Distributed Storage

Plus, there was plenty of hope in predictions made by Norwegian institute DNV GL but U.S. households are facing hefty energy bills just as data from Delhi showed the link between industrial shutdowns and cleaner skies.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency is putting US$1.66 million into a vehicle-to-grid trial to demonstrate how electric vehicles can provide grid ancillary services. The REVS research and industry consortium hopes to show how EVs can generate revenue for fleet owners.

Funded by the bloc’s Emissions Trading System, the warchest will look to spend more than €10 billion on bringing clean energy innovations to market over the next decade. The scheme will work with other green recovery programs to secure jobs and lay a foundation on which to restart the European economy.

Responsibility in battery supply chains has become a growing focal point over the last few years and will remain a key theme as demand for mobile phones, electric vehicles, and alternative forms of energy continue to increase. Alexander Preston from SAFE sets out how the application of blockchain technology can deliver visibility, build trust, and facilitate the battery sector’s digital transformation.

A study into the clean energy tech innovation rate required to keep global heating under control may suggest concepts such as lithium-air could yet keep us to the mid-century ambition, but it is also starting to contemplate the temperature rise to be expected if we only achieve net-zero by 2070.

A German research group is trying to determine whether the combination of solar and storage with direct coupling and without the aid of maximum power point tracking (MPPT) electronics is feasible. According to its findings, this particular configuration might be efficient, but it will likely require special panels and batteries.

The storage technology promises ten times the energy density offered by lithium-ion batteries but notorious cycling instability remains a concern. Researchers in South Korea may have come a step nearer a solution.

Plus, one Australian installer says residents who had installed solar and storage at home will be cushioned against thumping, coronavirus-related electricity bill rises this quarter and there are signs of recovery in overall energy consumption levels.

Electric vehicle producer Electra has signed up to use a system which monitors usage during a device’s in-vehicle lifetime to assess the potential for further use in stationary applications.

The industry needs to cut a dependence on lithium-ion battery imports from China, according to Nitin Gadkari, who said the government is looking to support research into alternative technologies.