Turkey provides $410 million for 2 GW solar module factory
Smart Solar Technology has secured Turkish government support to build a vertically integrated solar module factory in Izmir, Turkey.
Inverted perovskite solar cell hits 21.4% efficiency with Ruddlesden-Popper passivation layer
South Korean scientists have used a vertically oriented passivation layer, featuring two-dimensional Ruddlesden-Popper perovskites (RPP), to mitigate nonradiative recombination in inverted perovskite solar cells. They achieved the highest efficiency ever reported for a perovskite cell formed by vacuum deposition.
Underground heat exchanger to cool down solar panels
Spanish scientists have built a cooling system featuring heat exchangers on solar panels and U-shape heat exchangers installed in a borehole at a depth of 15 meters. The researchers claim that this reduces panel temperatures by up to 17%, while improving performance by about 11%.
Recom launches bifacial heterojunction solar panel with 395 W output
Recom’s newest solar panels feature efficiencies of up to 21.68% and a temperature coefficient of -0.24% per degree Celsius. The company is offering a 30-year power output guarantee for 91.25% of the initial yield.
Australian manufacturer unveils solar tile with 19.3% efficiency
Leeson Group, a Melbourne-based renewable energy company, has developed a rooftop PV tile with an efficiency rating of up to 19.3%.
Mondragon Assembly to develop multi-gigawatt automated manufacturing line for BVG
It will be one of the largest and most automated lines in North India, with the capacity to produce high power modules with larger cells. The first phase will have a production capacity of 500 MW.
High-voltage solar panel for narrow roofs
Japan’s Xsol says its new monocrystalline PV modules offer 275 W of power output and an efficiency rating of 20.3%. They measure 1,760 mm × 768 mm × 30 mm and can be installed in two-panel rows.
Three-junction III-V solar cell with 29.3% efficiency
Japanese researchers have built an InGap-GaAs-CIGS solar cell that purportedly has the potential to reach an efficiency of 35%. The device has already achieved an efficiency of 31.0%, an open-circuit voltage of 2.97 V, a short-circuit current density of 12.41 mA/cm2, and a fill factor of 0.80.
Impact of vertical PV on grasslands
A French consortium has commissioned an 89 kWp pilot project featuring 252 vertically installed solar panels. The companies are now trying to assess the impact of vertical bifacial solar panels on grasslands.
Global installed PV capacity could hit 260 GW in 2022
The International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (IEA PVPS) estimates that 173.5 GW of new solar capacity was installed in 2021, and that figure might rise to 260 GW in 2022. pv magazine spoke with the co-chair of the European Solar Manufacturing Council to look into the figures.
