A Japanese consortium that includes three companies is testing the durability and performance of lightweight, flexible perovskite solar modules at Osanbashi Pier, Yokohama City in windy and salt-air conditions. The outdoor trial is part of a larger 3-year perovskite solar technology research collaboration.
Demonstration location: Large Pier (owned and designated by Yokohama City Port Bureau). Image credit: Macnica
The three-month 1 kW perovskite solar module trial on Osanbashi Pier began in November 2024. The three Japan-based companies that are participating in the outdoor seaport demonstration are: Macnica, a technology and electronics supplier, Reiko, a thin film product manufacturer, and perovskite solar cell specialist Peccell Technologies, which was founded in 2004 as a Toin University of Yokohama spin-off by perovskite solar cell pioneer Tsutomu Miyasaka.
It was reported that the Osanbashi Pier test installation features 80 panels measuring 30 cm x 1 m each and that the modules have a power conversion efficiency of 10% and are manufactured in a roll-to-roll process with indium tin oxide on plastic (ITO-PET) films. The team uses a module based on ITO-PET films with a thickness of 125 μm and low sheet resistance of 12 ohm/m2.
Peccell is also said to be working on modules with higher efficiencies and greater durability.
The modules are installed in sequence to enable comparative verifications. Testing will also verify encapsulant and film durability. In addition, a new mounting system to enable easier attachment/detachment was developed to simplify the replacement of PV modules in the field.
The three-year perovskite solar technology development and demonstration initiative began in 2023 in Yokohama and is supervised by Miyasaka himself. The initiative is supported by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment (METI).
Other projects within the initiative will test the use of perovskite solar panels on wavy, corrugated roofs, and a third project will test the panels on light-framed structures, such as tents or polytunnel-type greenhouses. The target efficiency of the perovskite panels is 20% and the service life target is 15 years.
The aim is to make solar power generation possible on the 90% of roofs in Japan that cannot install conventional heavy silicon solar panels, as well as to decarbonize energy use of marine port terminals, ships, and trucks
