Ultra-Light Solar Power Concentrator Offers Efficiency and Performance for Space and Ground Use

Entech Solar, Inc.

Keller, TX

• The Stretched Lens Array (SLA) is a high-performance, ultra-light solar concentrator with both space and ground applications. The technology uses a thin film lens to concentrate a large area of sunlight onto a small area of photovoltaic (PV) cells. This record-breaking technology offers unprecedented performance and cost-effectiveness by employing simple stretched-membrane flexible Fresnel lenses for optical concentration, minimizing solar cell area, mass, and cost.

• Environmentally clean renewable energy with zero greenhouse-gas emissions, compared with the adverse effects of using/generating fossil fuels
• Job creation at new Texas-based manufacturing facility, and installation jobs for utility-scale power plants in the U.S. Southwest
• Energy security is increased and reliance on foreign fuel is reduced
• Government initiative to generate 20 percent renewable fuels by 2020 is supported

• Utility-scale PV power plants
• Distributed energy for smart grid power systems
• Industrial and commercial building power systems

• Government communication systems
• Military Power Systems
• Solar Electric Propulsion systems for future NASA missions
• Improved thruster systems to minimize chemical propellants
• Orbit raising or lowering of spacecraft for science missions in orbit around the Earth, moon, and asteroids
• Extends solar power options for deep space (low light intensity, low temperature) missions
• Long-term solar power for high radiation environments
• Very high power, high voltage solar arrays

Return to NASA SBIR Success Listings

Curator: SBIR Support                10/03/11