User:ZeroTiger/Amonix solar

Amonix, Inc. designs and manufactures concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) solar power systems. It has deployed solar energy plants in sunny and dry regions around the world, including Southwestern U.S. states and Spain.

Technology
Amonix employs CPV-cell technology systems, which produce more energy per acre than any other solar technology.

Originally used for space-based applications, the CPV technology was adapted to utility-scale application by Amonix to take advantage of the order-of-magnitude improvement in energy efficiencies it offers over the previous silicon-based technology.

The Amonix CPV system is comprised of seven modules, each with its own acrylic lenses and advanced multijunction solar cell collector plates. A dual-axis mounting structure tracks the sun throughout the day as the lenses collect sunlight, concentrating it onto the solar-cell plates at 600 times its usual intensity.

CPV solar energy plant sites do not require grading or other special preparation. The system uses no water for operating and requires only a small amount of the electricity it generates to power the tracking device. It provides for unattended operation in either grid-connected or off-grid applications.

Corporate History
Amonix was founded in 1989 in Torrance, Cal., by CPV-technology pioneer Vahan Garboushian, the current CTO and chairman of its board of directors.

With a goal of designing utility-scale solar energy systems, research and development was begun in 1990. By 2005, the company had developed what was then the world’s most efficient silicon solar cell, which achieved a sunlight-to electricity conversion efficiency of 27.6%. The company still holds the world record for efficiency of a silicon cell: 27.6% at 92x concentration.

In 2007, the company began incorporating the space industry’s multijunction solar cell into its modular design, with 27% system efficiency. Photovoltaic systems are made up of several photovoltaic solar cells, which are then combined to boost power production even further. Once connected the cells become modules, and these can be combined into arrays to provide increasing levels of solar power. Amonix has achieved 31% efficiency in its modules, and 39% efficiency in its production cells.

Amonix opened its Seal, Beach, Cal., headquarters in 2008, a 78,000 square foot facility. In October 2010, Amonix broke ground on a 214,000 square foot manufacturing facility in North Las Vegas, Nevada. Creating 278 management, technical and productions jobs, it is financed through a $6 million tax credit from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and an additional $12 million in private capital. The new manufacturing facility will be powered by an Amonix 7700 System as part of its electrical power source.