Presse / Press June 15, 2009 Organic and Printed Electronics - Green Energy Renewable energies play a decisive role in the energy concepts of the future. However, their potential will remain largely limited as long as the sun’s energy can neither be stored nor utilized on a large scale. That is where organic materials offer revolutionary solutions. Current trends and the latest developments in this field will be on display at LOPE-C in Frankfurt, Germany from June 23-25, 2009. The European Union has set ambitious goals for itself. Member countries aim to reduce their own carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by one-fifth versus 1990 by the year 2020. Other industrialized nations such as the USA shall even be encouraged to produce 30 percent less CO2. None of this can be achieved without increased use of renewable energies. Theoretically there is an abundance of such energy. For instance, the sun sends more energy to earth in 30 minutes than the human population can use in one year. Unfortunately, this energy cannot be captured on a large scale, and the photovoltaically produced power cannot be stored long-term. Large-area Power Generation with Organic Solar Cells Organic materials can solve this dilemma. For example, organic solar cells Messe Frankfurt Ausstellungen GmbH enable the use of building rooftops and facades for power generation. The cells Barbara Kaelberer Taunusstr. 7 a consist of a flexible, light-weight film substrate on which plastics, so-called 65183 Wiesbaden, Germany Phone: +49 611 9 51 66-18 polymers, are printed; continuous printing processes allow extremely cost- [email protected] effective production (see background information). “In a few years, organic www.lope-c.com www.mfa.de photovoltaics will potentially be produced at costs of less than 50 Euro Cents per watt peak“, says Christoph Brabec, Chief Technology Officer at US-based Organic Electronics Association (OE-A) A working group within VDMA Konarka Technologies, Inc. A watt peak (WP) is defined as a photovoltaic cell’s Dr. Klaus Hecker peak output at maximum solar irradiation. “That would make organic Lyoner Str. 18 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany photovoltaics much less expensive than comparable technologies.” Phone: +49 69 66 03-13 36 [email protected] www.lope-c.com Hosted by www.oe-a.org www.lope-c.com Page 2 According to their own reports, Konarka opened the world’s largest plant for printed solar cells in New Bedford, Massachusetts in October 2008. In the future, cells with a total capacity of one Giga-Wattpeak will be produced, an output 1.5 times that of a typical hard coal-fired power station. In the near term, the cells are meant to power small, mobile end-user devices. In the future, products will be commercially available on building rooftops and facades from which energy can be fed into public grids. The Organic Electronics Association (OE-A), a working group within the German Engineering Federation (VDMA) that represents the entire supply chain of organic and printed electronics with more than 120 member companies, will introduce a new applications- and technology-roadmap that presents an outlook on future developments of organic photovoltaics at LOPE-C from June 23rd to June 25th, 2009 (see details below). Long-Term Storage with Synthetic Fuels Additionally, researchers all over the world are looking for solutions that will allow the sun’s energy to be stored long-term in the form of synthetic fuels. The idea: to artificially recreate the biochemical process of photosynthesis, also known for making plants grow, in order to combine CO2 and water into hydrocarbons such as methane. Serdar Sariciftci, Professor at the Linzer Institut für Organische Solarzellen (LIOS), wants to use the physical properties of organic semiconductors for this process. „We have achieved production of electrical energy from sunlight with organic solar cells.”, he says. „We will now attempt to transform sunlight into chemical energy through artificial photosynthesis.“ Trends and Technologies on Display at LOPE-C Professor Sariciftci will give a keynote address on the topic „Green Energy“ at LOPE-C. In addition, there will be numerous presentations on the topic of „Organic Photovoltaics“. LOPE-C – the Large-area, Organic & Printed Electronics Convention will take place as a conference with an accompanying exhibition at the Convention Center, Messe Frankfurt, Germany from June 23-25, 2009. The OE-A has invited experts from business and research to this world premiere to exchange knowledge and ideas on opportunities, products and developments in the field of organic and printed electronics. For further information please visit: www.lope-c.com. Hosted by www.lope-c.com Page 3 Should you have any additional questions concerning “organic and printed electronics” or “LOPE-C”, please direct your editorial inquiries to: Hartmut Kowsky-Kawelke Phone: +49 (0) 208 62 50 796 Email: [email protected] [email protected] (approx. 4,400 characters) To access previous press releases choose from the topics below and click on the respective document: • E-Reader – Light-Weight Reading Devices • e-Reader – Leichtgewichtige Lesegeräte • Packaging – Excellent Packaging • Verpackung – Ausgezeichnete Verpackung • Medical Technology – Smart Bandages • Medizin Technologie – Smarte Bandagen • Logistics – Driving Force of Mass Logistics • Logistik – Motor für die Massenlogistik • OLED – Brilliant Images and Luminescent Wallpaper • OLED – Brilliante Bilder und leuchtende Tapeten • Solar – Sunny Perspectives • Solar – Sonnige Aussichten Hosted by www.lope-c.com Page 4 Background: Organic and Printed Electronics Organic and printed electronics are opening a whole new spectrum of applications to complement conventional silicon technology as they enable the production of thin, light-weight and flexible electronic components. They are based on a combination of: • Techniques that enable large-area, high-volume coating and patterning • Plastic molecules that are deposited on a light-weight, flexible substrate and, depending upon their chemical composition, have insulating, semi-conductive or conductive properties. Typically, these materials are organic, but inorganic materials can be used as well. Plastics can be composed of large molecule chains (“polymers”) or “small” molecules. However, they differ in the way they are processed to produce electronic components. Small molecules are usually vaporized in a vacuum process. Polymers, on the other hand, are applied in a mass-printing process, as they are liquid-soluble and enable inexpensive, layer-by-layer production of electronic components. Therefore, organic and printed electronics are, for example, suitable for the production of: • Printed transistors that can be used as Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags in merchandise logistics • Organic, light emitting diodes (OLED) • Organic photovoltaic cells that absorb light and transform it into electric energy • Flexible batteries to provide energy for mobile devices • Printed sensors to measure environmental parameters such as brightness, pressure, temperature or humidity • Organic memories for the storage of digital information • Flexible displays for electronic books or SmartCards • Printed, single-use measurement devices for medical diagnostics and further innovative applications. Hosted by www.lope-c.com Page 5 Picture for Press Release: High res versions of the picture is available for download from the LOPE-C website: www.lope-c.com. Picture: Flexible, light-weight film substrates provide the basis for printed solar cells. Source: Fraunhofer ISE Hosted by www.lope-c.com .
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