Cost-effective power converter for thin film solar cell technology and improved power quality

Advances in material processing cause that new solar cell technologies are emerging. Emerging photovoltaic solar cell technologies such as thin film and photoelectrochemical (PEC) solar cells tend to be cheaper than silicon cells made in standard technologies. The high cost of crystalline silicon wafers representing up to 50% of the solar module cost has led the industry to find more cost-effective materials for solar cells production. Using a vacuum spraying process, very thin layers (0.3–1 μm) can be applied on glass, metal or even flexible plastic surfaces. Main difference between technologies is that new technologies use decreased number of solar cells so the lower dc voltage has to be inverted. It is expected that new types of converters are going to appear in order to achieve low voltage/high current conversion into the grid. In this paper the H-bridge active power filter with variable voltage is proposed. Its advantages and disadvantages are compared with the standard inverter—active power filter (APF) as well with an APF with boost converter (commercial solution). This article also shows the impact of different solar cell technologies on power converters and the impact of advances in material processing technologies on other branches of engineering.