Technology and R&D

Australian real estate developer Cbus Property has revealed plans to clad a commercial office tower in Melbourne with a “solar skin” capable of generating 20% of the project’s base building electricity requirements.

Researchers in Spain have developed an n-type crystalline silicon solar cell based on vanadium oxide films deposited by atomic layer deposition. The cell showed an open-circuit voltage of 631 mV, a short-circuit current of 38.36 mA cm-², and a fill factor of 75.8%.

French energy giant Engie has developed a transfer function method based on a model used to assess PV plant variability. Its researchers claim that the new approach does not overestimate the levelized cost of hydrogen of an alkaline electrolyzer powered by offgrid solar.

The Sun Horizon consortium has started to collect performance data on two pilot projects that combine heat pumps with solar systems using hybrid panels on homes in Riga, Latvia. The solution features a heat pump for space heating and domestic hot water and PVT panels to produce power for heating and domestic appliances, with excess power fed to the grid.

The 15%-efficient solar tile is manufactured by Russian producer Solartek with CIGS equipment provided by Sweden’s Midsummer.

Scientists in the United States investigated adding a layer of copper-aluminum oxide to the rear side of a cadmium-telluride thin film cell, finding positive impacts on carrier lifetime and efficiency. With further work, the scientists say, the discovery could open up new routes to higher efficiencies in CdTe solar cells.

The European Commission has published its second annual assessment of the competitiveness of the EU’s renewable energy technology industries, and it had a warning for policymakers about the trade balance trend being experienced by heat pump makers.

Scientists in Brazil have found that photovoltaic modules may be a repository of specialized microbes in tropical regions. According to them, these micro-organisms may be used in sunscreens, pigments for processed foods, chemicals, textiles, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics.

Scientists in Korea evaluated recent progress in the development of low cost, large scale processes for the production of perovskite solar cells on flexible substrates, finding that several challenges remain. The group recommends that research should focus on developing novel processes and materials for perovskite solar cell production, rather than adapting those already in use elsewhere.

Norwegian researchers have sought to assess the theoretical technical feasibility of a country-level energy system based exclusively on distributed solar, electric vehicles, and vehicle-to-grid technologies. They applied the model to sunny Spain and found that 3.45 billion m² of PV systems would be necessary to build a 100% self-reliant energy system.