This week, Women in Solar Europe (WiSEu) gives voice to Carolina Nester, Head of Operations Iberia at Sonnedix. She says one of the particular challenges women face is the perfectionism pitfall and self-confidence, which can lead them to be self-limiting and impact career development. Nester also explains that gender equality in management and board positions must be achieved and perceived as a natural development that begins in early career stages.
In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that Victoria, Tasmania, Western Australia, and New South Wales were over-performing solar regions in March. This overperformance in the southeast and southwest came despite most of the Australian continent seeing below-average irradiance, due to thicker-than-usual clouds over the sparsely-populated interior and tropics.
As photovoltaic (PV) technologies evolve, understanding their environmental implications is crucial for a sustainable energy transition. IEA PVPS Task 12 analyzes the environmental impact of passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) technology in PV installations in comparison to the monocrystalline silicon technology (AI-BSF) and the trend towards installing horizontal singla-axis tracker systems as opposed to fixed tilt systems. Primary data from one PERC and tracker manufacturer enable this study’s conclusions. Using the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology, the study compares two locations in Italy with different irradiation patterns to evaluate the sensitivity to solar irradiation. The findings reveal that PERC technology and horizontal single-axis tracker systems demonstrate lower environmental impacts compared to Al-BSF and fixed tilt configurations.
In a new weekly update for pv magazine, Solcast, a DNV company, reports that Chile, Uruguay and Argentina saw irradiance up 5% to 15% above normal in January and February. Responsible for the surplus sunlight across South America was the ongoing Amazon drought, and circulation changes that pushed weather fronts further south of the continent than usual.
The need for long-duration energy storage in a net-zero world is undeniable but with conventional battery prices tumbling, can anything dislodge the mainstream grip of lithium ion? S&P Global’s Susan Taylor provides an update on non-lithium storage technologies.
Feedback from stakeholders involved in Germany’s end-of-life PV modules treatment chain found more needs to be done around the transparency of PV module waste volume, the take-back and collection process and module recycling, as the country prepares for significantly larger volumes by the end of the decade.
To compensate for potential loss of solar energy flowing to the grid, grid operators will have to be ready to rely on other sources to ensure grid stability, as was done during the 2017 and 2023 eclipse episodes.
Energy storage is the new solar for an increasing number of Chinese PV manufacturers. However, China still requires enabling policies for storage to provide the end-market volumes needed to bolster the fortunes of manufacturers old and new.
JinkoSolar said its new factory will be vertically integrated and will be built in four 14 GW phases.
The European Commission is set to work with the solar sector on a co-programmed European Partnership, designed to enhance research and innovation. SolarPower Europe says the announcement is a “significant step for the industry”.
Researchers in Indonesia have investigated how shading effects may influence the performance ration of a PV system. Their analysis also considered payback period and return on investment.
Sensors from German electronics manufacturer SICK are used in solar PV tracking systems since 2021. Now they are making their way into agrivoltaic applications.
A new survey conducted by Germany’s Fraunhofer ISE showed that 72.4% of the country’s farmers are considering the deployment of an agrivoltaic project. Among the main factors behind this choice, the researchers identified the additional source of income coming from solar power generation and the perceived usefulness of the technology.
Researchers in China have conducted a numerical study on the wind sensitivity of offshore floating solar plants. They have tested six row-arrangements of panels and have found an optimal system configuration that is reportedly less sensitive to wind direction.
Solar, wind and battery storage accounted for nearly 95% of the capacity in transmission interconnection queues as of year-end 2023, based on preliminary data from Berkeley Lab, presented in a staff report from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Researchers in China have designed an organic solar cell the uses an acceptor based on selenium as an alternative to commonly utilized non-fullerene acceptors. The new acceptor enabled the cell to have reduced non-radiative recombination loss and improved dielectric constant.
The Italian PV manufacturer said its FU570-580M Silk Nova panel features half-cut and multi-busbar technology. The new product has a temperature coefficient of -0.29/C and a power output ranging from 570 W to 580 W.
Scientists in the Middle East designed a flexible two-terminal organic/CIGS tandem solar cell for wearable applications. The device achieved an open-circuit voltage of 1.89 V, a short-circuit current density of 17.55 mA/cm2, and a fill factor of 82.79%.
A Spanish research group has investigated how thermoelectric heat pumps may be used as power-to-heat technology to increase temperatures in thermal energy storage systems. It found the proposed system configuration may achieve an overall efficiency of 112.6% at at 135 C.
Researchers at China’s Tsinghua University developed “The development of the new organic hole-transporting material, named T2, represents a significant breakthrough in perovskite solar cells, as it offers a performance advantage over conventional materials like spiro-OMeTAD,” the research’s corresponding author, Chenyi Yi, told pv magazine. “The novel characteristics of T2, including its unique electronic, structural, […]
A position paper from Solar Industry Regions Europe (SIRE) says a balance must be struck between protecting the European solar market and reaching the market objectives of the energy transition.
The Australian government will allocate AUD 1 billion ($652.8 million) to help build a domestic solar panel manufacturing industry to underpin the nation’s future as a renewable energy superpower.
Meyer Burger says it plans to lay off 500 people at its PV module factory in Germany, but some employees might be relocated within the company. It says about 400 workers will lose their jobs.
The municipality of Falconara Marittima, Italy, has installed a free off-grid photovoltaic shade for electric vehicle charging at no cost to users. The system has a capacity of 7 kW and includes a 10 kWh battery.
The US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has added a high-resolution solar data set covering Africa, Eastern Europe and the Middle East on its Renewable Energy Data Explorer tool.
GRIDCO has started accepting bids to set up 500 MW/2,500 MWh of energy storage systems connected to the Indian grid. Bidding closes on April 23.
The Australian government has granted environmental approval for UK developer Lightsource bp to proceed with its plans to build Australia’s largest solar farm and battery energy storage system on any of the country’s main electricity grids.
Europe’s leading battery maker, Northvolt, has started building a battery cell factory in Heide, Germany. The facility will employ roughly 3,000 people with a maximum annual production capacity of 60 GWh. It will begin operations in 2026.
The Chinese manufacturer said its new heat pump has a coefficient of performance of up to 5.3 and a maximum heating capacity of 16 kW. It can reportedly achieve a topwater output temperature of 80 C.
Enapter has secured four new orders for its AEM Nexus 1000 megawatt-class electrolyzer, while Fraunhofer IWU says it has started working on electron beam welding technology to overcome the speed limitations of laser beam scanner welding.
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