Technology and R&D

A UK research team used electroluminescence imaging to inspect 167 PV installations comprising a total of 5 million solar cells. Defects were categorized into into line cracks, complex cracks, edge-ribbon cracks, and potential-Induced degradation (PID).

Scientists in Switzerland have created a system-dynamics model for the adoption of PV and heat pumps in Swiss residential buildings up to 2050. They have examined several scenarios to see how the incentive for PV affects heat pump adoption and the other way around, and they have concluded that strong regulatory changes are necessary to completely decarbonize the residential sector.

A study by the University of Freiburg and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems finds that deploying color-matching solar modules on a building’s roof or facade further increases social acceptance of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV).

China Three Gorges Corp. has nearly completed a 180 MW offshore solar plant, designed for typhoon resistance, off the coast of China.

The Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT) has set a world record for power conversion efficiency at 20.6% for large-area perovskite solar cells exceeding 200 cm². The result, confirmed by Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE (Fraunhofer ISE), marks a significant milestone in solar cell technology.

An international research team has created a digital twin that purportedly enables analysis of different scenarios on PV plants’ aerial monitoring. The new tool is claimed to reduce the risk associated with real-world experimentation and help identify the most effective strategies to improve PV system monitoring.

Japanese scientists have developed a wide-bandgap chalcopyrite solar cell that can reportedly achieve high open-circuit voltage and fill factor values. The device is intended for use in top cell applications in tandem devices.

Chinese manufacturer UtmoLight has developed a 450 W perovskite solar module with a 16.1% efficiency rating. It claims that the panel is currently the largest perovskite PV module available.

Finnish startup Polar Night Energy is building an industrial-scale thermal energy storage system in southern Finland. The 100-hour, sand-based storage system will use crushed soapstone, a by-product from a fireplace manufacturer, as its storage medium.

Chinese manufacturer Deye says its new energy storage system (ESS) features a microinverter, a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery module, and a battery management system (BMS).