Technology and R&D

The University of California, Merced, has shown that up to 13 GW of solar capacity could be installed over California’s canals, which would require approximately 3 GW of energy storage.

A new report by IEA-PVPS Task 16 looks at the use of “implicit storage” to transform intermittent renewable sources such as solar and wind into firm power generation. It shows that the total cost of the electricity system transformation could be lowered with the optimal use of capacity overbuilding and dynamic curtailment.

Joachim Steenstrup, head of public affairs for Denmark-based Eurowind Energy, speaks to pv magazine about hybrid solar-wind projects, why the hybridization trend makes financial sense, and how PV-wind hybrid installations are the building blocks for the “energy centers” of the future.

Seaward’s new PV150 test instrument measures open circuit voltage, short circuit current, earth continuity, insulation resistance, and operating current. It weighs 0.95 kg and comes with a two-year warranty.

European researchers have looked at how zinc phosphide could be used in solar cell development and found that monocrystalline thin films might perform better than polycrystalline films in electrical devices. They also determined that the performance of such films is directly correlated to the zinc/phosphide ratio.

Researchers in Germany have assessed direct coupling and integration between PV and batteries at the scale of a single PV module. They say their solution could be cheaper and provide superior performance than maximum power point tracking (MPPT) in optimizing PV system performance.

Japan’s Panasonic says its new GB-L1CMH1A meter can operate without changing the state of the fuel cell. It says it can also measure a wide range of hydrogen flow rates and concentrations.

IIT Madras Research Park and US-based First Solar have agreed to cooperate on a range of R&D activities, including the localization of thin-film solar and other next-generation PV technologies in India.

pv magazine speaks with Luciano Mule’Stagno, director of the Institute for Sustainable Energy at the University of Malta, about the prospects of floating offshore PV in Malta and the Mediterranean. He says offshore PV could become competitive with ground-mounted solar in some land-constrained countries.

Felix Krause, co-founder the Vireo Ventures, tells pv magazine that the Berlin-based company plans to make pre-seed and seed-phase investments in startups that are developing innovations for the energy transition.