The Hydrogen Stream: Construction begins on world’s largest integrated green hydrogen, ammonia plant
In other news, German energy company Uniper said it will test a new salt cavern built for hydrogen storage, while Serbia and Hungary signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on renewable hydrogen.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: GCL Tech starts production at polysilicon fab in Leshan, Jolywood expands backsheet capacity
In other news, Shuangliang secured a large wafer deal from the Chint Group and Tongwei raised the prices of its solar cells.
UK devotes $3.6 million to space-based solar
A government department has put $3.5 million to $7 million aside to help the development of wireless power transmission and ultra-high concentration solar panels.
Polish utility PGE wants to couple 200 MW/820 MWh of battery storage with existing pumped-hydro facility
The project is located 10 km from the Baltic Sea, where PGE is planning to build offshore wind farms with a total capacity of 3.5 GW.
Cooling down solar modules with cotton wicks immersed in water
The novel technique consists of attaching cotton wicks immersed in the water (CWIWs) to the backside photovoltaic module. The water is supplied to cotton wicks from top to bottom by gravity which the scientists said helps the effective absorption of cotton and reduces water consumption.
Vehicle-integrated photovoltaics for low-speed electric vehicles
Canadian startup Capsolar claims its flexible solar modules can be adapted to any type of low-speed electric vehicle with no extra modification and custom work. The panels have an efficiency of 21.3%.
Peel-off patterning technique to create stable semitransparent solar cells for window applications
The cells are intended to be built inside panes of window glass, turning passive buildings into active energy producers. A key hurdle was creating the micron-scale electrical connections between individual cells that comprise a solar module.
Solar thermal panel for large scale applications
The panel has an absorption area of 1.96 m2 and a weight of 27 kg per square meter. According to the manufacturer – Swiss startup TVP Solar – it may be a real booster for thermal output, by combining it with photovoltaics and heat pumps to provide enhanced output per square meter, in particular for low-temperature applications such as district heating.
New kind of black silicon shows improved light-trapping properties
Scientists in Russia have developed a new wide-band optical absorber called ‘black silicide’ which they claim is more adjusted to match AM-1.5 solar spectrum with theoretically higher photogenerated current density. It could be used for tandem operation in photovoltaic devices.
Monolithic perovskite-silicon solar cell with 20% efficiency via new lamination approach
The solar cell achieved an open-circuit voltage of 1.75 V, a short-circuit current density of 15.5 mA cm−2, and a fill factor of 73.6%. It was also able to retain 93% of its initial efficiency after 100 hours at a temperature of 80 C.
