Modules & Upstream Manufacturing

Researchers from the University of New South Wales have rejected suggestions that end-of-life solar panels could create a “waste mountain” in Australia, saying instead that they could serve as valuable material reservoirs for future production.

Pairing electricity production with snow drift barriers to protect roads is being evaluated by the Minnesota department of Transportation.

Shenzhen Hiking PV has unveiled plans to set up a joint venture with a state-run company to build gigawatt-level perovskite/polysilicon tandem cell and panel production capacity in Guangdong province, while Hoshine has announced progress at its PV integration park in Xinjiang.

Researchers in Japan have developed an automated system to perform photoabsorption and photoluminescence spectroscopy, optical microscopy, and white-light flash time-resolved microwave conductivity tests.

Danish researchers report that treating non-fullerene acceptor-based organic solar cells with vitamin C provides an antioxidant activity that alleviates the degradative processes arising from heat, light, and oxygen exposure. The cell achieved a power conversion efficiency of 9.97 %, an open-circuit voltage of 0.69 V, a short-circuit current density of 21.57 mA/cm2, and a fill factor of 66%.

Saudi Arabia has laid out an ambitious vision to establish itself as a renewable energy hub for the Middle East and beyond. The market is growing rapidly, with solar generation capacity more than tripling in 2023. But obstacles remain for the Kingdom to continue on this PV pathway, and these challenges were up for discussion this week in Riyadh at the SunRise Arabia conference, organized by Solarabic and pv magazine.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, OPIS, a Dow Jones company, provides a quick look at the main price trends in the global PV industry.

Tata Power Renewable Energy has commissioned a 1.04 MW solar system for the Chengmari Tea Estate in India. The installation features 1,900 bifacial PV modules.

Helioplant has developed a 7.2 kW vertical PV installation for high-altitude locations. The system purportedly remains free of snow, even after intense winter precipitation.

The proposed algorithm is intended for harvesting the maximal power in PV systems operating in varying weather scenarios. According to its creators, the new approach can be applied on a low-cost microcontroller.