Technology and R&D

Spanish engineer Isigenere has developed floating PV mounting structures based on virgin high-density polyethylene and says the manufacturing process, which features plastic injection, can produce around 1 MW of the product every five days.

Saudi Arabian and Pakistani scientists have created a serpentine cooling block structure to improve the efficiency of PV panels in floating solar projects by around 1.5%. The cooling block can be filled via a low-cost, 15.6 W commercial 12 V DC water pump with cool water.

French start-up Solar Cloth has secured a patent for a PV shade screen for solar greenhouses.

Some 81% of the everyday folk asked how the U.K. should realize its net zero 2050 ambition said solar should be part of the mix and views were also aired on electric and hydrogen transport, home heating and how to incentivize companies to embrace a circular manufacturing model.

An international research group has found that the presence of a few lattice defects in a kesterite PV cell material can actually improve efficiency, rather than lowering it. The group believes that kesterite PV cells could see mass production within the next decade.

The U.S. based researchers said linking solar with hydro in a full hybrid system configuration may result – at best – in the deployment of 7,593 GW for an estimated annual power generation of 10,616 TWh and a 20% reservoir coverage. And combining solar with hydro in this way brings further benefits, including improved system operation at different time scales, more opportunities for storage thanks to pumped hydro, increased utilization rates of transmission lines, reduced PV curtailment, and lower interconnection costs and water evaporation.

Green Hydrogen Australia Group has secured approval for three large-scale green hydrogen plants in its pipeline. The Bundaberg Hydrogen Hub, featuring an 80 MW hydrogen electrolyzer, will produce clean hydrogen for vehicle-developer H2X.

Spread across this week, the 37th EU PVSEC conference brought together companies and research institutes from Europe and further afield. This year’s presentations point to an industry standing at a crossroads. New challenges lie ahead, but there is plenty of optimism surrounding continuing growth and a more central role for PV in energy systems over the next decade. As the conference drew to a close on Friday, pv magazine offers five key takeaways.

Researchers in South Korea have used the process to increase performance and the replicability of large-area organic cells. The method was used during film formation to speed up solvent evaporation.

Scientists led by the University of New South Wales have looked into the long-term degradation of silicon-heterojunction. Their findings suggest that illumination at high temperatures could actually improve cell efficiency, but also risks activating multiple light-induced degradation mechanisms if not carefully controlled.