Leapton Energy debuts 600-625 W TOPCon solar panel based on rectangular wafers
Leapton says its new panels have a temperature coefficient of -0.30% per C and an efficiency of up to 23.14%. They come with a 30-year power output guarantee for 87.4% of the initial yield.
Energy Vault unveils design partnership for gravity storage in skyscrapers
The partnership will see architecture and engineering firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), responsible for some of the world’s tallest buildings, incorporate Energy Vault’s gravity energy storage technology into tall buildings in urban environments and deployable structures in natural environments.
The Hydrogen Stream: Europe launches pilot to improve market transparency
The European Commission says it has started working on a new pilot mechanism, and Italy has agreed to expand collaboration with Austria and Germany, while also supporting cooperation between Italian companies and Finland’s Wärtsilä.
Fraunhofer ISE presents propane heat pump with heating, cooling performance of 5.6
The German research institute said the new heat pump was developed in partnership with ZAE Bayern and Mafac E. Schwarz. The system uses propane (R290) as the refrigerant and is suitable for industrial processes with a temperature range of 50 C to 70 C.
Researchers build 24.4%-efficient perovskite solar cells with room temperature process
Researchers from the U.S. and South Korea have developed a method to make high-quality perovskite films at room temperature. The film was tested in a conventional perovskite solar cell architecture and the result was a power conversion efficiency of exceeding 24%.
East-west rooftop solar ideal for energy communities under net metering
Researchers in Italy have investigated the potential of deploying energy communities based on east-west PV systems and have concluded that these projects, despite their lower energy yields compared to south-oriented installations, show higher shared energy values. They also warned, however, that the presence of a net metering scheme is crucial to make the east-west layout the preferred option.
Perovskite tandem PV integrator secures $4.7 million of US funds
The US Department of Energy (DoE) has provided Tandem PV with $4.7 million in funds to advance the commercialization of the company’s thin-film solar technology.
US startup uses agricultural waste to produce low-cost, safe batteries
US-based start-up SorbiForce uses no toxic products or metals in production of its batteries. It claims its systems are cheaper and safer than lithium-ion batteries and have near zero end-of-life waste.
High-efficiency, all-solid-state sodium-air battery achieves energy efficiency of 86%
Researchers in South Korea have successfully demonstrated the use of free ambient air as a fuel leveraging a sodium-based solid electrolyte to tackle the carbonate issue that has been holding back the rollout of metal-air batteries. Their sodium-air battery cell has demonstrated high efficiency, incresed energy density, and a broad voltage range.
IEC lays ground for flexible silicon solar module standards
In its second monthly column for pv magazine, the IEC highlights the research on flexible crystalline silicon solar cells led by researcher Zhengxin Liu, the Vice Chair of IEC Technical Committee 82, which prepares standards for solar PV energy systems.
