Sun-tracking floating solar islands from Portugal
Portugal-based Solaris Float has developed a swiveling floating solar platform with one- or two-axis tracking. It has installed its first project on a lake in the Netherlands. The project consists of 130 PV modules on a single-axis tracker, with an installed capacity of 50.7 kW.
German scientists develop novel heterojunction solar cells
Technische Universität Dresden researchers have designed new solar cells based on phase heterojunctions. They used two perovskite polymorphs to build a novel PV device with an efficiency of 20.1% and a fill factor of 84.17%.
From solar module production to recycling
Environmental impact is a growing consumer consideration when investing in renewable energy. Millions of solar modules are produced every year and a huge amount of energy and high-value materials like silicon, silver, and glass go into their making. As part of moving toward a circular economy, module recycling processes need to be improved and scaled up as a tool to retain the value of those materials. And this will also require improvements in transparency and compliance when it comes to the sourcing and documenting of materials.
In this pv magazine Webinar, we will examine the processes that go into sustainable module production and recycling.
Novel soiling loss measurement system for PV installations
An international research group has developed new technology to measure soiling losses in PV installations, by using a simple pocket light. They said the new system offers similar performance to their reference devices.
Axpo deploys PV system in sun-tracking satellite dish
Swiss utility Axpo has built a PV system inside the dish of a disused satellite run by data-center operator Leuk TDC. Satellite dishes can be used to produce solar power, as they can be flexibly aligned to the sun.
BayWa, Velux sign Europe’s first agrivoltaics-linked PPA
Germany’s BayWa r.e. and Denmark’s Velux have announced the first agrivoltaic corporate power purchase agreement (PPA) in Europe. BayWa will build two solar parks in Spain to power Velux’s operations, with capacities of 60 MWp and 56 MWp. One of them will partly be an agricultural PV project.
The Hydrogen Stream: GKN Aerospace delivers ground-based liquid hydrogen fuel system demonstrator
GKN Aerospace has demonstrated the feasibility of using a liquid hydrogen fuel source to increase the endurance of uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) for search and rescue. Germany, meanwhile, has announced €550 million ($572 million) of fresh funding for hydrogen projects across the world.
Ernst & Young ranks India, China, US as world’s most attractive solar markets
India is the top market for solar investment, according to the latest edition of Ernst & Young’s renewables attractiveness index. Spain, Germany and the United States are the top three markets for corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs).
Italy’s Key Energy positions agrivoltaics, utility storage as new market drivers
The latest edition of Key Energy, Italy’s top solar event, shows that the nation is once again poised for growth. It also shows that incentive schemes can turn agrivoltaics and large-scale storage into market drivers like rooftop and ground-mounted PV.
Photovoltaic signboard with 18.5% efficiency
Dansk Solenergi, a Danish building-integrated PV specialist, has launched a round, 95 W solar module that works as a PV signboard. Its 35 solar cells, which remain hidden behind an image of Earth, have an efficiency of 18.5%.
