DAS Environmental Expert has worked with Baoding Tianwei Solarfilms Co. Ltd. on methods to optimise waste gas abatement processes during PV production operations.

The PV manufacturing process employs large amounts of silane (SiH4), hydrogen (H2) and nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). To eliminate these toxic substances reliably from the waste gas stream, DAS Environmental Expert GmbH has combined two of its systems, GIANT and ESCAPE. GIANT treats waste gas by combining burn/wet technologies. In a subsequent process the electrostatic dust collector (EDC) separates all remaining fine dust particles from the waste gas. The exhaust, after having undergone the abatement process, can be directly discharged to the atmosphere.

The manufacturing of transparent front and rear contacts leaves a residue of diethyl zinc (DEZ) and zinc oxide particles as well as various hydrocarbons that need to be removed, and this is where the ESCAPE series is used, reports DAS, by combining burn/wet technologies to discharge the remaining gas into the atmosphere.

As a result of the process modifications, DAS reports a decrease in the maintenance cycle of a third, and that the demand for water "could be reduced by approximately 50%, with the demand for natural gas reduced by 40%".

“The increasing price pressure within the solar industry poses a challenge to most of the sector’s companies” explained Dr. Andreas Frenzel, Director of Research and Development at DAS Environmental Expert GmbH. “We are continuously working on new solutions that will allow our clients to effectively lower their process cost.”