Wilmington, DE (Vocus) July 1, 2009 -- DuPont today announced plans with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for a $9 million solar research program --- part of the company's overall effort in providing more mainstream solar photovoltaic (PV) products for commercial and residential applications. The DOE funding comes from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, passed earlier this year with the support of U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Ted Kaufman.

The three-year program is designed to accelerate commercialization of an ultra-thin protective film --more than 3,000 times thinner than a human hair -- that prevents moisture from degrading the performance of thin-film PV modules, a key challenge in the past.