U.S. Department of Energy awards $1.4M to Ultrasonic Technologies

U.S. Department of Energy has awarded Ultrasonic Technologies $1.4M that will fund development of manufacturing processes to scale up production of Resonance Ultrasonic Vibration (RUV) technology as new and proven industrial quality control and crack detection system for Silicon Solar Manufacturing.

The U.S. Department of Energy has announced $57 million in new grants to support small business technology commercialization projects in the clean energy sector, as part of DOE's Small Business Phase III Xlerator program. Among the 33 renewable energy, advanced vehicle, efficiency, smart grid, clean fuel, and other companies receiving awards are a trio of firms working to advance solar PV technology and manufacturing - Applied Nanotech, Microlink, and Ultrasonic Technologies - that garnered a total of $4.6 million in DOE grants.

"Small businesses are engines of job creation and innovation, and we need their ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit to drive a clean energy economy," said U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu. "By helping America's small businesses bring these innovative technologies to market, we will spur economic growth and help reduce the country's energy use."

The photovoltaic manufacturing industry has a critical need for a high precision, in-line crack detection system that will detect and eliminate cracked silicon wafers and solar cells in real- time, before their introduction into solar modules. This in-line quality control system will improve photovoltaic production yield, reduce manufacturing cost, improve PV module efficiency, and allow the photovoltaic energy manufacturing industry to reach grid parity with traditional fossil fuel energy generating methods.

"This Phase III award will help Ultrasonic Technologies to build a state-of-the-art production RUV tool and to move our breakthrough technology from the prototype to commercial product and respond to high market demand" - said Sergei Ostapenko, President and CEO, Ultrasonic Technologies, Inc. "The award will allow quick deployment of RUV in-line crack detection system for silicon wafers and solar cells into the commercial marketplace and customers hands. It will help lower the cost of photovoltaic clean and renewable energy, and will create jobs in the Tampa Bay region."

More information on the selected projects is available on DOE site

Permanent Link: "http://www.ultrasonictech.com/news/news-20100916-DOE Awards 1.4M to Ultrasonic Technologies.asp"
Source: Ultrasonic Technologies

Back to news