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Horowitz, Kelsey A. W.

Publications and source records attributed to Horowitz, Kelsey A. W..

6 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Photovoltaic (PV) Module Technologies: 2020 Benchmark Costs and Technology Evolution Framework Results

This report benchmarks 2020 PV module minimum sustainable price (MSP) via bottom-up manufacturing cost analysis, for established PV technologies in mass production, including crystalline silicon, cadmium telluride (CdTe), and copper indium gallium (di)selenide. We provide technology roadmaps to additional MSP reductions for these PV technologies. Separately, we consider III-V and perovskite PV technologies which are currently in small-scale or pilot production. Finally, this report uses a technology evolution framework (TEF) to analyze drivers of levelized cost of energy reductions, including installed system cost - which is heavily influenced by module price - as well as service life and annual energy yield.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Revisiting the Effects of Photovoltaic Module Efficiency on Installed System Cost and Market Adoption

We conduct bottom-up analysis of how PV module efficiency could influence residential rooftop installed system costs, using models with improved representation of how soft costs and power electronics are affected by efficiency. We show that the amount of system installed cost savings resulting from high efficiency modules depends on whether or not the system is area-constrained, with much larger savings for the area-constrained case. We then estimate the fraction of physically area-constrained rooftops in the United States to be 61%, with variation between 20% to over 80% of rooftops depending on the state. We find that fraction of area-constrained systems could grow to over 88% by 2050 if building and transportation loads are electrified.

efficiency↗
DOE OSTI2020

Evaluation of Curtailment Associated with PV System Design Considerations

Distributed photovoltaic (PV) systems equipped with advanced inverters can control real and reactive power output based on grid and atmospheric conditions. The Volt-Var control method allows inverters to regulate local grid voltages by producing or consuming reactive power. Based on their power ratings, the inverters may need to curtail real power to meet the reactive power requirements, which decreases their total energy production. To evaluate the expected curtailment associated with Volt-Var control, yearlong quasi-static time-series (QSTS) simulations were conducted on a realistic distribution feeder under a variety of PV system design considerations. Overall, this paper found that the amount of curtailed energy is low (<; 0.55%) compared to the total PV energy production in a year but is affected by several PV system design considerations.

41 EE - Solar Energy Technologies Office (EE-4S)↗
DOE OSTI2020

The Effect of Photovoltaic Module Efficiency on Installed System Costs and Markets in Residential Rooftop Installations in the United States

In this report, we analyze how efficiencies influence residential PV system installed system costs and break-even module prices using a bottom-up cost model. We show that the cost savings associated with efficiency are much higher for area-constrained rooftop than those which are usage-constrained. We also show that simplified models of how efficiency impacts costs overestimate the value of efficiency compared to bottom-up models, particularly for usage-constrained scenarios. We also estimate the fraction of area-constrained residential rooftops in the United States today and explore how that fraction could change in future scenarios with high levels of electrification.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗