In another sign that the photovoltaic market is exploding, DuPont said it is more than doubling production of two PV components.

On Aug. 25, the company said it would boost production of its Tedlar film, and on Sept. 1, it said it would double production of its Solamet pastes. The names aren’t necessarily sexy, but both are essential components of PV panels, and the ramp-up in production of both materials underscores how quickly these markets are expanding.

DuPont, in case you didn’t know, is the Delaware-based scientific powerhouse that has brought materials like Teflon and Kevlar to the market. It’s a chemical company and not everything they make is worth celebrating, but their foray into the solar market is long-lasting—they’ve been producing materials for PV products for more than 25 years. And the company said it projects “its sales into PV applications will exceed $1 billion in 2011 and $2 billion by 2014.”

“We are seeing extremely strong demand from our customers, while the supply of certain materials in the PV market has been tight,” explained Dave Miller, president of DuPont Electronics & Communications.

Tedlar polyvinyl fluoride films are used as a backsheet for PV panels and protect PV cells and their metallic components from the effects of weather. These are the films used to protect, for instance, the PV array on the solar-powered PlanetSolar boat, which plans to circumnavigate the globe on solar power, exposing its PV cells to the corrosive effects of salt water and the ocean’s harsh weather patterns. The company will more than double production of Tedlar at its Fayetteville, N.C., facility. DuPont is investing more that $295 million in this project alone, and will start producing additional Tedlar at its Circleville, Ohio, facility in September 2011.

Solamet is a metallic paste that is made of silver and other materials. It helps move electricity through PV cells and allows them to more efficiently convert sunlight into electricity. Like DuPont’s increase in Tedlar production, the company will more than double its production of Solamet in 2011. The company said it plans to add production at its DuPont Microcircuit Materials facilities in Puerto Rico, China, Taiwan.