Perspective of CIGS-BIPV’s Product Competitiveness in China

Abstract

Copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin-film battery has high photoelectric conversion efficiency, better spectral dispersion ability, and weak light-adsorption characteristics, as well as shape and size flexibility. CIGS-BIPV (building integrated photovoltaic) has attracted more and more research attention with the advantages of good curvature, form and color diversity, and broad application prospects. This paper uses the classical “Porter’s Five Forces Model” to make a preliminary analysis of the competitiveness of CIGS-BIPV products. A more specific competitiveness analysis model is further built with the index modeling method, and the competitiveness of CIGS-BIPV products is thoroughly analyzed from qualitative and quantitative perspectives. Six primary research indicators are used, i.e., safety index, building aesthetics index, economic index, energy-saving and environmental protection index, innovation index, and sales force index. The weight analysis of index modeling shows that compared with a glass curtain wall, exterior stone, and silica-based BIPV, CIGS-BIPV is characterized by high product competitiveness, acceptable cost, attractive appearance, environmental benignity, high technical quality, and certain economic benefits. The product competitiveness of CIGS-BIPV could be further enhanced through the construction and promotion of sales channels.

Influence of Different Forms on BIPV Gymnasium Carbon-Saving Potential Based on Energy Consumption and Solar Energy in Multi-Climate Zones

“…Many forms of gymnasium roofs in this study have curved shapes that do not lend themselves to standard crystalline silicon PV cells and require the use of flexible thin-film cells [56]. Among the various thin film cells, copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin-film cells were hypothesized to be used for the BIPV system in this study due to their low production cost, high photovoltaic conversion efficiency, and ease of use on building surfaces [57][58][59][60]. The conversion efficiency of the cells was set to 15% [61], and the DC-to-AC conversion efficiency was set to 85%.…”

Fenestration integrated BIPV (FIPV): A review

“…Recently, 23.35% record efficiency was achieved by Japanese manufacturer Solar Frontier for a CIGS solar cell and 19.64% efficiency was recorded for a CIGS module by German thin-film module maker Avancis. Potential of CIGS-BIPV for energy saving and environmental protection, economic, innovation and safety shows it can score high enough (86/100) which make it competitive compared to other commercial product (Kong et al, 2020). However to capture the global market, low price, better quality and low user costs are also essential in addition to high efficiency.…”

Performance evaluation of flexible CIGS modules based on operational data under outdoor conditions

“…Since CIGS modules' manufacture process is less complex than the 1st generation of PV modules (eg, crystalline silicon PV modules), the cost is less expensive than other modules. 12 Kong et al 13 conducted the economic and performance analysis of CIGS modules compared with silica-based BIPV modules. They presented that CIGS PV modules for building applications showed high product competitiveness, acceptable cost, attractive appearance, and environmental benignity.…”

“…29,30 However, the application of CIGS as a BIPV module is still limited, and the lack of information to adopt BIPV applications by building owners and engineers. 31 For example, Mufti et al 32 pointed out that there is still difficulty in reaching high-quality and largescale CIGS-based modules for commercialized applications. For field applications of CIGS modules, it would be expected that the efficiency of the commercial CIGS modules is much lower than the obtained laboratory-scale CIGS.…”