The use of solar photovoltaic power generation accounted for only 0.9 percent of the world%, mainly due to manufacturing solar battery materials (pure silicon) is too costly, complicated purification process. Freiburg Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Officer (former U.S. Berkeley expert from the Institute) is proposed based on "dirty silicon" in the new technology, its production cost is one-tenth of polysilicon, can achieve 14% ~ 16 % of the solar photovoltaic conversion (and polycrystalline silicon solar cell conversion efficiency of the same).

Using this rich, low-cost metal-containing impurities and defects "dirty silicon" can reduce the cost of solar cells, changing the stage nearly 90% pure silicon solar cells produced by the refining situation, an effective solution to silicon shortages and rising production costs problems, the most important is to make solar photovoltaic parity becomes possible. solar regulator photovoltaic industry production capacity to the end of 2010 is expected to reach 16 to 20 megawatts, while the silicon production capacity can meet their needs?

Freiburg Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy experts speculate that in 2010 the actual production capacity of solar PV in the 8 to 12 megawatts, and in order to meet the production capacity, must be provided to the market in addition to conventional pure semiconductor silicon outside Simple chemical or physical refining of metallurgical silicon, which is the "dirty silicon." "Dirty silicon" can be unrestricted free reign. Worldwide production can be more than one million tons per year. If the business as soon as possible take advantage of this "dirty silicon," then, the annual eight megawatts of electricity production can be achieved.

Of course, in order to make "dirty silicon" can be fully utilized in the field of solar grid tie power inverter  energy, but also must be refined. Compared to pure silicon refining process, "dirty silicon" refining is relatively simple, as long as the levels of refinement to achieve a semiconductor effect, you can meet the needs of the semiconductor industry. Demand for pure silicon solar battery prices over the past few years turned over several times, from $ 30 per kilogram in 2008 to $ 400.

The initial metallurgical silicon, or "dirty silicon" price is $ 1. Even if the silicon production enterprises in the development of "dirty silicon" refining process is included with the initial investment in equipment, the production cost will not exceed $ 15. Experts estimate that, on the market, per kg of refined "dirty silicon" price of around $ 50, then the removal of the cost price of silicon, manufacturers can have sufficient margins.

Such market prices can certainly promote the development of photovoltaic solar energy industry. Therefore, experts predict that the next two years there will be many direct refined metallurgical silicon is produced, to the 2020 high-performance solar batteries will account for 40% of the market.