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The reason solar panels are so expensive, besides the limited amount of subsidies, is the materials they are made from.  But now a firm in California has announced that they have made a "breakthrough" in mass-producing solar cells using bioplastic.

In explaining the significance of this latest step toward commercialisation of BioSolar's bioplastic materials, Dr. David Lee, CEO, said:
"BioSolar has previously developed its biobased polymer which significantly improves the film's impact resistance and thermal performance.  The film was successfully extruded at a narrow width.  In order to check for possible scale up problems, we conducted an extrusion run at the full production width of 55 inches.  There were essentially no scale up problems, and very high quality film was produced."

This is a key milestone in the development of the company's bio based backsheet product as the 55 inch wide rolls of film exceed the industry maximum width requirement.  Photovoltaic modules are expected to last for 20 years or more, and experimental modules made with this film are currently being tested to ensure that the film meets the longevity requirement.  The test includes 45 day temperature-humidity test as mandated by Underwriters Laboratories.

"As we continue to hit our targets in our research and development work, we are guided by input from our commercial strategic partners in the photovoltaic field," continued Dr. Lee. "This successful ramp-up to production scale film width moves us another step closer to commercial sales of our product."