Posted to News on 28th Jan 2011, 00:00
High-tech adhesives for the photovoltaic industry
Extremely productive manufacturing processes and new concepts for saving materials and energy are vital to the future viability of the solar industry. To meet the challenges facing the market, Henkel develops innovative adhesives and sealants. At the 25th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference in Valencia, the company will be presenting powerful solutions spanning the entire value chain.
The photovoltaic industry will soon be taking a development leap in wafer production. Conventionally, wafers are rapidly and precisely sliced out of silicon ingots with a wire saw. The entire ingot is bonded to a glass plate and the workpiece holder to ensure reliable processing. After the slicing process, the edges of the wafers are still fixed to the glass plate via the adhesive and the two parts then have to be disbonded through the application of acetic acid at high temperatures.
Under its Loctite brand, Henkel has developed a new two-component epoxy adhesive which cures ultra-fast, resulting in high-strength and extremely reliable bonding even of extremely thin wafer edges. The new technology also offers the unique advantage that the adhesive can be removed easily and without residues during the following cleaning process, simply with water at a temperature of approx. 60°C. Acetic acid, which causes problems due to its corrosivity, is thus no longer necessary to disbond the wafer from the glass plate.
