Modules & Upstream Manufacturing

Taiwanese researchers have added bathocuproine (BCP) molecules to three different kinds of solvents used in perovskite cells and have ascertained how this combination increases the carrier mobility and passivates the electron-poor defects. Furthermore, they utilized a polyelectrolyte (P3CT-Na) thin film as hole transporting material instead of commonly-used thin films based on PEDOT:PSS.

The bloc should accelerate investment into mining and processing within its shores, as well as ramping up recycling, according to European employers and trades unions, with coal workers already equipped with the necessary transferable skills.

Spanish PV product distributor Techno Sun has published a report analyzing the consequences of high-power modules for installers and distributors. The guide provides a method to calculate the additional costs of large solar panels from different points of view.

US scientists have made light-tracking, three-junction tandem PV cells with an active area of 650 × 650 square micrometers. They are based on indium gallium phosphide, gallium arsenide, and indium gallium arsenide antimony nitride and use photonic crystal film for maximum efficiency.

Rivalry is an integral part of the global business landscape, particularly in an industry like solar where products have become commodities. However, as Steven Davies, EMEA market manager for DuPont Teijin Films underlines, when it comes to sustainability, cross-industry partnerships are increasingly necessary to overcome the challenges companies are facing, including changing consumer demands and supply chain risks posed from climate change disruptions.

Talesun has begun work on its 5 GW factory in Siyang county, Jiangsu province and China’s second-largest grid operator, China Southern Power Grid, has announced around 200 GW of renewable energy capacity will be deployed on its service area over the next 10 years.

Following the successful launch of its MRac Floating PV Mounting System G4N in 2020, Mibet New Energy (Mibet), a China-based solar PV product manufacturer, is exploring new business opportunities both at home and abroad. In an interview with pv magazine Chen Xi, founder and president of Mibet talks about expansion plans, the importance of a good supply chain, and strategies for staying competitive.

A US-Taiwanese research group has created a new spin coating method which they claim can be applied in the mass production of mini perovskite panels. The scientists used sulfolane as an additive in the perovskite precursor to convert the perovskite phase via a new reaction route. They demonstrated a mini-module with a power conversion efficiency of 16.06% and an active area of 36.6 cm2.

Suppliers of encapsulant materials – plastic sheets that are heated to laminate together the components in PV module stacks – are rapidly expanding to keep pace with module manufacturing in Asia and other parts of the world. Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) continues to dominate the market, but new developments in module technology are driving a slow shift to more costly polyolefins.

Solar module developers have long recognised the detrimental effects heat has on cell performance but West Australian company Sunovate has pointed to solar PV-thermal (PVT) technology as an opportunity to value add by improving efficiency.