Eni receives the "Oscar Masi prize for industrial innovation"

The winning project for luminescent solar concentrators was developed at the Donegani Institute

As part of the annual AIRI Day for industrial innovation, Eni was awarded the “2009 Oscar Masi prize for industrial innovation‘ for innovative technological research in the field of renewable energy and, more specifically, in photovoltaics.
The prize, which was established in 1984 in honour of the memory of Professor Oscar Masi – one of the AIRI founders - was presented to Umberto Vergine, Eni’s Head of Studies and Research.

The winning project concerns the development of luminescent solar concentrators, that use special spectrum convertors to reduce by 4 times the cost of producing solar power while improving the return of photovoltaic cells by making an optimal use of the light spectrum.

The concentrators are made up of large sheets of material transparent  to solar radiation, inside which fluorescent substances are dispersed that act as spectrum convertors. The optical effect of total reflection means that the radiation emitted by the fluorescent molecules is “channelled‘ to the thin edges of the sheets where it is concentrated on the solar cells.

This invention makes it possible to use extended surfaces of low cost materials (photo-luminescent sheets) to concentrate light on small surfaces of high cost material (solar cells).  Current estimates, made on the basis of measurements on prototypes, suggest a cost reduction in the order of about 4 times. In ideal conditions, this is very close to the factor 5 demanded to equalise the cost of the production of electricity generated by fossil fuels.

In addition to cost savings, the luminescent solar concentrators offer a series of other advantages: unlike the traditional mirror variety, these concentrators do not require sun tracing mechanisms and they do not concentrate heat in such a way as to overheat the cells. Moreover, as they are composed of large transparent sheets, they can be integrated into buildings for lighting by the component that is not absorbed by solar radiation, making them authentic photovoltaic windows.

According to the AIRI Observatory on priority technologies, Italy is Europe's sixth largest producer of electricity from renewable sources, although research in the field is still in its initial stages.