Thin-film agrivoltaic solar tubes
German tech company Tube Solar AG has secured €10.8 million to develop its cylindrical agrivoltaic modules. The lightweight devices could also be used on roofs until now considered unsuitable for PV.
New world record for large-area organic PV module efficiency
Scientists in Germany have achieved 12.6% efficiency with a 26 sq cm organic panel and 11.7% for a 204 sq cm device. The feats were achieved with a new module layout and a slower, high-resolution, short-pulse laser structuring process.
Xinte Energy warns of possible polysilicon and inverter glut
The poly manufacturer discussed the impact of Covid-19 on its solar and wind project development business and fleshed out details of global polysilicon oversupply during a pandemic-hit first half of the year.
Polish solar manufacturers unite to compete with imports
Businesses, supported by the government, will join forces to strengthen their industry and contribute to the European Green Deal through made-in-EU products.
Nanostructures for ultrathin flexible wafer
Scientists in South Korea combined two processes to etch a nanostructure of tiny pyramids onto the surface of a silicon wafer. As well as trapping more light and increasing the cell efficiency, the group claims that its nanostructure improves the mechanical flexibility of the cells. This could potentially allow for the use of much thinner silicon wafers than is currently possible in production.
Cooling PV panels with seawater
An Anglo-Egyptian research group has developed a passive cooling method based on saturated activated alumina, with saline water as a cooling agent.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: New 10 GW module factory planned as 3.6 GW of cell capacity comes online
Power company Datang Group is reportedly planning to spend around $148 million replacing a coal-fired power plant with a 200 MW solar project in Shanxi province and two solar players are set to issue stock.
Active cooling for PV modules in floating arrays
Saudi Arabian and Pakistani scientists have created a serpentine cooling block structure to improve the efficiency of PV panels in floating solar projects by around 1.5%. The cooling block can be filled via a low-cost, 15.6 W commercial 12 V DC water pump with cool water.
Photovoltaic shade for greenhouses
French start-up Solar Cloth has secured a patent for a PV shade screen for solar greenhouses.
Keeping PV panels honest
Michelle McCann and Lawrence McIntosh, the partners behind the PV Lab panel-testing facility in Canberra, see Australia’s solar installations as a vast, aggregated virtual power plant.
