Air Force Laboratory Selects Uni-Solar Ovonic For Solar Cells

ENERGY TECH

illustration of a DARPR microsat

Auburn Hills (SPX) May 07, 2004
United Solar Ovonic Corp. (Uni-Solar Ovonic) today announced that it has been selected by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) in Kirtland AFB, New Mexico, to provide 3 kW of UNI-SOLAR lightweight solar cells deposited on thin stainless steel to supply power to an experimental satellite. Uni-Solar Ovonic also has an option to provide an additional 300 W of UNI-SOLAR ultra-lightweight cells deposited on polymer.

The Deployable Structures Experiment (DSX) is an AFRL flight experiment initiated in 2004 and baselined to be launch-ready in late 2008. According to Dr. Greg Spanjers, DSX Program Manager, the flight experiment is designed to achieve major technological advances in satellite power, aperture and operability in the medium earth orbit (MEO).

Research in these areas is expected to have a major impact on potential DoD space assets such as Space- Based Radar, communications, orbit transfer, and space capability protection.

The UNI-SOLAR lightweight and flexible solar cells are a key technology on DSX. The cells will be stowed during launch and rolled out in space in a structural configuration scaleable to the 50-100 kW regime envisioned for future operational missions.

"Our thin-film triple-junction products have received wide recognition for terrestrial applications," said Stanford R. Ovshinsky, chairman and CEO of Uni-Solar Ovonic and president and chief technology officer of ECD Ovonics.

"Their light weight and radiation hardness, as well as superior high- temperature performance, make them ideal for space applications as well. DSX is baselined to fly in a high-radiation MEO orbit, which will be an excellent testbed for the radiation tolerance and annealing expected with the Uni-Solar Ovonic thin-film solar cells."

"Uni-Solar Ovonic has been working under contract from our group for several years now to develop lightweight solar arrays for space and stratospheric applications," said Dr. Donna Senft, program manager of the AFRL Advanced Space Power Generation Program at Kirtland AFB. "They were selected for this challenging program because of their superior technology and production capability."

"The selection of our products for satellite application by the Air Force opens up new opportunities for us in this premier market," said Subhendu Guha, president and chief operating officer of Uni-Solar Ovonic. "We look forward to increasing sales of our unique products for providing power to satellites and airships."

ENERGY TECH

Space Technologies Aid Solar-Powered Global Flight Bid

Paris - Apr 01, 2004
ESA's Technology Transfer Programme is to supply state-of-the-art technologies to assist adventurer Bertrand Piccard's flight around the world in a single-pilot solar-powered aircraft, as the ultimate demonstration of the potential for pollution-free flight.

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