Technology

While other options exist, lithium-ion batteries are becoming the preferred way to store energy from renewable energy sources, with the help of IEC Standards.

The solar energy industry continues to innovate, striving to improve the efficiency and reliability of photovoltaic systems. One of the most promising advancements is the development of bifacial modules combined with tracking systems. These technologies aim to capture more sunlight and convert it into electricity, making solar energy more effective and affordable. IEA PVPS Task 13 is at the forefront of this innovation, working to enhance the performance and reliability of PV systems. This article explores the concept of bifacial tracking, its advantages, challenges, market developments, and the significant contributions of IEA PVPS Task 13.

Conceived by French scientists, the novel system uses ensemble learning and does not require anything more than a commercially available optimizer. Before it makes a decision, the method combines K nearest neighbors, support vector machine, and decision tree learning. Accuracy is reportedly up to 89%.

Dutch researchers used dynamic modelling to uncover the demand for silicon-based PV materials used in a wide range silicon PV technologies, including perovskite-silicon tandem and back-contact modules. The model included calculating the impact of advances in module efficiency and material intensity, as well as circular closed loop recycling.

The 9 cm² cell consists of a top cell based on a perovskite absorber and a bottom cell with a heterojunction (HJT) structure. The results improve on the 28.4% efficiency CEA and Enel achieved for the same kind of cell in December.

The US Department of Energy has announced $62 million for 20 projects to accelerate hydrogen technology, while international researchers have revealed how hydrogen injection into existing natural gas infrastructure could affect 115 million gas meters in the European Union.

Helen, a Helsinki-based energy company, has unveiled plans for a large-scale district heating plant complex. Germany’s MAN Energy Solutions is supplying a 33 MW air-to-water heat pump, the largest ever used for a district-heating plant, with ambient air and renewable electricity for heat generation.

Italy-based Italgam has developed a new technology to prevent pigeons from nesting under rooftop solar panels. The EVO 2.0 solution uses brushes that fit between the backside of the panels and the roof.

Australian PV module manufacturer Tindo Solar has released a new n-type bifacial solar panel featuring an output of 425 W and conversion efficiency of 21.8%.