Technology and R&D

A Saudi-Chinese research team has fabricated a perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell without a hole transport layer (HTL) in the perovskite top cell. This innovative strategy, based on the co-deposition of copper(I) thiocyanate and perovskite in the top cell absorber, was intended at solving typical issues of HTLs in tandem devices.

SolarPower Europe has released a handbook on agrivoltaics, detailing agrisolar archetypes, business cases, agricultural and environmental factors, and real-life project examples. It also urges European policymakers to boost support for agrisolar development.

A random malware variant affected about 800 remote monitoring devices at ground-mounted PV plants in Japan in May 2024. Tokyo-based cybersecurity firm Girasol Energy has told pv magazine what happened and how PV asset owners can protect themselves against such incidents.

An international research group has proposed a low-cost testing methodology for solar water pumping systems that can reportedly improve water access in developing countries. The novel approach enables ongoing borehole monitoring without additional fuel costs or interruptions to the water supply.

Italian startup Hybitat Srl has developed a hydrogen production and storage system for long-term storage of surplus residential and commercial solar power. The system includes a main unit with an electrolyzer and fuel cell, as well as a storage unit with 3 kg of hydrogen capacity and 100 kWh of energy capacity.

Australian Vanadium Limited (AVL) has moved a vanadium flow battery (VFB) project to design phase with the aim of developing a modular, scalable, turnkey, utility-scale battery energy storage system (BESS).

Aptera Motors, a California-based solar electric vehicle maker, has demonstrated its first production-intent design vehicle. It says it will offer up to 40 miles (64 km) of daily range from its onboard solar cells.

Argonne Lab uses magnetic resonance to track chemical changes inside working lithium battery cells. without destroying the test cells.

A pre-assembled conduit manufactured in Australian by Victoria-based balance-of-system supplier PV Connections has purportedly reduced installation time of rooftop solar systems by up to 20%.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s latest solar cost model shows that residential solar prices are up, commercial solar is getting cheaper and utility-scale pricing remains flat. The addition of batteries increases costs by $1.75/W for residential projects and $0.75/W for larger installations.