Technology and R&D

Scientists in China have analyzed the radiative cooling techniques used in combination with solar energy systems such as PV arrays, solar thermal collectors, and concentrated PV installations. They identified five major system typologies based on functionality and working time.

Arkolia has coupled a biogas purification plant in France with a 100 kW rooftop solar array.

The bifacial device showed a power conversion efficiency of 5.2% on the front side through an n-type contact and 2.7% on the rear side through a p-type contact.

Norway’s Glint Solar and the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute have developed an algorithm that is able to automatically calculate wave heights and wind directions at potential locations for floating PV arrays. It considers the geometry of the water surface as well as 40 years of data on wind conditions.

US based battery company Solid Power announced that it has received $130 million in new funding from investors including Ford and BMW. With this backing, the company plans to begin pilot scale production of solid-state lithium-ion batteries suitable for electric vehicles early next year.

The cell features an open-circuit voltage of 1.1 V and a short-circuit current of 26 milliampere per cm-2, which the research team described as the best performance for an inverted perovskite cell based on single-crystal methylammonium lead triiodide. The device was built with a microns-thick absorber layer placed between an electron transport top layer and a hole-transport bottom layer.

German solar association BSW and environmental association Naturschutzbund have published a joint paper that defines criteria that can be used to establish whether a ground-mounted solar plant is able to protect nature and species, as well as to add ecological value to the area it occupies.

The Danish Energy Agency has granted permission, to two power-to-X specialists, for the development of innovative projects without having to comply with the country’s energy legislation. This exemption is part of an upcoming pilot scheme to support new clean energy technologies, including green hydrogen.

Scientists in the U.S. demonstrated a sodium-ion battery with no anode, that retained 99.93% of its initial capacity per cycle. Their design was able to overcome many of the stability issues associated with using ‘pure’ alkali metals in batteries, thanks to carefully minimizing water content in the liquid electrolyte.

Scientists in China have developed a large-area perovskite solar panel by utilizing diphenyl sulfoxide (DPSO) as an electron acceptor. The device was fabricated via slot-die coating, and featured a parallel-interconnection architecture.