Technology and R&D

A new paper published by the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory delves into the potential of hybrid power plants combining wind and solar generation. Development of such plants, according to the lab, is driven by the need to increase profitability and consider metrics beyond levelized cost of electricity, taking into account time varying revenues and better managing these renewables inherent variability.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a transparent coating they successfully incorporated into a perovskite solar cell, increasing efficiency and stability. The group says with further improvements the material could be used as a simpler, less expensive alternative to widely used indium tin oxide as a transparent conductive material for a range of applications.

The political statements issued by the Conservatives, Labour, the Lib Dems and even the Green Party almost entirely ignore solar power amid a welter of vague ambitions ahead of the December vote. The increasingly obvious effects of climate change have clearly entered the consciousness of voters, though – the net zero commitment even got as high as page 55 of the Conservatives’ 62-page document.

The 23.22% front-side efficiency of the 244.62 sq cm device – certified by Germany’s ISFH CalTeC – is another landmark for the Chinese manufacturer’s State Key Laboratory of Photovoltaic Science and Technology.

An international research group achieved the result on a 9 sq mm, triple-cation based, n-i-p structured perovskite cell using low solar concentration levels. Device instability, however, remains a challenge.

Scientists at the University of Houston in the United States have developed a new catalyst which they say can efficiently produce hydrogen from seawater. The group says that its discovery significantly advances the development of seawater electrolysis for large-scale hydrogen production.

The Chinese thin-film manufacturer has achieved 25.11% efficiency with a full size silicon heterojunction cell, beating its own record. The efficiency record has been confirmed by Germany’s Institute for Solar Energy Research Hamelin.

A research group at the Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin has conducted an in depth analysis looking at the crystalline structure of methylammonium lead iodide, one of the most promising perovskite materials for solar cell production. The group made a series of discoveries which they hope will help to unlock some of the remaining issues in creating cells that are both stable and highly efficient.

Austrian researchers have proposed gravitational energy storage for locations with low demand. The scientists claim the system they are suggesting can be combined with other forms of storage as well as renewables, costs $50-100 per megawatt-hour of stored energy and $1-2 million per megawatt of installed capacity to develop.

Swedish company Exeger says the dye-sensitized ‘light-harvesting material’ it will produce at its facility will generate enough power to prevent the need to recharge portable electronic devices, lengthening battery lifespan perhaps indefinitely.