Explorative design methodology applied to thin film photovoltaic product development and sustainable practices
Date
2016
Authors
Barth, Kurt L., author
Troxell, Wade, advisor
Sampath, W. S., advisor
Bjostad, Louis, committee member
Johnson, Gearold, committee member
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Abstract
Design is a fundamental aspect of engineering. In contrast to its importance, the understanding and the teaching of a formalized theory of design is not a focus of the engineering discipline. Therefore, developing a more rigorous understanding of the actual design process is beneficial. This study of design presents the opportunity to improve the design process and to develop a common language that facilitates communication. A variety of different theories have been developed in an attempt to model design processes. Because many are either observational or model design as a search process, they inadequately account for knowledge generation and innovation development. The design as exploration (DAE) theory accounts for knowledge generation, provides explicit terminology, and offers a promising approach to expanding the understanding of design. However, the capabilities of the DAE theory have not been broadly researched, particularly for innovative design, for design environments that are heavily constrained as found in early stage technology companies, or for the development of sustainable products. A thin film solar photovoltaic (PV) module packaging technology was developed and commercialized by the startup company Abound Solar. Approximately one million modules were manufactured and sold in the US, Asia and Europe. The design activity was started as a research effort at CSU and then advanced to large-scale production. It was conducted without a clear design predecessor and with limited available starting knowledge. The early stage company environment with limited resources and funding and a compressed schedule further impacted the design efforts. This module design effort is used to analyze the application of the DAE theory and its utility for early stage technologies and design environments that require innovation. Key outcomes of this research are the further development of DAE theory, including expanding the understanding of knowledge generation within DAE during real world design. For early stage companies and for innovative designs, the generation of new knowledge is needed before the development of credible problem statements and requirements can be developed. The requirements imposed by sustainable design and iterative product design cycles are also researched thus enabling the extension of the theory's applicability. By investigating cradle-to-cradle sustainable design and iterative product design cycles, a forward-looking, anticipatory component to the DAE process was developed. An updated graphical representation of the DAE theory is presented. It shows the expanded opportunities for knowledge transfer, incorporates knowledge levels, refines the role of R&D and prototype development, and accounts for multiple design cycles. Details of the module product realization including the materials, construction and manufacturing processes are described. The results of the development included a nearly 6 times reduction in capital costs, reduction in cycle time from 13.5 minutes (currently industry standard) to 30 seconds and significantly improved module durability to moisture ingress (the dominant failure mechanism). The new architecture and associated manufacturing technology can enable lower cost modules with higher reliability and durability which will help to achieve the near term DOE cost goals of 6 cents/kWh and ultimately 3 cents/kWh for solar generated electricity.