordered in bulk to reduce packaging waste? Waste reduction should be the top priority of any waste management scheme as this is where the most cost effective and positive and environmental changes can be achieved.

Buy Recycled Paper – Producing one tonne of recycled paper saves 3000 liters of water and 78% energy use. Air emissions of gases such as CO2 are cut by 95% and there is less pollution because recycled paper is not bleached with chlorine. As for purchasing recycled paper, it is no more expensive than virgin paper, and nowadays the quality is as good.

Re-Use Plastic Cups – Plastics are harmful to the environment both when they are produced (various chemicals are emitted) and when they are disposed of (taking hundreds of years to decompose). Therefore, it really is inexcusable to not re-use the same plastic cup throughout the day, or to even do away with plastic cups altogether and just use mugs instead.

Recycle Printer Cartridges – Around 2 million printer cartridges are discarded every year. Recycling cartridges is easy as many suppliers offer a return scheme for used cartridges. Using recycled toner cartridges reduces demand for raw materials and they can be purchased for as little as half the price of non-recycled cartridges.

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Basically, a Wind Development Director is responsible for
taking a stretch of empty countryside and turning it into a
wind farm.

Visit:  http://www.GreenCareersGuide.com
 
The career outlook for a wind development director is good.
They make on average $54 to $75 thousand a year.

In some case, the Wind Development Director is even
responsible for selecting the site for the wind farm. They
study weather patterns and topographical maps to find a
location with good wind resources. Next, they are
responsible for securing the land. Then they supervise the
development and construction of the wind farm. Finally,
after the wind turbine complex has been set up, tested, and
is running smoothly at peak efficiency, they start the
process all over again.

A Wind Development Director needs to set up a development
and construction timetable, and ensure that a daily
production plan is met. They must be able to handle budgets
effectively. They must monitor the construction of the wind
farm and ensure that safety and quality standards are being
met. Finally, the wind park needs to be staffed with
competent technicians and managers, and its administration
set up to function smoothly and efficiently.

What Are the Qualifications for a Wind Development Director?

A job at this level requires a great degree of training and
experience. In general, Wind Development Directors are
either engineers with a great deal of business experience,
or businessmen with long time experience in the wind power
industry.

The minimum educational level would be a Bachelor’s in
engineering or business. A Master’s degree in electrical
engineering or business administration is, of course,
preferred, and increases your chances of landing a Wind
Development Director position.

Experience is perhaps the greatest factor. Wind power
companies would want at least 5 years of experience in the
industry to be considered for this position, and some
companies could require as much as ten or fifteen year’s
experience. Obviously, most of this work experience would
need to be in a supervisory capacity, displaying one’s
ability to work well with people and mold them into a
cohesive, productive unit.

What Type of Person Is Good for This Position?

People with good organizational and people skills make good
Wind Development Directors. Excellent communication skills,
both written and oral, are essential. The ability to lead
and motivate others, delegate responsibility and follow up
with subordinates, and negotiate personnel problems
effectively is important. To be a Wind Development
Director, one must be organized, manage time efficiently,
work within time and budget limitations, and cope well with
stress and unexpected complications.
 
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