Technology and R&D

Nextracker has specifically designed solar tracker solutions for the challenges of the Indian landscape, by addressing issues such as undulating terrain and fluctuating irradiance conditions at utility-scale sites, Vice President and Managing Director Rajeev Kashyap tells pv magazine.

Sax Power has developed a 5.8 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery, priced at €4,957 ($5,403) for end customers, with a smart meter for precise electricity delivery.

Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (Fraunhofer ISE) and Heckert Solar have developed a rooftop solar panel in Germany. The 400 W module, featuring M12 half cells, boasts an efficiency of 20.5%. The collaborative effort led to the establishment of a brand-new production line dedicated to this module series.

A global research group has compared static, customized dynamic, and dynamic-by-default energy allocations at a collective self-consumption project in France. They have found that dynamic customization performs better due to tax benefits.

A Swiss company has developed adhesive film that can be applied on solar panels to make them more aesthetically appealing. The film reduces electricity production by between 10% and 30%, but income from advertising could offset such losses.

Danish researchers investigated how solar-powered Carnot batteries could be integrated into decommissioned coal power plants to produce clean energy. They found that a 300 MW retrofitted plant coal plant with 1.37 GWh of thermal storage capacity has the potential for annual net power production of up to 1,150 GWh for 12 h storage at a levelized cost of energy of €88.09 ($95.97)/MWh.

A group of scientists in the United States has utilized a new passivation strategy based on sulfur-modified methylthio molecules to build an inverted perovskite solar cell with a certified efficiency of 25.1% and remarkable stability. The proposed passivation approach reportedly led to a five-fold increase in carrier lifetime and a three-fold reduction in photoluminescence quantum yield losses.

Inion Software, a Lithuanian PV power plant equipment specialist, has unveiled a platform that combines model-based performance forecasting with plant monitoring functionality. It offers insights based not only on production data, but also weather data, along with site parameters and PV capacity information.

Swedish battery maker Northvolt has developed its first sodium-ion battery in partnership with Uppsala University spinoff Altris. The cell has been validated for an energy density of more than 160 Wh/kg and is designed primarily for energy storage applications.

Fike Corp., a US industrial-hazard protection specialist, has launched Fike Blue, a tested, patented solution that suppresses battery fires and stops cascading thermal runaway.