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Unlocking lithium metal’s stored potential

Several new concepts in lithium-ion storage technology have the potential to greatly the increase the energy capacity of batteries. Among them are lithium metal anodes, which could potentially increase energy density by more than 50%. With a newly optimized electrolyte, scientists at the University of California, San Diego have taken another step toward making the idea a commercial reality.

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Oxford PV receives $43m investment from Meyer Burger and others

The British-German perovskite startup has closed series D funding with another £34 million to bring the money raised in the round to £65 million.

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Trina partners with Aldo Solar in Brazil

Chinese module maker Trina Solar has announced a partnership with the distributor to bring its new mono PERC modules to Brazil’s fast-growing distributed generation market.

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A worldwide, open source model for solar performance

Researchers at Denmark’s Aarhus University have created a modelling tool which they say, by taking into account weather data and the historical performance of PV installations, can precisely predict the output of a solar plant at any location. The tool, say the academics, will help with the planning of new installations and the integration of PV into energy systems.

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Battery scientists make a cracking observation

Scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology in the U.S. used x-ray imaging to observe cracks forming in a solid state lithium battery, a discovery they say changes the understanding of performance of solid state batteries and which could lead to more durable systems.

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Italy’s FuturaSun opens 500 MW module fab in China

The company has opened a 500 MW factory in Jiangsu province. The fab will produce monocrystalline multi-busbar modules and, according to FuturaSun, plans are already under way to double its capacity as it continues to take the fight to the big boys.

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Researching some cool new battery materials

Scientists from China and the United States have developed an additive for electrolyte materials they say could improve the operating temperature range for lithium-ion batteries, allowing them to operate down to minus 40 degrees Celsius without compromising performance at temperatures up to 60 degrees Celsius.

The weekend read: One side or two

Bifacial modules are here to stay. But even as manufacturers commit further capacities to two-sided module production spanning a whole range of technologies, there are still challenges to overcome, to fulfill predictions that bifacial will represent almost 40% of all modules produced inside the next decade. Flash testing conducted at the end of cell and module production presents one of these, and there is plenty of debate among equipment suppliers as to how this manufacturing stage should treat bifacial cells and modules.

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EPFL scientists put perovskite through its paces

Scientists working at Switzerland’s École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, in the lab of renowned PV scientist Michael Grätzel, have developed a new method for testing perovskite solar cells that they say combines the advantages of laboratory and outdoor testing and will contribute to the creation of industry standards for characterizing perovskite stability.

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Solid (state) plans announced by imec

Belgian research institute imec this week said it has set a performance record of 400 watt-hours per liter – at a charge rate of 0.5 – for a solid state lithium metal battery. The institute says it is working with the University of Hasselt to scale up production of solid state cells on a pilot line in Belgium.

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