Modules & Upstream Manufacturing

French start-up HelioRec has developed a new floater that can contain water to add more weight and increase its stability on the water. According to its creators, the new product can be 3.5 times more stable than conventional blow-molded floaters.

Chinese scientists have developed a hybrid cooling technique to reduce module temperatures by up to 12.86 C and increase power yields by 7.25%. Their system features a PV module and a separate RC module, integrated with a flat plate heat pipe in between.

An international research group has created a closed-loop, transparent energy platform based on PV power generation and hydrogen production from photo-electrochemical cells. The system is claimed to supply power without interruption and to be transparent enough to be integrated into buildings.

The solar roof was developed in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems.

Designed by scientists in Germany, the module facade has to be integrated with a building’s technical equipment. The rooms behind the facade can be supplied with solar power and at the same time heated, cooled and ventilated.

Researchers in Singapore have created a flexible framework for designing hotspot-resistant shingled modules. Their work is claimed to be perfectly compatible with existing manufacturing techniques.

GAF Energy manufactures its Timberline solar tiles at a new facility in California. It claims that the Timberline Solar roof system is unique because it directly integrates solar technology into traditional roofing processes and materials.

The energy company will buy panels from JinkoSolar, Risen Energy, Canadian Solar, JA Solar, GCL Integration and Longi. Elsewhere, Xinyi Solar and Golden Solar have both announced new transactions to strengthen their business.

An international research team has tested a holographic film based on prismatic concentrators that was presented by Russian scientists last year and is claimed to significantly reduce the operating temperature of solar modules, including that of thermal-photovoltaic devices. According to the new findings, the film is able to lower the operating temperature by around 3.5 degrees Celsius.

Growatt has been on an upward trajectory, recording an over 60% revenue increase in 2021, despite the many challenges posed in the solar industry. Lisa Zhang, global marketing director tells pv magazine how the Chinese PV inverter manufacturer overcame semiconductor chip shortages and rising costs amidst a global pandemic in addition to discussing key markets and new inverter products.